I just bought this watch with a dial having patina lume. Mine has virtually no bezel play and has perfect alignment. The watch has a retro look due to its size and muted color of the lume. Quite cool. Mine has the Seiko movement with hacking mechanism. My main criticism is that the bezel has sharp edges, which I attacked (carefully) with sandpaper to smooth them out. My other criticism is glare caused by the dome shaped glass. Nice watch overall and cost just about a hundred USD!
Hi. I’m also thinking about the same model. What about the light reflections on the non AR coated crystal? Does this bother you on a daily basis? Thanks
Pagani need to step up their game with QC.Serious price increases for poorer quality pieces.Bought a pd-1661 last year and was delighted with it for the price.Wouldnt go near this disaster.Top reviewer on YT.!
Thank you for watching Neil. Agreed, with the prices increases there should come better QC. Ironically the PD-1661 has better QC and is less expensive. I was impressed with both the rubber strap, and Kermit versions I reviewed previously. This is what frustrates me about the brand; they are capable of producing pieces with good bezel action. I also see the 8215 as a downgrade from the NH35A previously used in the PD-1661. Regards, #WR4K
CJ here, I received my PD-1694 which is the yellow version with Seiko NH36A movement (supposed to be 35A but no complaints here, I’ve got other Pagani watches with the 36A movement and it’s a well oiled machine) and the build quality of mine compared to yours is much better. I agree with you that the frustrating thing about this company is we have all seen what they can achieve when they put out a very well QC’d piece…and what they lack on when QC isn’t up to par. This company has so much potential. I have gotten 6 excellent pieces to 1 fair piece from them so the odds aren’t bad. Something to consider when buying from them. Great review and looking forward to many others. Well wishes.
Man with Seikos MSRP increasing while the quality almost remaining the same the last years , Pagani is doing a damn good job of putting out cheap watches packed with features . As always excellent reviews 👍 .
Yep, prices going up at Pagani, but quality control still a raffle. Thanks for saving me 120 Euros. It's a shame really because it is a great looking watch and there's no ugly cyclops. Another very honest and helpful review.
Pagani has improved more in the past 12 months than Seiko did in 10 years in the affordable segment. However, I can't say the same for all models. And aside from their Seamaster wave dial homage (the PD-1685), their lume still sucks. Which is hard to forgive since Steeldive/Addiesdive also sells watches at the same price point and have excellent lume (not quite San Martin or Cronos level, but enough to best even Seiko and Orient dive watches at twice, even thrice the price). One thing Pagani does do nicely is that they seem to have a new model every month. And they're cheap and decent enough so you can't get enough of it -- like McDonald's or whatever fastfood in general. However, at only $50 to $60 more, why anyone would get this Pagani Sub over a San Martin Sub is beyond me. The Cronos Sub with the PT5000 is even better value imo.
Thank you for watching Kyle. You make some good points which I concur with. The SN017-G is a better quality/value Submariner Date homage. Regards, #WR4K
My PD-1694 arrived last week. No back play in bezel on my 'yellow' model. I have 13 Pagani watches and this is the best imho. For the money, can't really fault this one
I got my pd 1694 today! Bezel action is great no backplay and it alligns prefectly, it has nh35 movement and a matching lume color but on the dial it is abit weaker. I have few Seiko and Citizen watches that were 4x price of this Pagani and to be honnest only one watch feels more solid and that is new Citizen Promaster aqualand...this Pagani is a great watch, but it seems you never know what you will get until it arives. I was lucky and got a great watch for a peanut... it also feels netter on my wrist than any of my watches
Just ordered one of these, however I got to choose the movement, between NH35 or 8215. I chose NH35 as I feel it is better.. plus I can hack. Very nice review sir, as per usual.
Thank you for watching. Congratulations. Excellent choice. Wear yours in good health. The NH35A is a better movement, and as you stated has hacking which is also a benefit. Regards, #WR4K
Good review. So the extra thickness is in the domed crystal (I hate domed crystals), and how does it feel for top heaviness with the female end links? Agree about the taper, to 16mm is superior on this style of watch
Thank you for watching. Glad you enjoyed it. It feels balanced rather than top heavy. Yes, the domed crystal adds thickness. It would be under 13mm is they had used a flat sapphire crystal as per the PD-1661. Regards, #WR4K
Excellent review as always. I really enjoy your vidoes and your attention to detail. I can't help to ask myself(and you) after watching this. Paying "only" about 250 euros more you can get a Steinhart Ocean One. I don't have a Steinhart, but from what I've seen from your vidoes i expect the value you get from a Steinhart compared to this has got to be huge?
Thank you for watching Howie. Glad you enjoyed it. Yes, the Steinhart Ocean One 39 is excellent quality/value. For under 300 Euro the best Submariner Date homage is the San Martin SN017-G (see my review). For under 500 Euro the Ocean One 39 is the best. The PD-1661 is a good watch for 70 Euro, see my reviews of the rubber strap, and Kermit versions; which had good bezel action. However San Martin, and Steinhart; QC, build quality, finishing, are a level above Pagani Design. Is it worth paying the extra for an SN017-G or Ocean One 39? Definitely. Regards, #WR4K
Good video. Just received my PD-1694 today. I ordered it on 11-11-21 and paid $111.99. The lume is not great and there is a little play on the bezel. But, it does feel solid and it has some heft. Going to get it sized this weekend and then give it some wrist-time. I agree with most of your comments and am curious to see how well this watch performs. This is cost-effective experiment to find out what I think about a Submariner. It is highly likely that I will ever own a Rolex Sub. The cost of Pagani is about 1% of the gray market price and something I am unwilling to pay for a stainless-steel three-hander.
Thank you for watching. Glad you enjoyed it. Check out my PD-1661 versus Submariner Date below, it may interest you. Regards, #WR4K ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-7E43zAwE2Zo.html&ab_channel=WatchReviews4K
Looks like a PD parts bin watch. Sub roots but riveted bracelet, printed dial, single domed crystal, it just doesn't work together. Putting the watch aside, a fantastic, detailed and well informed review. Thanks.
Their scalloped bezel looks fine. Female endlinks are always enjoyed. Dial and crystal very nice. Even the crown gets a thumbs 👍. Bracelet is good with a couple of objections. The shortfalls are too much however. I have a San Martin SN006-G that should be delivered in a couple days. San Martin's Logistics shipping partner and the breakdown of the worlds supply chain are making delivery times extremely long so buyers beware. Looking forward to your review of the San Martin SN006-G.
I just got my 1694 two weeks ago. You must have gotten a lemon as mine has perfect bezel alignment, has zero back play, and unless I really give her a really hard tugs I almost detect no lateral movement. The lume is very acceptable and still visible even after 15 minutes in total darkness. The accuracy of the NH35 movement in mine is -4 secs per day, and if I rest it facedown overnight, it catches up 3 of those lost seconds by morning. After two weeks of intermittent wear it is about at -9 seconds over all. All in all a damn good deal for the $150 CAD I paid.
@@watchreviews4k thanks and please keep the reviews coming. Almost no one gives good time to Paganis and also being a Breitling SuperOcean owner (just got it last week), I love to see quality reviews on watches at all ends of the price spectrum. I have to say I am quite smitten with my PD. It’s currently getting more wrist time than the SO 😳
That's one good review, as always ! Overall, which watch did you prefer between the PD 1661 and the PD 1694 ? (by the way, the Orient Bambino's movement is the F6724 ; you must be confusing with the Orient Ray)
Thank you for watching Maxence. Yes, the F6724 is used in the Bambino (I previously reviewed one). The F6922 is used in the; Kano, Kamasu, Mako; which is the same as the YN55A. I prefer the PD-1661 as it has an Oyster bracelet rather than rivet link bracelet. Regards, #WR4K
Do any of the homage brands do a good 36-38mm watch similar to the Oyster Perpetual? I see Pagani advertise one as 38mm but it arrives as basically 40m..
Thank you for watching Doy. Agreed, their case back designs don't fit the identity of the watches well. The brand logo and emblem would be better on all watches. Regards, #WR4K
Thank you for watching. The watch is still available, see link below. I have now edited the link in the pinned comment as it shows its out of stock. Regards, #WR4K www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003329726415.html?spm=a2g0o.detail.1000060.3.1bde5f13CeVpIO&gps-id=pcDetailBottomMoreThisSeller&scm=1007.13339.300834.0&scm_id=1007.13339.300834.0&scm-url=1007.13339.300834.0&pvid=26fe3adc-3b6c-4e09-8864-8f9e0f49c04f&_t=gps-id:pcDetailBottomMoreThisSeller,scm-url:1007.13339.300834.0,pvid:26fe3adc-3b6c-4e09-8864-8f9e0f49c04f,tpp_buckets:668%232846%238116%232002&pdp_ext_f=%7B%22sku_id%22%3A%2212000027158710692%22%2C%22sceneId%22%3A%223339%22%7D&pdp_npi=2%40dis%21EUR%21893.56%21134.03%21%21%21%21%21%400b89a67e16611882651272534ead16%2112000027158710692%21rec
Thank you for watching Jason. Agreed, the QC hasn't improved to justify the price increases. What frustrates me about the brand is I have seen they are capable of good bezel action and QC in the PD-1661. If this PD-1694 had the same QC and bezel action it would be a good watch. Regards, #WR4K
very good review, and i totally agree, at this price point poor lume is unacceptable. Being a need for me i will skip this model. you might trim your vids under 20 minute mark, just a humble opinion :)
Thank you for watching Don. Glad you enjoyed it. I appreciate the suggestion. I have created 202 videos in the last 20 months, which have gained over 2 million views. Looking at the analytics my longer videos (circa 20 minutes) have the longest viewer retention. As content creators we are paid Google AdSense revenue monthly. Naturally RU-vid prefers longer content, as it allows more ads to be placed. From a content creators perspective we are paid more AdSense when more ads are viewed in a 20 minute video, rather than 10 or 15 minute video etc. So what you are asking me to do is cut my own AdSense revenue in order to "trim your vids under 20 minute mark". Unlike many other watch channels I have a policy of not accepting; Paypal, and Patreon donations from my viewers. Therefore the revenue has to come from alternative sources; such as AdSense. Since July Google is now taxing AdSense revenue by 24% so my channel has experienced a decline in revenue. In order to offset this revenue loss I am now making longer videos. Regards, #WR4K
They must have fixed the lume issue on the latest versions cause mine has the same lume on the hands and bezel. On the dial its abit weaker but stil much better than on this one and its last pretty much whole night
Allow me to disagree with you. The root beer Pagani Design watch reviewed on this channel previously has none of these issues and it's cheaper while being far far better quality.
Pagani Design PD-1694 on Pagani Design Official Store on AliExpress: www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003329726415.html?spm=a2g0o.detail.1000060.3.1bde5f13CeVpIO&gps-id=pcDetailBottomMoreThisSeller&scm=1007.13339.300834.0&scm_id=1007.13339.300834.0&scm-url=1007.13339.300834.0&pvid=26fe3adc-3b6c-4e09-8864-8f9e0f49c04f&_t=gps-id:pcDetailBottomMoreThisSeller,scm-url:1007.13339.300834.0,pvid:26fe3adc-3b6c-4e09-8864-8f9e0f49c04f,tpp_buckets:668%232846%238116%232002&pdp_ext_f=%7B%22sku_id%22%3A%2212000027158710692%22%2C%22sceneId%22%3A%223339%22%7D&pdp_npi=2%40dis%21EUR%21893.56%21134.03%21%21%21%21%21%400b89a67e16611882651272534ead16%2112000027158710692%21rec
