Bulova Surveyor 39mm

I was drawn to this watch mainly due to the day window at 12. As far as I know, there aren’t many watches that feature a full name day window in the affordable spectrum, apart from some Hamiltons which are a bit more expensive.

The watch isn’t bad but I’m also not in love with it. It has a bit of a unique case design, a bit of a cushion case design with some angular edges to it, is quite slim, and plays nicely with small wrists. It features a mix of polished and brushed surfaces but nothing to write home about.

The dial has a nice sunburst effect and the minute track has a texture to it making it contrast to the main dial face and giving it a bit of a 3d effect.

It has applied hour markers, a printed logo, and nothing else in terms of text on the dial which makes the dial feel a bit unbalanced. It has loom on the hands but nowhere else nudging it to the dressy side but the overall look feels quite sporty.

The bracelet has a few half-links to help you find your fit which is nice and has a simple folding clasp. The design of the bracelet is also somewhat unique for this price range. It also has a strange sound when you shake it around making me think that it's either not stainless steel as claimed or it's made with hollow links. I have no idea.

Overall it has some things going for it but for me, it still ends up feeling quite bland and generic. I can’t put my finger on it, maybe the dial is too minimalistic and unbalanced, maybe it's the fact that it feels a lot lighter than I would’ve expected, maybe the bracelet sound. Maybe all of these combined.

For under $200 (and I would not pay more than this), it's not a bad watch especially if you want the full name day window. But if that is not the case I think the money is better spent either on one of the older Seiko 5s while they’re still around for a good all-round option or an Orient Bambino for a dressy option. There are other options as well.