I’ve been waiting for the Tissot PRC 200 with the Powermatic movement to become available since last fall. \u00a0Finally it has trickled onto the American retail market and I found one at a great price that I couldn’t resist. \u00a0By the way, don’t let the photos on Tissot’s site or other retailers web pages sway you. \u00a0This watch is bright, brilliant, and down right shiny. \u00a0I just don’t understand why watch companies post such dull pictures of their product.<\/p>\n
Anyway, I just realized a few things. \u00a0Tissot is pronounced TEE SO and the PRC stands for Precision, Robustness, and Classic. \u00a0You ought to know these things when you wear \u00a0their watch!<\/p>\n
The watch is powered by ETA’s Powermatic 80 movement. \u00a0I have that movement in another Tissot, the Luxury Automatic, but this version has added the day display to the date. \u00a0Here’s a good rundown<\/a> on how ETA achieved the 80 hour power reserve. \u00a0Another article goes into a little more detail<\/a> on its claimed accuracy. \u00a0Apparently the new escapement has no regulator and it is pegged by laser at the factory.<\/p>\n Here’s the specs on the watch:<\/p>\n -Sapphire crystal<\/p>\n -anti-reflective coating<\/p>\n -660 feet of water resistance<\/p>\n -screw down crown<\/p>\n -39mm width and 11.9mm thick<\/p>\n The case is interesting in of itself. The small bezel is highly polished while the rest of the case is brushed, interrupted by lines of polished stainless steel. The case measures 39mm across, which to some might seem small against today’s watches that are bloated to 50mm! \u00a0In all reality, this watch is 95% dial and looks big as a result.<\/p>\n As I said, the small bezel is highly polished which flows over to the dial. \u00a0The markers, hands, and the day\/date frame are just as polished. \u00a0The watch catches the light and just seems “exuberant.”<\/p>\n I choose the dark blue dial, which I think highlights the stainless steel markers and hands. \u00a0The outer ring which slants into the dial has printed hashes and numerals for minutes. \u00a0That transitions into concentric grooves onto which hour markers are placed, as well as the numbers 12, 6, and 9.<\/p>\n The framed day\/date sits at 3 o’clock. \u00a0One of the reasons I wanted this watch was the addition of the day function to the Powermatic movement. \u00a0Not only did Tissot add this feature, they made sure to fully frame the day and date, thus hiding the separate \u00a0day and date rings. \u00a0A minor thing, but seeing the wheels cheapens a good watch in my opinion.<\/p>\n Finally, the inner dial is flat surface.<\/p>\n The crown as I noted is screw down. \u00a0It is remarkably large (making winding a breeze) and it is decorated by a large “T”.<\/p>\n The back of the case has an exhibition window which shows off a charcoal rotor which is slightly decorated. \u00a0The rest of the \u00a0movement is unadorned.<\/p>\n The movement has 23 jewels and beats at a rate of 21,600.<\/p>\n The bracelet is stainless steel. \u00a0The larger links are brushed while the smaller ones are polished. \u00a0The clasp is a fold over that includes a safety release.<\/p>\n A blue dial, a highly polished bezel, and a Powermatic movement with a day and date function—what isn’t to like?<\/p>\n\n\t\t