If there’s one thing Seiko is better at than producing affordable watches for consumers on a budget (and, to be fair, pretty damn expensive watches for people not on a budget), it’s producing affordable watches on a budget that one can only buy in Japan — the notorious “JDM” product, for Japan Domestic Market. JDM watches have confounded and generally pissed off American Seiko fans for years (though, of course, the Japanese Seiko corporation is well within its rights to do whatever the hell it wants and to honor its own domestic market), and today is no different — meet the new Seiko TiCTAC JAD Anniversary Edition SZSB006 and SZSB007 watches, produced in celebration of Japanese retailer TiCTAC’s 35th anniversary.
Both watches are time-and-date models housed in 40mm stainless steel cases with 100m of water resistance, powered by the automatic Seiko 4R35 movement, and retailing for roughly $480. One model (SZSB006) is available on a steel bracelet, and one (SZSB007) on a faux-alligator strap. The SZSB006 is an interesting
amalgamation of disparate design elements, spanning decades of watch development: it features a matte black dial with printed hour markers as well as Arabic markers at 12 and 6 o’clock, but uses cathedral hands (a feature of watches from the first half of the 20th century), “aged” lume, and a date wheel. Overall this makes for a handsome watch, albeit one that’s historically confused. Not that that should matter much — if a watch is good looking, then to hell with it.
The SZSB007 features more or less the same design, with the exception of the hour markers, which are applied rather than printed, the Arabic numerals (which feature a closed six), and the dial color itself, which is done here in a grey sunburst color and a less vivid (and less faux aged-looking) lume. An imitation crocodile strap makes this one look more appropriate for dinner and less appropriate for the field.
You can learn more about both watches from TiCTAC’s online store — they’re available now for purchase or from September 21st from affiliated partners, but you’re gonna need a Japanese IP address in order to pull the trigger. Sorry, America.
The best way to catch up on the day’s most important product releases and stories. Read the Story
