Wow. Just wow. Finally an original watch idea.

Looks very elegant with great strap selection that matches the watch. What's impressive is the luminescent I would definitely add this watch to my collection of homage and luxury watches.

Wise makes a good product. I do think it takes after an Aqua Terra more than Seiko. The Miyota movement is fine. You're paying for the whole sum of the watch. Not just the movement. Love the Damascus steel look.

Awesome review! Very nice watch and that movement looks pretty good! Glad you get to keep that piece! ✌🏼😎👍🏼

Picked up the stealthy version of the AD8 a while back, and I've really enjoyed it. Cool dial texture, very good lume, and it wears well on a variety of wrist sizes. I've been fighting the temptation to buy this Damascus case for so many weeks now, and I may well succumb. Just keep going back to the website and looking at it... They are a bit expensive relative to many of their high-quality/interesting-materials microbrand peers, but I think they are trying to position themselves closer to say, Christopher Ward than Zelos, etc. I agree that the one glaring issue is the logo. They've got that cool Thailand-inspired little motif that goes on the rotor, so why not use that? A truly odd choice for a brand that otherwise tries hard to be visually unique.

Nice looking watch and I especially like the case design and shape. I was thinking the same thing about needing a bracelet but you're right about the price bump and even more so that much Damascus steel would probably take away from the wonderful dial.

Nice find Dave…..this is a great looking watch.

This looks really unique and interesting! So clean and yet funky with the zebra-like stripes.

If they used the logo they currently have on the crown on the face, I’d be much more interested. Great looking watch.

They have a ready made 'W' logo on the case back, visible rotor and packaging! Have two. Love them both AD8 and a Hitman 'thai version.

So, so cool! Thanks for sharing this one!

Thanks for this nice review. I often wondered why nobody made cases out of damascus steel and now all of a sudden one microbrand just did. I love the case of this watch, it seems very nicely and precisely made and the damascus steel pattern is just beautiful. I also like the way the lugs are formed, with a slight bevel on the inside when you look at the watch from above, that accentuates the damascus lines going over the edges. Very interesting watch. Reg. the logo: they have a nice Thai-style logo on their website, would be nice if they used that on their dial like they do on their Flyboy model.

The one thing I don't like are the small numbers in front of the indices! And I agree about the logo. Otherwise a great looking piece! I would go for the "deep aqua blue" version ;-)

I have that one with the old radium lume and brown strap. Very nice and I love they use Damascus buckles on both straps.

Great review

That's a Beautiful watch!!!

Nice review. I'm going to look into getting one of these i think.

I have the Wise Adamascus AD951 with the deep red dial. It is well made and has a stunning look. It comes in both 39mm and 41mm. I got the 39mm for $549 (US) which I think is a good value for what I got. Packaging was nice and it came fairly quickly considering that they do not assemble the watch until ordered and the distance from Thailand to the Northeastern US. It was only a couple of weeks from order to receipt.

Very cool. A bit much for a daily wear i think but its a really pretty watch. Would love to add one to the collection

I bought the gold version with white dial. I’m amazed at the quality!

Their lume is great, bezel was stiff but still really good. Their 904L SS watches are really cool

Cool review. Like you said it’s well balanced and they did a good job with the face. I agree with the AT comparison.

Great review Dave & a solid comparison with the Aqua Terra! This could motivate someone to update the J-score page?! I could only see it when you pointed this out. The SARB is probably a bit more of an 'explorer gets an everyday job' as the bezel leaves the sport range slightly more. Not sure why I am really nitpicking this. Going back to the watch - There's much to like and I wouldn't fight about the movement, keeping it in this price range, however I assume there should be a market for 'Damascus every day watch under 1000 bucks'. Would enjoy seeing it sold with one leather strap and one metal bracelet. Feel free to disagree though! Also, the website is confusing, the black leather (calfskin) shown here is probably the one you get. The images on the website are showing two dollaro leather straps (black & blue).

Overall the watch looks good. My only issue is the WISE brand on the dial. I think it lessens the elegance of the watch and distracts us from the damascus pattern on the case.

Fine vid Dave! Thanks….man, that case sells itself….(my bad…I’m in Texas…..”sells its own self”). Happy Trails!

If you ask anyone who's not obsessed with watches, the least interesting part of a watch is the watch. 😂 I learned this by bringing up the subject and observing the response.

So beautiful. Especially the case....

Not wanting to spend the money for an aqua terra since I knew I wouldn’t wear it more than a few days a month, I’ve been looking for a year now for something that gave me the same vibes in the 500-1000 range. Been looking at this for a couple of weeks now and just pulled the trigger on the blue dial. Really looking forward to seeing it on my wrist. Love this thing in the pictures.

This is the type of watch that if it said "Seiko" or "Longines" on it would sell for 2500$+

Beautiful watch. I like the dress/sports style.

The silver dial doesn’t contrast enough to bring out the beauty of the case. They have a dark grey and blue that look better. Nice watch and neat concept.

I'd be interested in a similarly finished bracelet too, maybe with a jubilee or beads of rice style bracelet, so they would only have to do the damascus on the outer links with polish inner links, and it would be still somewhat subtle and dressy. Not sure if Miyota has a movement with Date& Day, that is such an overlooked complication. If they did it with a day at 12o'clock like a president, I'd love to see that in a case similar to this. The damascus is a great idea, and the case shape is just perfect. It is a very nice watch as is.

I love it! I'd like to see it with several different style bracelets.

If vintage Grand Seiko used Damascus steel, it would look like this watch. Vintage GS focused heavily on the case shape.

It's a great watch. I think I like the silver version better than the blue I have.

That finish looks amazing. Putting that on my wish list.

Not sure that design is for me but I’m always happy to see something new!

I want one the case is amazing a great everyday watch ,a strap monster .

2 very different watch. But a gift for myself for Christmas. Will you recommend spending more for this Or spending lesser for the RZE endeavour in yellow which you did enjoy alot too.

I love the case, and the handset is so nice, but the hour numerals under the indices are small and make the dial too busy. And i agree, Seiko would charge you an arm and a leg for thid watch and stikk wouldn't give yiu a signed crown nor a sapphire crystal.

I mean, its still weird that Wise said that "Thai people will get cheaper watch than foreigners" but still I have to pay at the same ate of Seiko haha, but hell I'm Thai and that its HQ is damn near my house LOL

I agreed on what you said about the dial logo. Wise has a pretty nice image logo. They should have replace the WISE logo with the graphic logo instead

That watch just looks absolutely at home on your wrist! I hope you get to keep it, because it is like it belongs there. I've come to the view that I mostly like the AD7 in tones of grey. The detail in the silver version that seems slightly unnecessary to me is the blue seconds hand. Sure, it's handsome enough, but it disrupts the tones of grey. Therefore potentially my favourite of the bunch is the dark grey one (but don't expect me to stick to my preferences necessarily). I think that preference though is due to the Damascus steel. It is actually quite distracting, so I think I need a dial that doesn't similarly compete for attention. The lighter and the darker tones of the Damascus correspond well to a silver or grey dial to make a quieter composition. It's 9ne I'd love to try, but for now I have given my preference to their Anniversary watch, which somehow seems to tune into my character and dressy wearing preferences a little better. I do love the case shape of this and might have been persuaded to give Damascus steel a go.

Looks nice

I think it's well worth the money. I think that movement beats at 28800bph. Plus sapphire. Nice.

Great review. I've only seen a few Wise posted on the forums. Looks like they make a nice looking watch. Maybe I missed it but does this have a screw down crown?

I love the case and matching buckles. If you can overcome natural Swiss leaning - I have a quartz TAG i thought was worth more than this WISE and that's before 10 years of price inflation.

At first I thought you had shot the closeup next to a window with blinds. Then I realized the lines are on the actual case 🤣

Kinda off topic: interesting to see some fountain pens in the shots, Dave. I think the Pilot’s retro pop band complements the watch’s case nicely. Are you ever going to talk about your pens/writing habits on the channel?

I absolutely love the fact that prior to a closer look, to me, the design appeared conservative to the point of being a bit bland...that aspect being offset by the quality of materials. BAM, the case gobsmacked me! This watch manages to fit in, all quiet and unobtrusive, while, shouting, "Look at me! Take gander!. Hey you, lookee here". I like it.

That is very unique! Take my money!

I really like knives and watches and was wondering when someone was going to do this!! Just super glue one keeper.

How does it weigh?

Reminds me my 70´s 36mm Seiko, I´m not sure if I like the adamascus pattern

Nice watch but what's the length of the straps

True, but they would have designed and made the actual movement. Which I think is perhaps the most important parts of an automatic watch?

This looks like an AquaTerra to me. A typical GADA with the Damascus Steel thingy (I'm not good at identifying steel materials so I'm sorry with the thingy) makes it very striking and interesting.

Looks nice, but won't damascus steel rust like crazy??

Yes you're right!

I got a question though, whats the difference of both swiss and miyota movements?

Wow, beautiful watch! KSK vibes. Should have gone more dressy with high polish dauphine hands, IMO.

I'm a Seiko fan, but gotta say that watch is really nice for the price. Would I buy that instead of a 700 dollar Seiko?....no. Because it's easier to buy a Seiko and I know what I'm getting, even tho that is "Technically" better. 🤷‍♂️

My father basically live in Thailand these days and I’m gonna ask him to swing by their retail location in Chiangmai to see what the price delta is vs buying direct online.

it is one of those watches that i see and then i have to see it again becasue the first time i didnt see the hour lol

I don't know if it's forged damascus or pattern welded

Branding in all businesses is absolutely essential. The brand name itself turns me off. The watch itself is very appealing. I grew up with “Wise” potato chips and I can’t see past it.

Reminds me of my Tissot pr100 auto chronometer. Cosc certified powermatic 80.

I also like how each case is going to be different from each other.

I almost bought one of those when in Bangkok this winter ... but then user reviews on reddit brought up some reliability issues so I gave up

Good review, but I want more info on the movement.

Interesting watch. I agree they need to have a different logo than "WISE" front and center. Since it's Thai I could see using some common Thai symbol (elephant, Buddha, etc)

Depends on who looks at it. Before the video even played I noticed the Damascus pattern first.

It’s different in a good way. I didn’t understand from the video if the crown is screwed down or push-pull. That’s something like a deal-breaker to me.

Looks like the Straum case, but with ability to wind. The Straum, although beautiful could not be hand wound due to the crown’s design

Nice.. Zelos made a Damascus hammerhead 3 for a similar price.

...is it really damascus or is it laser-etched to resemble damascus....

It's unique, like a fingerprint!

Wise watches are excellent quality. I own a AD8 and Hitman.

Well they should make the font more interesting & Specially the branding!!

Damascus + meteorite dial = I'm interested.

Dave How many watches do you own?

Good looking watch. Wish it were 42mm.

Great looking timepiece! But not a fan of the striping affect. Wish that it was a straight polished feel.

Ooh, fascinatingly different. As has already been commented, there is inherent variability in the "watermark" of damascus steel so the possibility exists of receiving a watch which isn't quite so symmetrical in its patterning: I rather like that no two cases will be exactly alike. Damascus steel items are usually forged rather than cast. Are we sure this is real damascus steel and not just a surface treatment? There are cheap "damascus" knives out there which just have a surface etching.

Will you be doing a giveaway with this watch? 🙏

For the same price, i prefer citizen nb1060 ...

It is a nice aqua terra homage for sure, but a bit toppy on price...

Cool looking watch. Strictly speaking it's Damascus looking steel as true Damascus steel is made by a completely different process as that uses in 'modern' Damascus steel. I do agree with your opinion that if this was made by Seiko it would be more costly. Shame about the movement. A SW200 or similar would make it much more attractive.

Check the zuan shi shanghai diamond 34.4mm looks like a Grand Seiko only dont see a real picture and video about it.

Little bit of a GADA watch. Honestly think this is pretty cheap considering the case material and looks stunning

I agree on the logo. Zelos, Bulova or even chinese San Martin are examples, how to do it right (in my opinion, of course). Watches from the latter brand still have "San Martin" on dial, but these words are neatly enclosed in a hexagon, making for easily recognizable and quite unobtrusive logo, which is also better, than their previous one (just a line of text). Christopher Ward heard the feedback from the customers: a lot of people didn't wanted brand's name on a dial, probably because it looked kind of generic, and also reminded you of all those poorly-made and/or overpriced "fashion watches" (cough, Daniel Wellington, cough). So they have switched to their current "swiss flag", which looks much better (again, opinions may vary). I actually like the damascus steel case, it makes for an unusual look. For the same reason I have an all-bronze Phoibos diver on my list...

The Damascus steel and date-just dial, make it a dress watch. That’s it has 100m wr - like a date-just is a bonus.

Is it real damascus steel? I have seen products claiming to be damascus steel but turn out to be just printed patterns

That font makes it cheap. And it's a beautiful watch

2mm smaller in every dimension would have made this a must-have😢

Wise is one of my grail brands. I haven't got one yet because I live in Brazil, and getting it here, including shipping and taxes, would make them in the US$2k range. But if I ever go to Thailand, I'm 100% buying one. I have been keeping an eye on them for quite a while and even subscribe to their mailing list. They have some gorgeous very affordable watches also, their HITMAN line.

How come you never put links to the watches

A Damascus dial is something I would be more interested in

GOOD!

The best is the aluminium sticker on the rotor.