In this article we will be looking in to the Rado brand in order to find out whether or not these watches are, in fact, any good.
Rado is a Swiss watch brand that could be considered entry level. This is because they are priced much more affordably than other notable big name Swiss brands such as Rolex, and Cartier.
The fact that Rado is not in the same league as these types of larger Swiss brands is the main reason why a person would wonder whether or not they are any good in the first place. Fortunately, Swiss brands rarely ever disappoint.
Will this be the case with Rado? That is exactly what we intend to find out! There are 3 key categories you can look at in order to determine how good any particular watch brand is. These are, the build quality, designs, and pricing.
A good brand will have stylish quality watches available at affordable prices. Does Rado achieve this? Let’s take a look and find out. But first, a little background information on Rado.
About Rado
Rado was founded back in 1917, and began as a small, family owned business. When they first started, they were not even producing watches yet, but rather only watch movements. Over the years though, the business grew and expanded.
As the business grew, they started acquiring factories in order to begin mass producing their products, which now included wrist watches. Rado soon started to become well known in the industry. Their water resistant watches were pretty popular.
However, it was their scratch resistant watches, in particular brought them a lot of attention. This is because Rado was actually the first watch manufacturer to introduce watches with scratch resistant cases into the market. The first model to have this feature, was released in 1962. It was called the DiaStar.
From there Rado continued to be a dominant player in the industry. To this day many people are intrigued by the designs and styles of their watches.
But we’re here to find out is these watches are worth the purchase. In the next section, we will break down several features of Rado watches to find out if they are any good.
Rado Watches Review
The first feature of Rado watches we will be looking at is the build quality.
Build Quality
Rado makes both mechanical automatic watches, as well as quartz analog watches. Most of their cases are going to be made out of stainless steel. There are also some models with titanium cases, and others with gold plated cases.
Back to the topic of scratch resistance, Rado has some watches with cases made out of their very own proprietary material known as “Ceramos”. Ceramos is a special mixture of metal and ceramic. It boasts a much greater scratch resistance than your typical watch cases.
Next, the dial windows on Rado watches will be made of sapphire crystal. And lastly the water resistance among the different models can range on average, from 30 meters of resistance, to as high as 100 meters of resistance.
All in all, Rado watches have some pretty decent builds overall. Next, we’ll take a look at the design and style.
Design & Style
Rado really shines when it comes to design and style. These are not your typical Swiss luxury designs! While they do have models that adhere to traditional design standards, many of these styles step outside the box and are unique in their own right.
Their unique pieces manage to capture the luxury style with an added artistic flair. This definitely works in Rado’s favor. While some brands try to use this approach and fail, Rado actually manages to pull it off.
Finally, the last factor we are going to examine is the price.
Pricing
Rado’s watches prices average from mid to high. They do have lower priced watches, as well as watches that start to match the prices of higher end luxury watches. But you will find that they mostly average out to a mid high pricing structure.
This means that while their watches are certainly not inexpensive, they also aren’t priced completely out of reach for the average consumer. Most can probably afford at least some models of Rado watches so long as they plan and budget accordingly.
Check Rado Watch Prices on Amazon
Now that we have completed our breakdown of Rado watches, if you are interested in purchasing one, we have a couple of good recommendations for you!
Rado Watches Review: Recommendations
Rado Men’s R30927713 Centrix Jubile Black Dial Watch
This particular unisex piece follows a mostly minimalistic style. The watch case and band are silver colored paired with a black dial. There are 4 small diamonds on the dial used as time markers. Also has a date window at the 3 o’clock position.
It is powered by Swiss quartz movement. The case is stainless steel, and the dial window is sapphire crystal. The band is made of stainless steel and titanium. Water resistance is 30 meters, which will protect it from splashes, but should otherwise be kept away from water.
Quick Look
- Swiss quartz movement
- diamond markers
- date window
- water resistant 30 meters
Rado Men’s R20784159 Integral Black Dial Platinum Ceramic Watch
This well designed piece has a rectangular appearance. It has a sliver case and band, paired with a black dial. There is a date window located at the 6 o’clock position. Very sleek overall appearance.
It uses Swiss quartz movement. Case and band are made of Rado’s Ceramos material. Dial window is sapphire crystal. Lastly water resistance is 30 meters, so it can get a little wet, but keep it out of water as much as possible.
Quick Look
- Swiss quartz movement
- date window
- water resistant 30 meters
Now we can finally wrap things up. Are Rado watches really worth getting?
Are Rado Watches Worth It?
Rado offers some fairly high quality watches with gorgeous designs. For a Swiss watch brand, While they are a step above typical entry level Swiss watches, they aren’t quite on the level of some of the bigger names in the Swiss luxury watch market.
If you like the styles, and have the budget for it, Rado watches would be a good choice in Swiss luxury watches at reasonable prices. Now if you do want a much more affordable introduction to Swiss watches, then checkout Tissot.
That’s it for our brief overview of Rado watches. f you want to check out some of our other reviews of watches and watch brands, you can find those here
