As late as yesterday I told a friend I’m not a chronograph type of watch enthusiast. I generally don’t see the appeal of the complication and never fell for the multiple sub-register layout. It’s too busy, showing unnecessary information, and typically thicker (for mechanical variants that is) than a three-hander. If I want to time something, I’d rather use the bezel of a diver which I find easier to read than a tiny hand floating above a tiny register. (Do I need to pay my horological therapist another visit to discuss why I have so much grievance towards chronographs? Perhaps.) And when brands do quartz or mecaquartz chronographs, they tend to look like cheaper versions of popular Swiss models. And why on Earth do chronographs have to be so large? (Dialing my therapist number as I’m typing these last few words.) 

What if—and this is a big IF—I never was into chronographs because I just didn’t find the right one for me? What if I could fall for the design of one particular chrono because it was laid out in a way that works for me? What if there was a chronograph out there with the right dimensions for me? One that is not too thick? Not too gimmicky? Not too expensive? Well, although I made it all about “me” maybe you have been asking yourself the same questions. Maybe, just maybe, you too didn’t find the right “one.” Guess what? I may have found it and perhaps you will like it too. The HZ.02 Chronograph from HZ Watches is the answer. $249 USD of 37mm Mecaquartz chronograph goodness completed by a semi elegant/sporty look. I think I’ve found it folks!

Specifications

Even quartz and mecaquartz chronographs can be large, not just mechanical ones. What one gains from wearing larger watches—i.e. better water resistance—one loses not wearing smaller watches—i.e. better wrist comfort. Battery-operated watches are lighter than mechanical ones so  paired with smaller dimensions then you get a comfortable piece of horology to strap on your wrist. The HZ.02 Chronograph measures a mere 37mm in diameter, 43mm lug-to-lug, 12.5mm total thickness, and comes with a 20mm lug width. Sized to my 6.50”/16.5cm wrist, it weighs 105g on the bracelet. This humble measurement can further be explained by the fact that the case of the HZ.02 is made of grade 5 titanium and that the bracelet is made of a mix of the latter and stainless steel. So HZ Watches worked hard to find ways to cut down on the grams as much as possible.

Inside the HZ.02 we find a Seiko VK63 mecaquartz chronograph which has a stated accuracy of +/- 20 seconds per month and a battery life of 3 years. The caliber can actually be seen—and admired, I should add—thanks to a sapphire see-through case-back. Before seeing the VK63 through the glass I naively thought that all mecaquartz movements were ugly to look at even though they are hybrids between regular quartz movements and mechanical ones, meaning that the chronograph complication is actuated by cogs and levers. But damn, the VK63 is a looker! I saw images of high-end Grand Seiko quartz chronographs and honestly, for a brief moment, I thought I had received the wrong watch. Think what you must about me or the VK63, being able to see it increased by appreciation for the watch by 20%. 

Moreover, the top crystal is also made of sapphire of the boxed variant and comes with three layers of inner anti-reflective coating. The bezel has 120 clicks and the insert is made out of ceramic, and good applications of SuperLuminova (BGW9 I assume, due to the ice blue glow) can be found on the hands, hour markers, and numerals on the bezel insert. Thus far we can certainly agree that the HZ.02 Chronograph gives you a lot of watch for your money. And there is more, like too much pumpkin pie at a Thanksgiving dinner: 100 meters of water resistance, and a bracelet that has a built-in on-the-fly micro-adjustment mechanism though push-pins for the links. I said “though” although it should have been an “and” as these little suckers don’t bother me at all. 

Design

Thus far we know we get a lot of watch for our money and that is all some of you would care to know. Specs are not the end of it all for me, however, and it is how a watch looks and feels on the wrist that makes my horological heart romantically flutter. A watch could have the best spec-to-dollar ratio, made out of the most incredible components, the rarest of materials, the highest level of polishing, but if I don’t click with the design then I wouldn’t feel compelled to remove the dollar bills from my wallet (enter my credit card number on the brand’s website, sorry I’m a sucker for vintage analogies) to add it to my collection. Would you honestly buy a Ferrari if you didn’t think it looks great? My point exactly. But if you did, then you and I couldn’t be friends. 

Kidding? 

Aesthetics are of course highly subjective matters but you know me, I wouldn’t be telling you about this watch if I didn’t like the way it looks. (Though it is possible that one day I will write a full review about an ugly one because it is technically outstanding. No, just kidding again!) Earlier I described the visual identity of the HZ.02 as being a cross between sportive and elegant horology. What makes it elegant is the alternation of polished and brushed surfaces, the ceramic bezel insert, the fully polished hands, and the beads-of-rice bracelet. What makes it sporty is the triple-register layout, the matte and textured dial, and the printed hour markers. The HZ.02 is, actually, a hybrid of many things both from mechanical and design standpoints. (The latter comment refers to the hybrid nature of the movement inside and the stainless steel/titanium construction of the bracelet.) 

HZ Watches didn’t have the choice as to where to put the sub-registers as it is dictated by the movement architecture. But I like how the brand integrated its layout with the design by creating a visual contrast between the three sub-registers and the dial. The former are white with black printed numerals and hash-marks and come with polished hands, the latter being black and decorated with a cross-hatch pattern. (It also looks like a waffle pattern.) We also find ourselves with a dial that has depth, a lot of it, which positively surprised me given the meager price of $249 HZ is asking for this model. I’m saying this because it would have been fair to imagine the brand would have cut several design corners in order to keep the price down. But now, it went as far as sinking the sub-registers below the main dial and making the hour markers out of blocks of lume. 

To me the entirety of the watch is handsome to look at. Besides its depth, the dial also comes with polished hands the shape of which appears to be the result of a cross between syringe and leaf-style hands, again showcasing HZ’s ability to revisit conventional designs to make them look different, more modern, and fun. The same can be said of the case which has a simple profile but one which works well with the chronograph functionality and dial layout of this model. In other words, a complex case shape would have clashed with the busy, but not crowded, dial. 

P.S. The model photographed is a veteran of watch trade shows and therefore shows a few imperfections. 

The Heart of the Matter

At the heart of the matter is the fact that the HZ.02 is a chronograph that converted me to appreciate chronographs and perhaps you too. I know, it sounds corny for me to say so but I do mean it. A bit like, as a child, I would tell my parents I didn’t like wine even though I had never tasted it. I just wanted to say I didn’t like it to be different and to make a statement. And we humans do want to make statements everyday at home, at work, and while discussing and sharing photos of our beloved watches because we want to be seen, to be different, to make our voice heard. (This is normal human behaviour, don’t worry.) So I believe and admit that a part of me didn’t want to like chronographs, just because. Because I don’t own a Moonwatch or because I hadn’t found one that suits me. But this can all be put in the past now that I’ve gotten hands-on experience with the HZ.02. 

More than the way it looks and what it is made out of, the HZ.02 shines for being a complete package and for looking mature. Mature in the sense that the HZ.02 is only the brand’s second collection but one it spent a few years working on and it shows in the way it was designed and put together. From the balanced dial layout and its remarkable depth, its compact dimensions, its water resistance, the lume, and the comfort that comes from having a case made of titanium. And the movement which we can actually see which was a big surprise for me and one which, as I said, increased by 20% my appreciation for this model. It is purely amazing what brands are able to accomplish nowadays and I command HZ Watches for going full steam and opposite of the current trend: raising prices by putting higher-end movements inside the cases or finding rare dial materials. 

When I first got into the micro/independent world eight years ago I loved the fact that one could get a good watch for little money. And I’m so glad and grateful to HZ Watches that it is still possible to do in 2024. Bravo. 

Conclusion

Brands big and small still like to make chronographs and they come in all sizes and at either end of the price spectrum. Akin to the menu of Starbucks from which 10,000 drinks can be made given the myriad of options for coffee, milk, and toppings. But chronographs, from a price perspective, tend to generally exist above the $500-mark, well above that, and rarely below except for straight-up copy/paste designs from Aliexpress. So finding an original design, great specs, and grade 5 titanium case for $249 is insane and amazing just the same. So I suggest taking a look at the full range of the HZ.02 Chronograph as it comes in a total of five color variants. 

Thanks for reading.