I have the Rolex Submariner since 1996, I never serviced it, of course it no longer works for more than 5 minutes and the crown no longer screws in.....the cost of repair is about 1000 euros which is prohibitive today, so I got the Orient for everyday use at 148 euros AND I am amazed. I knew Orient since I was a kid, 55 today but I never imagined that they would produce such a perfect watch with these features and this quality at this price. It has nothing to envy from Rolex, it is truly the Rolex of the poor as someone very accurately put it. The Rolex has a bracelet whose pieces tighten as they approach the clasp, which personally I considered a disadvantage because it lacked support on the wrist due to its weight, especially if you wore it a little loosely. The Orient has an amazing wide bracelet with similar pieces that end in a better clasp in terms of security and size, at least from my model of that time. Additionally, the Orient has a day indicator and finally it costs slightly less than one thousandth of the price of a Rolex. All weather-All terrain-All activity watch. There is no comparable branded watch with these features and this finesse at this price.

Comfortable and sturdy diving watch with a design reminiscent of the Rolex Submariner, without being a clear homage, as it differs in the handset and the case (especially if we are talking about more modern versions of the Sub) and various other aspects. It can be worn in more dressed-up situations without any problem and looks more expensive than it actually is.

Mine gains around 5 to 10 seconds per day, which is within acceptable limits for an automatic mechanical watch. I haven't bothered to further adjust it because I don't want to affect its water resistance, which is up to 200m below the surface of the sea (screw-down crown and case back). And theoretically and practically, this should be true, as waterproofing in watches from 20 atmospheres and above is supposed to correspond to its nominal value. Below 10 atmospheres (i.e. 100m), things are not exactly as they are claimed to be, and it requires special attention not to damage your watch.

Back to the Ray 2. Being able to have an in-house movement with hacking and hand-winding at the price range of this watch is something that you don't often find, and we must give credit to Orient for not simply using ready-made movements in their products. However, I have to say that the manual winding doesn't have the best feel, but that's a minor detail.

Another great advantage of the watch is its relatively small lug to lug size (46.9mm), which means it won't look out of place even on smaller wrists (my wrist has a diameter of 18.5cm, for reference). As for the lume, I would say it is very good and lasts a long time. Basically, it meets your expectations for a diving watch.

Here, I would like to add a few small negatives, mainly related to the fact that with the rise of some Chinese brands, we have realized that certain things could be provided to us by recognized companies like Orient in the same price range. Someone might say that labor is much cheaper in China, and I won't disagree, but in practice and completely realistically, with a small increase in price, the end result could be the same.

Let's go. Hollow end-links and a pressed clasp. These two elements "cheapen" the bracelet (which is generally quite decent) and therefore the watch to some extent, although they are not visible when you wear it. Personally, they don't bother me much, but it's something that could easily be avoided.

Aluminum bezel. Again, something that doesn't bother me much, but a ceramic bezel would definitely elevate the watch much more. By the way, the bezel was initially quite "stiff" to rotate, but after a year of use, it has become perfect.

Mineral crystal instead of sapphire. Here, someone might say that for a diving watch, mineral crystal might be preferable, as it doesn't shatter as easily as sapphire if it hits a rock. I agree, but again, who in reality will actually dive with this watch? Very few. And again, sapphire doesn't shatter so easily to make the possibility of it breaking so discouraging. If that were the case, all luxury divers wouldn't have sapphire. For this reason, I rated the durability as "so-so", because everyone knows that sapphire is much more scratch-resistant and because I generally find it difficult to break the crystal of a watch, whether it's mineral, sapphire, or acrylic.

Someone might say, "You're asking for a lot for this price, buddy!" Well, the Chinese have proven that maybe I'm not asking for too much, but okay, everyone evaluates things according to their own perspective. Surely the name of Orient and the in-house movement are something that you pay for and rightfully so. Additionally, the watch is very beautiful with a decent build quality and very comfortable on the wrist.

Overall, I am quite satisfied and I don't see it leaving my collection anytime soon (maybe never). Definitely a value for money watch (despite possible improvements that could exist), and its biggest positive for me, compared to other divers on the market, is that it combines sportiness with dressiness extremely well...

P.S. Let me clarify a misconception. Orient is not a subsidiary of Seiko, it has shared interests with Seiko. This means that as a company, it clearly follows its own path in all aspects, without any dependence on Seiko. It's a shame to refer to them as a subsidiary of Seiko when they produce their own movements and have their own very distinct watch series (see Bambino). In some cases, one might find common design references, but beyond that, nothing...