Timex M79 Automatic for $299 - A Wrist Watch Review

Yesterday, we told you about the latest Q Timex release (a lovely GMT), and today we’re revisiting a watch we first told you about last month, the Timex M79 Automatic. Why revisit it? Well, it’s because we got a sample in of the watch, and have been spending time with it. So, let’s talk through the watch and see if it’s worth your hard-earned money.

So, what do you get with the Timex M79 Automatic? Simply put, it’s a Sub homage (note the handset and bars-and-pips indices) along with a day-date complication, powered up by an unlabelled Japanese automatic movement. As compared to the original M79 release, coloration has been softened a bit, but still keeping with the Batman theme. The styling of the bracelet has also been updated, going from something that looked like an expansion bracelet to the “woven” look we have in the steel links here.

Timex M79 Automatic – Sizing

Depending on your wrist, sizing the bracelet of the Timex M79 Automatic is well an exercise. By this, I mean you have an integrated fold-under clasp and links that are all the same size. In other words, no micro adjustments for you. For myself, it meant the bracelet wasn’t as snug as I normally prefer, but it still got settled in and got things done.

Bezel

In terms of using the Timex M79 Automatic in my day-to-day, legibility was great, and the blue/black bezel was a treat against the blue of the dial. While the whole bezel is actually colored (to match the dial, in this case) you don’t actually notice it all that much as you wear the watch.

Keeping Time

The movement of the Timex M79 Automatic, it gets the job done. I did not notice any appreciable gain or loss in time as I wore the watch, and the winding of the rotor was fairly quiet and did not set the watch to wobbling on my wrist.

Brightness

In a darkened room, the Timex M79 Automatic is of course able to be read via the luminous paint on the handset and dial. It’s not the brightest glow we’ve seen, nor is it the longest lasting stuff, but it’ll let you see the time after you turn the lights out. Just don’t expect to wake up in the middle of the night and expect to easily read the thing.

Price

At the end of the day, the Timex M79 Automatic is a decent middle-of-the-road option. It has the obvious Sub looks to it, and it brings an automatic movement to the wrist of folks who may not otherwise have cared what movement was inside. At a price of $299, it lives in an area where small independents used to thrive, but they’ve tended to go up a few hundred dollars more these days. So, to hit that sweet spot, you trade off some minor things (bracelet, lume) and still get a tidy introduction to the world of mechanical watches, with the added comfort of the new-to-watches person gets from a well-known name on the dial. You can pick one up, of course, directly from timex.com.