Walmart has long been known for beating the snot out of suppliers in order to obtain every day low prices. At some point, they may have gotten to Timex because I found an Acqua brand watch at Walmart for only $14.00. It’s a low cost brand owned by Timex and positioned to compete well against the low price commodity quartz watches created under a varity of names by companies like MZ Berger and FMD. The Acqua Indiglo watch also competes against $14 entry-level Casio watches.
Of course, the big question is how good is this low price watch and how does it fair against its competitors. I actually find this watch to offer a lot of value for the money. The $14 Acqua has basic styling that evokes diver style watches. Unfortunately, the bezel does not rotate. The Acqua offers a metal band, a stainless caseback, a date window, luminous hands numbers, and hashmarks. Numerals are provided at the 12, 6, and 9 o’clock positions. The dial has a deep blue background which can be illuminated via Indiglo lighting by pushing the crown. The Acqua is water resistant to 30 meters. This is a good basic feature set when compared to some of the low cost competitors.
The main advantage the Acqua watch offers versus other competitors is Indiglo lighting. Low cost analog watches at Walmart typically do not have any backlighting and luminous hands, hashmarks, and numerals are a rarity. The major drawback to the Acqua Indiglo is the rather small face and thin 15 millimeter wide band. While the clasp is easily adjustable to fit any wrist, the face measures 35 millimeters across and is about 8 millimeters thick. The Acqua’s face is a little smaller compared to the 40mm watch faces that are now popular. While I find the understated styling of this watch to be quite appealing, it pales in comparison to the bolder styling of great $10 watches like my Walmart Tactical Style Watch. Behind the scenes and confidentially, MZ Berger makes watches that are sold under high end brand names so they are tough competition. There are lots of $15 watches that don’t suck.
If you are on a tight budget and need an inexpensive watch with indiglo functions, you can’t go wrong with the Acqua Indiglo. Since it has the traditional styling of a men’s diver-style watch in a slightly smaller size, this watch would make a good watch for older boys. While it isn’t nearly as cool as a Timex Weekender, it certainly is a nice bang around watch.
Other articles by this contributor:
Six Rugged “Bang Around” Men’s Watches for $50 or Less
Seven Great Men’s Watches for Less Than $30
Wristwatch Review: Timex Expedition Men’s Analog Watch
