Watch collectors have a tendency towards snobbery. Don’t worry, I’m the same, as are most proper collectors. Many a time I’ve been close to pulling the trigger on some cool, ultra-accessible watch, only to falter at the last hurdle: its quartz movement. Logically though, that makes very little sense. Quartz is generally cheaper to build than an automatic movement, but from a chronometric, technological standpoint… they’re just better. Sure, you need a battery and there isn’t the romance of a fully mechanical calibre, but the bottom line is that they’re more accurate and reliable than 99% of other movements. So, for once, don’t let your snob side win—there are some seriously cool quartz watches to buy, and here are a few of the best.
Casio G-Shock GA2100BM-7A2
Don’t worry about the chemistry-sounding name here, all you need to know is that this is a summer-ready new twist on the transparent-cased CasiOak, G-SHOCK’s octagonal cased, shock resistant answer to the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak. It’s become a cult icon in and of itself and in this new version the see-through white case is joined by a bright metallic, PVD dial in bright, icy blue. It still has the brand’s signature ana-digi display, still has that chunky 45.4mm diameter, and still has enough shock and water resistance to take on anything. There’s a reason G-SHOCK’s iconic and this is it.
Case/dial: 48.5mm x 45.4mm diameter x 11.8mm thickness resin case, icy blue metallic PVD dial with ana-digi display
Water resistance: 200m (20 bar)
Movement: Quartz
Strap: Resin strap
Price: £99.90
Vostra Electro Yellow
The second brand from the guys behind RZE takes the Singaporean tool watch maker’s signature accessibility in a new direction. Ever wanted the look of an IWC Ingenieur, but actually fun? Vostra is for you. The multi-faceted steel case, complete with an integrated bracelet, comes with a selection of eye-catching dials – the yellow being a particular highlight. Indeed, there’s something Bauhaus adjacent in its yellow, red, and white with blocky subdial hands, all powered by a Seiko Mecaquartz – definitely not the last watch to use that type of movement, but one of the most exciting.
Case/dial: 40mm diameter X 13mm thickness, stainless steel case with integrated bracelet, yellow dial
Water resistance: 100m (10 bar)
Movement: Seiko calibre VK63 Meca-Quartz
Strap: Stainless steel flatlink bracelet
Price: £170
Boldr Venture Field Medic II
The uber-accessible Venture is a versatile field watch, but for me its coolest incarnation is as a pulsometer in Boldr’s Medic II. The crisp, ultra-legible white dial has a scale fit for doctors in the field and the mecaquartz movement – a quartz movement with a mechanical chronograph module – won’t let you down whether it’s a matter of life-and-death or simply not wanting to set your watch after a weekend off the wrist. However you wear it, the Field Medic II is a lightweight, everyday timekeeper with a fittingly lightweight, everyday price.
Case/dial: 38mm diameter x 12.2mm thickness, titanium case, white dial with pulsometer scale
Water resistance: 200m (20 bar)
Movement: Seiko calibre VK64 Meca-Quartz
Strap: NATO strao
Price: £232
Nuun Official Origen N 1837
Let’s be honest. You, yes you, are never going to own a Tiffany blue Nautilus. It’s not going to happen. Rather than mope however, you can get the same look for a fraction of a fraction of the price with Nuun Official’s Arabic-numeralled tribute to that unobtainable model. With the same muscular shoulders and an almost pantone-perfect dial, it’s a watch that’s even more fun if you’re self-aware about it. And given how comfortably the Origen sits on the wrist, you might end up wearing it a lot more than you imagined.
Case/dial: 40.5mm diameter x 10mm thickness, carbon x tech case, Tiffany blue dial with Arabic numerals
Water resistance: 100m (10 bar)
Movement: Miyota calibre 1S13 quartz
Strap: Nanotech rubber strap
Price: £254
Nite MX10 Blackout
Military watches are a natural fit when it comes to quartz accuracy and reliability. But when a watch isn’t just mil-spec but issued to the honest-to-god SAS, you know it’s a serious piece of kit – and that’s the case with the Nite MX10, which was issued to our renowned Special Forces in 2005. The Blackout takes that rugged, stealthy field watch blueprint and amps up the night mission vibes and plenty of tritium gas illumination. It’s cool, means business, and has a price tag that won’t make the quartermaster cry.
Case/dial: 39mm diameter x 11.6mm thickness, stainless steel case, black dial with tritium illumination
Water resistance: 100m (10 bar)
Movement: Ronda calibre 715 quartz
Strap: Nylon strap
Price: £330
Tissot PRX Quartz
Between its sleek, 1970s integrated bracelet look and its innate accessibility, it’s no wonder the Tissot PRX has been one of the most successful watches of the past few years. This new version crowns that sharply faceted case with an eye-catching red dial, tapping into a summer-worthy trend for bright colours that aren’t available in the automatic version. Given it makes the already affordable PRX an impossible-to-resist impulse buy, that’s no bad thing.
Case/dial: 40mm diameter x 10.40mm thickness, stainless steel case, red dial
Water resistance: 100m (10 bar)
Movement: Swiss quartz
Strap: Stainless steel bracelet
Price: £335
11i11 Saat
From the name, 11i11 Saat, you’d expect something decidedly atypical from this Vienna-based brand, and you’d be very, very right. The dial alone is a funky mix of different numerals defined by its record-like coloured ring (in black or white) around a brushed metal core. But that wasn’t the first thing you noticed, was it? That would be the crown, which has been moved to eight o’clock and incorporated into the dial-side numeral, like the eight can’t be contained by anything as prosaic as a bezel. Set on your choice of a huge selection of Hirsche straps, it’s a wrist statement if ever there was one.
Case/dial: 41.4mm diameter x 9.9mm thickness, stainless steel case, black and white dial
Water resistance: 50m (5 bar)
Movement: Ronda calibre 715Li, quartz
Strap: Stainless steel mesh bracelet
Price: £359
Ferro & Co Race Master
Nothing says high speed like a high-contrast panda dial – or reverse panda in this case – especially when accompanied by a speedometer-worthy flash of colour. In fact, with its retro bicompax layout, orange chronograph hand, and a dial full of vintage charm, it’s almost a surprise to find a modern quartz movement inside Ferro’s Race Master. It’s proof positive that just because a watch is accessible, that doesn’t mean skimping on style.
Case/dial: 39mm diameter x 13.15mm thickness, stainless steel case, reverse panda dial with orange chronograph hand
Water resistance: 50m (5 bar)
Movement: Japanese calibre OS21, quartz
Strap: Stainless steel bracelet
Price: £405
Certina DS Action Titanium Light Blue
If there’s one place you don’t want your movement conking out, it’s a few hundred metres below the water. Plenty of brands go to extreme lengths to protect their movements when the answer’s simple: just use quartz. 40mm titanium case in point, the Certina DS Action in titanium. Pairing 300m water resistance with a reliable quartz movement and summer-ready light blue dial-bezel combo, this is a proper diving watch for proper divers. And accessible as it is, you’re much more likely to actually use it than your classic Submariner.
Case/dial: 40mm diameter x 11.20mm thickness, titanium case, light blue dial
Water resistance: 300m (30 bar)
Movement: Certina calibre F06.412, PrecidriveTM quartz
Strap: Titanium bracelet
Price: £485
Neotype LM02 Type C
One of the benefits of a quartz movement? A brand is free to lavish all their attention on the case. Just take a look at Neotype’s stealthy LM02 Type C, which combines a satisfyingly solid blacked-out PVD case with old radium lume and a ceramic bezel insert. It looks and feels better than 90% of mainstream mechanical chronographs and with 200m water resistance makes for a great everyday wearer, with more aesthetic impact than your usual go-to steel chrono.
Case/dial: 41mm diameter x 13.8mm thickness, black PVD stainless steel case, black dial with old radium lume and ceramic bezel
Water resistance: 200m (20 bar)
Movement: Seiko calibre VK64 Meca-Quartz
Strap: Black FKM and additional khaki NATO strap
Price: £490
Anders & Co AC1 Chronograph
Not all quartz-equipped watches are mass-produced or even look particularly modern. The AC1 Chronograph from Anders & Co is both produced in limited numbers and has a look you’d expect to see at your local vintage dealer. Between the salmon dial with black indexes and the surprisingly good finishing – mirror polishing, satin-brushing and a sapphire crystal – the AC1 feels like a million dollars, while only costing a few hundred. Or in good, British money, less than £500.
Case/dial: 38mm diameter x 11.5mm thickness, stainless steel case, salmon dial with black indexes
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: Seiko calibre VK64 Meca-Quartz
Strap: Leather strap
Price: £467
Furlan Marri Rosso Grigio
One of the first brands to really make quartz cool, Furlan Marri’s vintage-styled mecaquartz debut line is still one of the most handsome, archivally flavoured racing watches at its price point. The Rosso Grigio version with its blend of greys and flashes of red is a semi-monochromatic beauty, right down to the signature ‘Tasti Tondi’ engraved chronograph pushers. Sure, Furlan Marri’s mechanical pieces are the focus these days, but this is still part of their collection for good reason. Long may it stay there.
Case/dial: 38mm diameter x 11.5mm thickness, stainless steel case, grey dial with red accents
Water resistance: 50m (5 bar)
Movement: Seiko calibre VK64 Meca-Quartz
Strap: Leather strap
Price: CHF 555 (approx. £515)
Herbelin Newport Chronograph
The accessible French brand’s flagship, the Newport, is defined by its atypical central lugs, framing the industrial style case complete with visible bezel screws. It makes for a distinctive outline for a chronograph, especially in the handsome silver version with blue chronograph subdials. With its mix of sporty practicality – amped up with a quartz movement – and Mediterranean elegance, this is Herbelin’s Gallic watchmaking at its most accessible. For the already accessible watchmaker, that’s really saying something.
Case/dial: 43mm diameter stainless steel case with bezel screws, silver dial with blue chronograph subdials
Water resistance: 100m (10 bar)
Movement: 5040 D quartz
Strap: Leather strap
Price: €750 (approx. £650)
Junghans 1972 Chronoscope Sports Edition 2025
Sports! While you might know them best for their Bauhaus Max Bill collection, Junghans have a proper sporting heritage, and this annual edition pays homage to that in an archival, cushion-cased chronoscope. The livery here isn’t tied to a certain car, but the grey and gold, complete with a racing number six, makes its classic car inspirations hard to miss. Fitted on a perforated leather strap, this has all the aesthetics of a vintage racing watch – and build quality of a more expensive piece – without needing to hitch yourself to a specific team.
Case/dial: 43.3mm diameter x 11.3mm thickness, stainless steel case, matt anthracite with gold-coloured vertical double stripe dial
Water resistance: 100m (10 bar)
Movement: Jungans calibre J645.83 quartz
Strap: Perforated leather strap
Price: £890
TAG Heuer Formula 1 Solargraph
Very few quartz models can claim to be icons, but TAG Heuer’s colourful, 1980s-flavoured Formula 1 is among that storied few. The new 2025 revamp of the collection carries on that tradition with a range of fun, colourful pieces fit for the new F1 timekeeper, with liveries dedicated to the Grand Prix. Equipped with solar powered movements and a mix of steel and bio-polyamide cases – including the collection’s signature chunky bezels – the nine new pieces are a fun entry point into the de facto racing watch brand.
Case/dial: 38mm diameter x 9.9mm thickness, bio-polyamide and stainless steel case, black dial
Water resistance: 100m (10 bar)
Movement: Tag Heuer calibre TH50-00 Solargraph, quartz
Strap: Rubber
Price: £1,650
Rado True Square Thinline
As well as affordability and reliability, Rado use quartz for one main reason: thinness. As there’s no rotor, quartz movements can be paper thin and the True Square Thinline leverages that svelte silhouette with its tactile, curvaceous 37mm ceramic case and bracelet. With a little flash of mint green against the otherwise black dial, this is a lovely example of Rado’s more artistic side, a world away from the ever-practical Captain Cook. And a full ceramic watch for under £2,000? That’s worth taking note of.
Case/dial: 37mm diameter x 5mm thickness, high-tech ceramic case, black dial with mint green accent
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: Rado calibre R420, quartz
Strap: Ceramic bracelet
Price: £1,800
Cartier Tank Must de Cartier
All the Parisian elegance of Cartier wrapped in iconic art deco décor, the Tank is a classic in the truest sense – and the Must de Cartier collection brings it down to a much more accessible level. Even better though, the simple, coloured dials and matching straps give the Tank a new, fashion-forward aesthetic twist. It’s a fresh look for a watch that’s been around since 1914 and that alone is worth paying attention to. Pair that with slim, vintage proportions and you have a très à l’aise dress watch.
Case/dial: 33.7mm height x 25.5mm width x 6.6mm thickness stainless steel case, coloured dial with art deco style
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: Quartz
Strap: Leather strap
Price: £3,500
