Red Line watches – Reliable and Affordable
If you’re looking for a reliable, affordable timepiece with bold, colorful styling, you might want to consider Red Line watches. You might not be familiar with them, but they’ve been in business for about 30 years and are owned by Swiss Watches International, a company that also offers A_Line, Lucien Piccard and Swiss Legend.
The corporate ownership is a bit of a misdirection, as Red Line watches have movements that are made in Japan. That said, they’re high quality, reliable timepieces that are colorful and stylish and offer a great warranty and a terrific price point. All in all, they make a great buy for someone on a budget.
Read on for the full Red Line watches review.
Build Quality
Movements
Innovation
Styling and Features
Care and Maintenance
Warranty
Prices
Where to Buy
Summary
Red Line Watches Build Quality
The build qualityis certainly adequate; most of their models offer water resistance to 100 meters and feature stainless steel cases. Faces are protected by mineral crystal, and movements are sourced from reliable Japanese manufacturers. Given their price point, we find that the watches are well made and should work well for years with minimal trouble.
Red Line watches are available with either automatic mechanical or quartz electronic movements. On the models we’ve seen, those movements were sourced from either Seiko or Miyota (Citizen) in Japan. These are high quality, reliable movements made by companies who specialize in precision.
Most of the innovation to be found comes in the styling; at the price point the company targets, there’s not a lot of room for technical innovation. That said, they do offer many models with chronograph features and a few with date complications. Several even offer multiple time zones, so these models are more than just bare-bones timepieces. You’ll find a lot of variety of features in the product line.
Click here to shop for Red Line watches at Amazon.com
The styling of Red Line watches is big, bold, and colorful, with oversized faces, and wild colors. You’ll see reds, blues, oranges and more and not just the usual black, white, and silver. While there are a few models that have traditional styling, most of the watches we’ve seen favored the sporty look, with many of their models offering chronograph features with multiple dials and buttons. Straps tend to be rubber, as befits a sporty line of timepieces.
Care and maintenance should be minimal. Most of the company’s models have highly reliable quartz electronic movements, which don’t need any maintenance aside from battery replacement every few years.
Mechanical movements do need attention; you should contact the company to see about scheduled maintenance, if any. Aside from these factors, you should store your watch in a cool, dry place and keep them away from extremes in temperature or strong magnetic fields, as these can affect the performance of the movement. With proper care, you’ll find that your watch should run well for years with minimal trouble.
The warranty is exceptional; the company warrants their product for five years from the date of purchase against defects in materials and craftsmanship. Even some high end brands, such as Rolex or Patek Philippe only offer a two year warranty, so this is a great deal for buyers. It’s also surprising, given that these are relatively inexpensive timepieces. The warranty is one of the best in the industry.
You’ll find thatprices, as designer watches go, are quite modestly priced. While we have seen a few models priced as high as $600, with many models showing a list price of about $495, many retailers offer them at discounted prices, and most of the product line can be purchased for about $100 or so.
Given that the company offers about four hundred different models and styles, that gives buyers a lot to choose from, and as we’ve seen some models priced at under $50, the pricing is attractive enough that you may want to buy two or three.
There’s not a lot of collector interest in the brand; older, no longer available models don’t sell for anything more than they would if they were still available. That doesn’t mean that they won’t be collectible later, but for now, you’ll just have to regard them as a bargain, which they certainly are.
You can find the brand for sale at a number of retailers, especially brick and mortar stores. Many department stores and a few jewelers carry them, and you’re likely to find them for sale at any store that also carries the company’s sister brands, such as Lucien Piccard and Swiss Legend.
You can also buy at a number of online retailers, making them relatively easy to shop for and buy. Keep in mind that the company’s product line is quite large, so it’s unlikely that any single retailer is going to stock everything. Still, most retailers should have a good representative sample for sale.
Red Line Watches Summary
Whether Red Line watches are suitable for you depends on a number of factors. If you like gold, or diamonds, or elaborate mechanical complications or extreme water resistance, they’re probably not for you.
If you like an affordable casual watch, with some sporty touches and a great deal of color, you’ll find that they’re a good choice for you. When you add in the fact that the warranty is one of the best in the industry and that these watches are incredibly affordable, you’ll find that they may suit you just fine.
They’re so affordable and come in such a variety that we think you may be tempted to buy more than one. All in all, Red Line watches offer good quality, good value, and a nice selection of models and styles. They’re definitely worth considering for buyers on a budget.