Photo: Two Broke Watch Snobs
Seiko 5 SNZH53 Review & Complete Guide
When thinking about affordable automatic watches, Seiko is usually among the top on the list. Seiko is known to make high quality automatic timepieces that are durable, reliable, and of course long-lasting. And offer them at very attractive prices that not many competitors can compete with.
This is often why Seiko is often the go-to choice for novice watch collectors and watch enthusiasts.
In this article, we are reviewing one of Seiko’s many loved and appreciated automatic sports watches. We are reviewing the Seiko 5 SNZH53.
Seiko 5 SNZH53 Review
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The Seiko SNZH53 is part of Seiko’s ”5” collection. This means it must meet five different criteria, which are as follows:
- Automatic winding
- Day/date displayed in a single window
- Water resistance
- Recessed crown
- Durable case and bracelet
And the Seiko SNZH53 meets all of these criteria and many more. It’s a good-looking, robust, sporty timepiece. At about 200 USD, it offers great value for money, and it is difficult to find a better automatic dive watch for the money.
The SNZH53 is very evidently inspired by the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms.
Now, this does not necessarily have to be a bad thing, as the Fifty-Fathoms is one of the most iconic and legendary dive watches in the world. But some people have referred to it as a ”homage”, but we would argue it is not. For example, how many watches haven’t taken inspiration from the Rolex Submariner? A watch can take inspiration without being a homage. And we would argue that the Seiko 5 SNZH53 Is unique enough to be a design on its own.
In this article, we are reviewing the Seiko 5 SNZH53, so let’s look closer at what it has to offer.
Seiko 5 SNZH53 case
The Seiko 5 SNZH53 has a 42mm stainless steel case with a rather traditional dive watch shape, you might say. It has a rugged and sporty look to it thanks to the brushed lugs. With that said, the lugs are relatively short which means it doesn’t wear larger than their specified 42mm. The lug-to-lug measurement of the cases is 45mm. The case also combines brushed elements with polished sides to create a nice impression of quality and well-finishing. The lug width is 22mm.
The curved lugs are, in our opinion rather appealing.
Coming in with a thickness of 14mm, it is not insanely thick for a dive watch. At this price point, we can’t expect a sapphire crystal, so this watch, like many other Seiko watches, is equipped with the brand’s proprietary Hardlex crystal. This crystal has proven to be far more durable and scratch-resistant compared to standard mineral glass.
What we should say about this watch is it has a water resistance of 100 meters. With that said, it is not a full-on dive watch. Instead, you should regard it as a dive-watch-inspired timepiece, with many of the design traits and elements we love in watches. This means that it is suitable for swimming or getting water splashes, but not for diving. But having in mind the huge popularity of dive watches, making a watch that has all the loved and appreciated design features, but not the technical depth rating, can be a good idea. In particular, if it means holding the price down.
By doing this, Seiko achieves a diver-inspired watch at a great price that is also sleek and avoids being too bulky in size.
Moving on to the bezel, we have one of the most important features of this watch. The bezel is unidirectional and rotates with 120 clicks. It is very smooth to operate. The most notable feature of the bezel is its blue bezel with features Arabic numbers that read every ten minutes. It is the ”shiny” and slightly domed profile of the bezel insert that makes it reminiscent of a Blancpain Fifty-Fathoms. But one thing is for sure, it looks amazing with the blue bezel insert that reflects the light beautifully. The nature of the bezel insert allows it to change color depending on how the light hits it.
The bezel is sure to drive attention and it is in our opinion one of the best elements of the watch.
The case is equipped with a push-pull crown, positioned at 3 o’clock. The fact that the crown is not screw-down is one of the reasons why this watch isn’t able to provide a better depth rating.
What we love about the Seiko 5 SNZH5 is the fact that it is so wearable. It looks just as good with swimming trunks as with a suit, and it is durable enough to be worn as an everyday piece.
Furthermore, if you want to mix and match, you can also change straps. This brings us to the next point.
Photo: Two Broke Watch Snobs
Seiko 5 SNZH53 bracelet
The Seiko 5 SNZH53 comes fitted on a sporty and robust stainless steel three-link-style bracelet with brushed and polished elements.
At this price point, don’t expect the most robust and durable bracelet, but it still goes well together with the look of the watch, and also feels solid on the wrist. One complaint people have about this bracelet is that it makes the watch very heavy. For a more lightweight option, you can easily change the bracelet for a strap, so this isn’t a big issue. But there certainly is big room for improvement with the bracelet, but then again, that would also naturally mean an increase in price as well. The bracelet doesn’t taper a lot either, which makes it feel bulky.
The bracelet has a push-button fold-over mechanism.
Seiko 5 SNZH53 dial
The dial is another great detail of the SNZH53. It has a glossy, sunburst brushed effect that reflects the light stunningly. The watch has applied metal hour markers in the shape of batons. It also has printed minute hash marks on the outmost part of the dial. The large applied markers and the sword-shaped wide minute and hour hands allow for great legibility. Both the hands and the inner part of the markers feature lume which improves legibility in the dark. The lume isn’t the best, but at the same time, it is not extremely crucial as you won’t be reading it when diving. But of course, it would be nice with a better lume.
The blue color of the dial perfectly complements the blue dial. What is so special about this timepiece is how much the colors change depending on the conditions and surroundings. In the sun, this watch is very bright blue, but in less bright environments, it is a dark navy blue.
At 3 o’clock, you will find a day and date window. This is a detail that exists on all Seiko 5 watches.
Movement
Moving on to the dial, the Seiko 5 SNZH53 is powered by Seiko’s 7S36B automatic movement. It has 23-jewels and is overall very similar to the predecessor 7S26, but has been improved and refined. The watch has a power reserve of about 31 hours.
The movement has proven to be robust and reliable.
The good news about this watch is that you can look at the movement through the see-through case back. This is not a decorated movement, which is handmade and hand-finished. Instead, the movement has an industrialized, durable, and robust look to it. This actually goes really well together with the sporty nature and ethos of this watch.
Conclusion
Taking price into consideration, it becomes difficult to find an automatic watch that is better and offers more value for money than the Seiko 5 SNZH53. It has a striking design, is powered by a sturdy automatic movement, is well, finished, and overall is a great watch.
Despite being a dive watch, it is surprisingly universal and can be worn on countless different occasions, both casual and dressed-up.
This is definitely a watch we can recommend. Both technically and quality-wise, but also aesthetically.
The Seiko 5 SNZH53 is available to order on Amazon.
