This Affordable Seiko Is One of the Most Unique Watches Regardless of Price

Late last year, I was able to shoot a watch shopping episode with one of the biggest creators on this platform, Casey Neistat. So Casey was definitely an inspiration for me in just getting into content creation. I remember buying my first Canon 70D ultimately because of his vlogs, and years later, I started to post videos for myself on this channel about watches. He purchased a couple of watches during our shopping spree, but one stood out more than the rest, an unassuming Seiko quartz watch. This watch retails for $275 at the time of recording this, and it definitely looks pretty generic, and is a piece that you wouldn't give a second look, that is, until you learn its secret, as this watch was designed to indicate the time through touch, not sight. And after that trip to Derek Mann's store with Casey, apparently this watch is completely sold out until March or April, that's at least what I'm hearing, and that's completely nationally here in the United States. So I don't think Seiko is expecting a surge in a Braille watch anytime soon, but I can't wait that long to talk about it, because I think this piece is so cool for its price. So in this video, we're gonna give this watch a closer look, or should I say feel, of the Seiko Essential Series, the visually impaired. So for those asking, the specific reference for this model is the S23159. And as cool as this piece is, the idea for a watch that caters to the visually impaired isn't new. Of course, a minute repeater watch with an audible chime would be useful in a visually impaired scenario, but a so-called tactile watch, one that allows the user to tell the time by physically touching the dial, has been around for quite a while as well, with Abraham Louis Breguet designing a jewelry watch for Napoleon's wife, Josephine, in 1799. The enameled watch used a jeweled arrow to mark the time, with diamond hour markers around the outside of the case. Later designs came in the form of pocket watches with hunter-style cases featuring hinged covers that revealed a dial without a crystal, allowing the time to be ascertained by touch. Some early examples of tactile wristwatches came from Russia and the Soviet Union, with brands like Rochetta producing watches showcasing a spring-loaded hinged crystal to protect the dial and hands beneath. Both Seiko and Citizen have a history of watches with tactile dials, with the models dating back to the mid-20th century. Today, the small but important market is served by several companies that take different approaches to watches for the visually impaired. With the advent of microelectronics, talking quartz watches have become a solution for many, with brands like Five Senses offering an inexpensive range of analog and digital quartz watches that audibly state the time. But that might not be the answer for a user who wants a solution that offers more discretion in certain situations. For them, there's still the need for a tactile watch, and there's still a number of different options out there, from smartwatches to pieces like the E1 Bradley with its use of two balls that travel around the dial, to a short list of others. That said, among all the examples, this Seiko reference is a nice sweet spot, as it does the job discreetly, with only the user knowing of its added benefit and never drawing unwanted attention in the process. For this very purpose-built watch, the natural starting point is the dial. And given its specific use case, Seiko has kept things simple, with a minimalist silver gray dial that sticks to the bare essentials. Black printing is used for the minute track, as well as the text below 12 that consists of the Seiko wordmark and quartz. The fundamental silver applied indices are designed to be read with the fingertips, so larger rectangles mark the quarter hours in contrast with the smaller ones in between, and then there's a split rectangle at 12. There's no loom anywhere on the dial or handset, but that's not really a consideration given the watch's specific design. Since this is a watch that needed to be read by touch, the handset needed to also be specifically engineered to withstand repeated handling. Where most watch hands are ultra-thin in profile, this Seiko's are thicker by a good margin, engineered to stand up to daily use. You'll also notice that this is going to have the absence of a second hand, as they're usually far thinner, which would require constant movement, leading to an increased chance of breaking. How you access the dial is by way of a flip-up acrylic crystal attached with a hinge above 12, much like you would find on a Hunter-style pocket watch. The crystal and surrounding bezel lift via a tab at six and click back into place when not in use. Acrylic makes the most sense for this design due to its inherent durability and shatter resistance, and the crystal has a pronounced dome extending above the bezel. The acrylic glass will fall victim to scratching over time, however, with the help of Polywatch and things of that sort, most scratches can be easily removed unless they're big gouges. It probably goes without saying, but this watch doesn't come with any listed water resistance by Seiko, and in fact, it states in the manual that the watch is not water resistant at all, although some online sources claim that the rating is 30 meters. You can see a gasket setting the perimeter to the dial when the crystal tab is lifted. My advice, though, is to err on the side of caution and to avoid water altogether, especially when having the acrylic glass lifted. As for the rest of the case's attributes, it is polished on the bezel and on the case sides with brushing hitting the rest of the surface areas. The watch has a fairly standard profile except for its more unorthodox lug ends. Despite this, it still uses traditional 18-millimeter spring bars, and this is a number you're going to wanna keep in mind because the high-gloss black synthetic feeling strap leaves a lot to be desired with a cheap stamp deployant feeling like its price. Case dimensions check out like so, a 36-millimeter diameter, a thickness of 11.8 millimeters, and a very compact 42.4-millimeter lug-to-lug wearing true to its size given the larger dial opening. The unsigned crown pushes in and offers a decent grip despite its smaller profile, and the solid case back is bare bones in terms of decoration screwing into place as well. Now, as likely expected, the visually impaired uses the Seiko Quartz Caliber, the 7C17, a no-fuss movement that has seven jewels, offers an accuracy of plus or minus five seconds per month, and a five-year battery life. But there is an important distinction to make about this caliber. So the 7C17 is a high-torque movement, a must in watches that use heavier handsets, which is certainly the case here. As mentioned earlier, the hands are much thicker than usual, so a more powerful quartz movement is required. Additionally, since the hands are often being touched by the user, they also need to be able to withstand those forces not normally found in traditional quartz watches. The one benefit working in this caliber's favor for power consumption is the absence of a second hand, leaving more energy to drive the hour and minute hands. This caliber was specifically designed for this purpose, and with its extended battery life, will be a reliable companion for years without the need for adjustment. So a big reason why I wanted to cover this watch, really the main reason why I wanted to cover this watch, was that shoot with Casey Neistat last year. Derek Mann, when we were hanging out at his store before Casey showed up, he was running a little bit behind. I let it slide because he was working on it. He was coming to get a watch, so he'll be better next time. But we had some time to kill, and we were just shopping around ourselves, just thinking about what would Casey pick during this shopping spree. We were just surrounded by all these watches. Some of them were in the thousands, some of them were in the tens of thousands, and you have Casey, who's a pretty successful guy, could probably pick out anything he wanted in the store. But then we stumbled on the Seiko case, and Derek and I just locked eyes, and we just looked at each other, we're like, what are the odds that Casey just picks out a Seiko? And we both just agreed that that was probably where he was gonna end up. It just made sense. We didn't have any idea of his intentions for the shoot, which made it pretty difficult. He came in originally wanting to get a watch for his wife, and then it just unraveled into I wanna get a watch for myself. So it was a fun episode. We were surrounded by all this opulence in the store, but then when we went over to Seiko, Derek and I knew that this was a piece that we wanted to show him. We just felt like it was a Casey Neistat watch. We specifically discussed the visually impaired watch beforehand, knowing that it would be a strong conversation piece, and I think that's a big thing that Casey looks for. Well, it ended up being the star of the show, with Casey trying on well over a dozen watches and ultimately choosing this one and another watch, and if you haven't seen the video, I'll link to it down below. But that entire experience and this watch served as a reminder of an essential concept in watch collecting that I talk about all the time. Dollars spent aren't the way enjoyment is measured. This watch has an admirable purpose, and it's through this function that it becomes a unique story to tell, and more so a representation of why so many of us love these silly little objects in the first place. It's not about wowing people with this over-the-top opulence sometimes. Like, that's not why so many people buy watches. It's this story it can tell, and many watches, we maybe give them a little more credit than they probably deserve sometimes, and being able to tell a story immediately, this watch excels at that, and it's one that for $275, if you're trying to have a fun little party trick, but also just have a watch that can bring you joy, and doing something that many brands are not even thinking about, and showing that there's something that you can express, even at price points that are much more attainable than others, that's why I think this watch is so cool. And I don't blame Casey for picking this one out, and it's a watch that I now know many other people wanna add to their collection. Whether those intentions are just to follow what Casey picked out, and seeing this one get in the spotlight, I don't think it matters. I think this watch represents so much of what I like about watchmaking. It's not about the flair always, it's about what you like, and can you tell a story in the process. But all right guys, that's all we have for this one, looking at the Seiko, visually impaired Seiko Essentials. Come on man, that's so much fun, you can't get over that. But if you enjoyed this video, please give it a thumbs up, subscribe, hit the bell icon, really do appreciate that. Also check out teddybaldister.com, full authorized dealer for 35 brands. Every purchase from our website comes with quick and fast fulfillment, dedicated customer support, and a full factory warranty for all the products that we offer. In addition, if you wanna support us in allowing us to continue to produce content on this channel, the best way to do that is through buying a watch from us. I know you can get a watch in a lot of different places nowadays, totally understand, but if you are in the market, we absolutely love to have your business, allows us to keep doing what we're doing here, we love what we do. Guys, thank you again so much for watching, be well, and I will see you all very soon.