WISHDOIT Review – F-150 Chrono Black

I really didn’t know what to expect from this watch. Over the years, I’ve grown used to Chinese brands offering products that are low-cost and great value, sometimes with trade-offs regarding quality and originality. This watch is a little different.

Firstly, it’s pricing sets it apart. While it’s definitely affordable in comparison with well-known European or Japanese brands, it’s not something most people will sneeze at.

Secondly, its design is distinctly unique. While many Chinese brands draw inspiration from established brands, WISHDOIT has opted to forge its own distinctive path.

So, when I received this watch in the mail, I had no idea what to expect. In this review, I’ll go through my experience with one of their most popular models – the F-150. I was pleasantly surprised.

First Impressions

Before opening the box, the first thing that caught my attention was the weight. It felt noticeably heavier than other watches I’ve worn recently. I suspected this would just be the packaging, but it turns out the watch itself is VERY sturdy.

Moving on to the packaging itself – WISHDOIT have clearly put a lot of thought into the unboxing experience. After tearing off the shrink wrap plastic, you’re presented with a stylish soft black box with dual-opening lid sections. Inside is a nice-looking microfibre cloth covering the timepiece. It’s simple, yet it clearly states that this watch aspires to be a high-quality timepiece.

The watch itself is wrapped in protective plastic. Picking it up confirmed my first impressions – this is a solid unit.

Appearance

The quality of this watch certainly exceeded my expectations. It’s large (42mm x 50mm, 14.8mm thick) and the case appears to be a combination of metal and plastic, with a patterned metal finish taking prominent place on the front and back. The dial is large, and curves around your wrist nicely.

The dial displays a typical analog layout with three small circles for the chronometer (stopwatch) function. The numerals are silver, and quite large. In fact, most features on the dial are a shiny silver that glitters when hit by the light, easily catching your eye. To me, this abundance of silver almost elevates the watch to a dress watch, albeit one that exhibits practicality and masculinity.

Being the F-150 model, paying tribute to the Ford F-150 pickup truck, the watch features several motoring references. The crown is large and spins freely, bringing to mind the wheel of a car. I don’t know if this is due to the overall motoring vibes, but the stopwatch dials also evoke images of moving wheels once the stopwatch is started. The caseback features an image of a pickup truck. Even the silver lugs around the edge of the case remind me of bolts or rivets.

If you’re into cars, and pickup trucks in particular, you’ll love these automotive references.

Everyday Use

I previously mentioned how heavy this watch is, and I was concerned that the weight would detract from the experience of wearing it most of the day. At first, yes, it refused to remain where I like to wear it, sliding down my wrist. However, after some adjustment and daily wear, I grew used to this. My wrists are 6.5 inches, and quite boney. If you’ve got more substantial wrists, I don’t see this being a problem.

On a more positive note, the band is fantastic. It’s strong, yet extremely soft, leading to a very comfortable feel that didn’t irritate over the day. I’d even say this is one of the best polymer bands I’ve ever worn, eclipsing that of much more expensive watches.

Another issue I found, however, is reading the time. With the silver numerals, silver stopwatch dials, and silver hands, the dial exhibits too much detail in identical silver. The hands aren’t easy to differentiate from the underlying numerals. While it did become easier, reading the time still requires an extra second, compared with other analog watches I’ve worn.

If I were to offer one suggestion to WISHDOIT, it would be to make the hour and minute hands a different color, possibly red to match the seconds hand and other highlights on the face.

Functionality

Functionality is as expected from a simple analog watch. The date and time is easily set by pulling the crown out by one or two clicks, and rotating as usual. The crown is a joy to use – it rotates freely and it’s large size makes fine adjustments a breeze.

The stopwatch is also very easy to use, using the two large buttons on the side of the case. No surprises here – one button starts and stops, and the other resets. The minutes and seconds dials are easy to read, but the dial displaying tenths of a second requires a little more thought. Like most analog stopwatches, however, this precision is largely aesthetic, and it serves this purpose well.

In the dark, the hands and numerals illuminate well. Again, no surprises here.

Conclusion

Overall, I’m quite impressed with the WISHDOIT F-150 Chrono. It’s a great quality timepiece, especially when considering the pricetag. While I did have a few issues with the weight and the ease of reading the time, I grew accustomed to these and they ceased to bother me too much.

If you’re looking for a unique, high-quality timepiece with a bit of bling, you should definitely consider the WISHDOIT F-150 Chrono.