The Watch Shootout IWC Ingenieur 40mm 3239

The model change in 2005 was a pronounced departure towards a more angular, Royal Oak-like case. Although it retained the five holes hublot big bang king replica in the bezel as a design cue, they no longer served any purpose: Genta’s Ingenieur had a screwed-in bezel, hence the need for the holes. The 2013 has also retained the holes as a vestigial trait: they are about as useful as the hind leg bones of a whale. The angular crown guards add another element of sharpness. Having said all that, the overall style of the watch, regardless of how much or how little, in fact, it resembles the Ingenieur SL, has a coherent language, more angular but still restrained elegance and exudes the Germanic no-nonsense functionality for which IWC’s best, post-quartz-crisis era models are known for.

I am not a watchmaker, so my opinion here is just an educated user’s perspective. The Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra has the by now, tried-and-tested 8500 movement. It boasts a significantly longer power reserve (see table above), which means that if you put the watch down on Friday evening, it will still be ticking come Monday morning. cartier roadster replica The Ingenieur has a very capable and robust ETA 2892-A2 movement, which has the decided advantage that any competent watchmaker would probably be able to service it tag heuer grand carrera replica for much less than what an Omega-certified service centre would charge for the 8500. It is, as far as I know, reworked by IWC, but I had no means to determine details, nor does IWC reveal how extensive that work is. In terms of out-of-the-box accuracy, IWC has an excellent track record, but in the past decade or so Omega has overall pretty much caught up with them and numerous anecdotal evidence and my personal experience shows that their 8500 movement has outstanding long-term stability.

Keep in mind though that we are probably splitting hairs here, the difference in long-term accuracy being maybe a few seconds better for Omega, provided that both movements are properly regulated. The Omega also has the convenience of an independently settable hour hand, making time zone adjustments easier, at the loss of the quick-set date. Finally, we come to the thorny issue of in-house versus outsourced movements. Whatever your personal opinion may be, it is a fact that IWC does not have an in-house movement that would fit into the Ingenieur’s fairly slim case. Then again, Omega’s 8500 movement would not fit into a reasonably water resistant and otherwise robust 10mm case either.

On the OEM bracelets, both watches show the same amount of versatility, with the Ingenieur a bit more capable towards the dressy end of the spectrum, mainly due to its slimmer profile. The black dial version not discussed here would cover the same spectrum, shifted a tiny bit towards formal. The Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra, on account of its bolder design has a slight advantage at the sporty end of the spectrum. But once you start looking at other straps/bracelets, the picture does change quite significantly.