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‘Follow your own star’ and traverse the ‘road less travelled’ with UNDONE watches Basecamp

Bottom line, you go from being part of a fashion herd to an exclusive watch nerd; the UNDONE watches Basecamp lets you ‘follow your own star’.

‘Follow your own star’ and traverse the ‘road less travelled’ with UNDONE watches Basecamp 

Disclaimer: Today we go hands-on with the extensively customisable UNDONE watches Basecamp, the everyday tool watch with a lot of you in it. We received this courtesy UNDONE in exchange for this review only. Like all of our work, this is not a sponsored post though there are affiliate links that would earn us a small commission with no extra charge to you. This UNDONE watches Basecamp is different to any watch I have personally owned (and now customised) and one of the best aspects of this is the ultra-rare mixture of good build quality, exceptional customisable features and an absolute smacking of a bargain price. We spent about a fortnight wearing it, and here’s our honest — again, yes, we received the complimentary watch but are not being paid to write this review — hands-on review that details our first impressions and on-the-wrist experience.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

Hold it. Take a breather; pause. Chill. Slowly breathe in and out; exhale. You know that reckless and hapless search for an ideal beater watch that doesn’t require you to sell your kidneys for? Yeah, that search you have embargoed on from the time the watch bug got you. Perhaps it’s time for you to stop looking — well you and I both know that ain’t happening but at least we can stop looking for a while — for your beater. I know it’s time for me. As Tony Montana might say, allow me to introduce you to the definition of an everyday tool watch, say hello to my little UNDONE watches Basecamp.

Deconstructing the individual taste for horology, one watch at a time are UNDONE watches.

Well built, yes. Exceptional value for money, yes. Catering to your own personality and whims and fancies, yes. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp
A good customisable watch will be the Friend that’s always there for you!

Ralph Waldo Emerson, the American essayist and poet who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century once said that “To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment”. Resonating with this exact and timeless sentiment are UNDONE watches.

Their amount of unique customisation simply allows you in a world that is constantly trying to shove the same watch designs in your face to create something new, and that can be called one of watchmaking’s greatest accomplishments

Where watches come undone and dreams are turned into reality, meet the Undone x WYGDAI from the makers of pure wrist pleasure at extremely affordable prices.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

The Undone x WYGDAI Part 

No, the watch we are reviewing today is not an official collaboration for sale or anything, but we recently got the opportunity to be sent a fully customisable watch by the forces at UNDONE, and since we could add our elements to it, it ended up being a watch that’s got the spirit of WYGDAI enthused in it.

For a fraction of a price of what the watchmaking industry can charge for customisation, if at all they let you tinker with it, now anyone can create a similar timepiece, and that’s the beauty we are talking about today. We do of-course take you through the entire process of designing this particular piece, so barring our logo at the back, technically there’s nothing stopping you from designing the same look for yourself should you wish to. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

But that said, why should you? After all, this is the beauty of UNDONE watches, that you don’t have to follow the road most travelled. American actor Harvey Fierstein once said that “Accept no one’s definition of your life; define yourself”

In the world of horology, UNDONE equips you to do just that. 

The Judging Criteria 

Let me get this out of the way from the onset; we will be judging this watch based on two main criteria: one, the cost of only $335 USD, and other, how much customisation one can do. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

All other features like how it feels, how it performs, does it do justice to the price tag, or does it surpass our expectations et al, will, in turn, be measured according to these two parameters. It was imperative to do this because for the low price of $335 USD you would be hard-pressed to find another alternative with a trustworthy movement — albeit not Swiss-made — that can take the voice of your reasoning.

The Unboxing

The watch comes in a cool looking, tidy, compact and sturdy box that houses this piece. This grey fabric coated box features the date of purchase and basic specifications on it.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

It can be reused, and also used for travelling — whenever that may happen with this pandemic — which I find great. It’s got a tray inside that’s got a foam cut out panel that helps you to keep the watch on display (if you don’t mind dust that is, though your watch’s movement would). 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

There is also a basic instruction manual booklet, that could for all intents and purposes be made a bit nicer, perhaps have a glossy, sturdier paper or maybe an environmentally friendly option that matches the linen look of the fabric of the box. A flimsy paper manual looks a bit cheap. I would have also preferred if the watch came with a wipe cloth — same advice we gave when we reviewed Bausele’s Vintage 2.0 — especially given the material of the glass and bezel, a cloth would come in handy to wipe off the often repeating smudge marks. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

But overall though, I do admire the box the watch comes in – UNDONE has managed to create a somewhat unique way of delivering their watches.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

The Gut Reaction 

“Your individuality is the most valuable thing you have,” said Martha Beck, a best-selling author, life coach, and speaker. 

My first gut reaction on opening the watch packaging and seeing come to life the various elements I had specifically chosen for the UNDONE watches Basecamp design was that of sheer pride. That’s right, pride. It felt great to be holding a timepiece that not only looked great, felt sturdy, but also had that bit of my individuality that filled a gap that no matter how many strap changes I go through on my other watches, I will ever be able to fill. 

You know what I am talking about, that search for endless NATO straps to find an economical way to individualise your watches. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

With my new UNDONE watches Basecamp, I genuinely felt that I had taken a part in creating a timepiece and that feeling like a MasterCard commercial is priceless

We went for the blacked-out steel case look in this watch. This was perhaps one of the redeeming qualities of the watch for us, as somehow this made the watch look much more ‘luxury’ than silver would have. I realise they use 316L stainless steel like the majority of the brands out there, but the dark colour combinations we chose for our watch both aesthetically and wrist feel wise worked wonders in conjunction with a blacked-out body.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

We also appreciate that UNDONE gave us the option of customising the pin buckle colour at no extra cost, and we managed to match it to the case colour. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

My next reaction was how similar — not the same though — it looked to what I had designed online. And while the watch we received was similar to what we designed, we did notice though that the watch appeared very slightly darker in person than its online configurator. This wasn’t a problem for us because we were going for a dark, stealth look anyway, but still worthwhile to note that the colours can vary ever so slightly. This is not really a critique, just something for the buyer to know. 

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This is how dark the watch usually looks… on camera, it’s a bit hard to capture this exact colour tone…

That said, to give credit where it’s due, UNDONE watches have done a pretty good job of closely matching the colours on their website with that of the final product, because often in my experience with other brands and objects, there can be a wide gap between what’s displayed on one’s screen and what one receives as the final product. With UNDONE watches, there was still a bit of “oh, it’s a bit different than I expected” reaction, but it wasn’t enough to warrant a rant against them. I mark this as a plus for the brand. 

Next thing we noticed was that there was a lot more three-dimensional effect to the watch. I say 3D because take a Cartier Tank for instance. Excellent timeless dress watch, perhaps THE dress watch besides a Patek Calatrava, but it looks very two-dimensional, both the printed dial and the case profile. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

But the UNDONE watches Basecamp doesn’t. On close inspection we attribute this to a number of factors: the rather thick and also magnifying glass looking lens on top, the Rolex inspired case — due to the mid-case profile and sloping lugs — that is rather layered, and the blue of the dial that has a nice gradient effect, all these contributed to the 3D aesthetic.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

Another aspect that I noticed, and frankly I don’t know whether I like it or dislike it, is the rather unusual feature of not aligning the bezel curve with the case body curve. The bezel at 12 and 6’o clocks is not flushed with the case, leaving for a tiny bit of case to be visible.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

History of the Brand

Before we go more into the specifics of this watch, allow me to briefly place the brand in some context. 

UNDONE watches is a relatively new player on the market, even though its founder is a legend in his own right. Started by famed vintage Rolex expert Michael Young, the young brand began its journey in April 2014 with the launch of the AQUA collection, and then in September 2016 came the defining moment that saw them raise HK$ 1,960,430 in a Kickstarter Campaign. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

Started by a team of three men, UNDONE watches overall has 5 core collections — Urban, Urban 34, Aero, Basecamp & Aqua — with Urban 34 being targeted towards women. Out of these, the majority are either quartz-powered or Mechanical-Quartz Hybrid options. 

They also have an array of cool collaborations — just as a side note I personally purchased their recent LE Tom & Jerry JINX watch — that includes the likes of Snoopy, Batman & Popeye themed models among others. Out of all the five collections, the Urban collection has the most variety, and these essentially include dress/military-inspired chronographs.  

UNDONE watches Basecamp

The Customisation Process 

The Aqua and Basecamp are their automatic movement watch collections, and while initially I was inclined to customise the ‘Standard Zero’ from the Aqua collection, their larger 42.5mm diameter, 16mm thick cases and 22 mm interhorn spacing — personally I don’t like to wear watches that have an interhorn bug spacing of more than 20mm — made me think otherwise. 

Though given the fact that only the Aqua collection features a sapphire crystal covering, anyone with larger wrists looking for an automatic dive watch should definitely go for this option. The lens that other options use, including the Basecamp option I went for, are either the ‘LEXAN Polycarbonate’ lens or the ‘hardened domed K1 Crystal’, that are pretty shatterproof but scratch easy. 

If I get just one request for offering my advice, I would humbly suggest that at-least for their automatic offerings, UNDONE should start featuring more options with sapphire crystal. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

Step-by-step 

It was an 11-stage customisation process, and we have included screenshots here for your reference. It is this customisation part that is the main scoring point, given it doesn’t look childish or plasticky in person and the watches are very well made, especially considering their low costs. 

In terms of what watch enthusiasts can choose, listed below are various options based on the aspects we preferred the most: 

  • Hands: Overall 12 options to choose, from a set of differing styles such as straight, lollipop, arrow, sword or Mercedes-type hands. I personally often find myself looking at some of the hands of various watches and thinking that maybe a different style, with or without more lume depending on the dial layout would be better. A friend of mine has a Cartier Ronde de Croisiere (pictured below) that I love to try on as I really like its aesthetics but its skeletonised hands bug me to no end. Every time he wears it I can’t help but think how those hands need to be changed. So you understand why this extensive amount of hands customisation that UNDONE allows is simply commendable.  
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UNDONE watches Basecamp
I would love to try to find one of these for myself if it weren’t for the non-legible hands
  • Bezels: Four bezel options to choose from, and frankly who doesn’t like to change their bezel to complement the dial colour? 
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  • Case: Again four options are available, with steel, black coated steel, yellow gold and pink gold look. We went with the blacked-out look, as it ended up providing the watch with stealth, under-the-radar, and dare I say sexy, look.
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  • Initials fonts: Yet again four options are available 
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  • Initials colours: Here they only provide with two options, and I don’t think that’s enough. We chose the black option to have an understated effect but the online customisation tool doesn’t show how the initials are printed in reality, and in the final product we could not make out the initials we chose. Had we gone for white, that would have shown but would have been too bright.
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UNDONE watches Basecamp
Just for reference that’s meant to read ‘UxW’
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  • I reckon they need more font colours that complement the dial colours they offer and those that can also work well on the ‘chocolate bars, AP Royal Oak inspired’ California style dial layout texture. 
UNDONE watches Basecamp
  • Dials: Five options are offered. The version we chose is called the Cali Blue, and is one of their most distinctive looking options. To me, it’s almost Panerai Radiomir meets Blancpain Fifty Fathoms meets AP’s Royal Oak. Thankfully it does this in a restrained manner and the borrowed elements do not appear to be tacky or overbearing.
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As a side note, I would like to mention that I personalised this UNDONE watches Basecamp Cali Blue along with some Nike Air Presto shoes, and they both arrived roughly around the same time. Why am I mentioning Nike? 

Because I personally love personalised shit — sorry for the language — and being able to customise a watch at this price, have it bear signs of my own personality, and pair it with other customisable stuff I may have is simply a wonderful feeling. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

Each to his own but for those who like their products enthused with their own design beliefs, UNDONE is doing an excellent job. And there is something for the purists too; all of them are made to order and finished in-house. 

The Fortnight Marker 

We talked earlier about our first impressions. After spending a couple of weeks with our UNDONE watches Basecamp, there were a few aspects that spoke the loudest. We have talked about both the positives and the negatives, though I am glad to report that the majority of these are positive.

The California Dial 

I specifically opted for the Cali dial option, as I don’t have a California layout dial in my own collection. I wasn’t so sure if I would like the half-Arabic half-Roman numeral dial or not, and that’s why I haven’t personally indulged in the famed Panerai option. It’s a unique look alright, and perhaps that requires some getting used to. But it’s nice, it’s different, and with the incorporation of lume with the UNDONE watches version, it’s pretty useful too. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

One of the reasons I can recommend anyone seeking out to buy one of these watches is the added benefit of trialling out a California dial at a very affordable price, before committing oneself to costlier options. 

Another reason why I liked this was how the California dial numerals are also lumed, and that made for some interesting night shots.

UNDONE Customised 57
UNDONE Customised 58

Built Quality 

We have already established that you will be hard-pressed to find at this price point this level of customisation, but what’s even more impressive is that the watch doesn’t look tacky or cheap once you see it in person. This was one of my concerns about UNDONE, that the final product may not live up to the standards of the cost segment it is in. After all, Seiko is a pretty formidable force in that price bracket.

When I compare it to say the striking CW C60 Trident — which retails for more than twice the price — and I don’t take into account the movement, the UNDONE version doesn’t feel that it is a poor cousin. And for a watch that got customised and shipped within a fortnight, one can still see the high-quality workmanship has not been sacrificed. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp
Next to Christopher Ward C60 diver and Tudor BB58 Blue

Low Costs 

I feel like I am repeating myself like a broken record at this stage but owing to their strong online presence, the costs are low and downright justified. Plus, owing to the customisation bit at this price point, chances are that no-one else should have the same watch technically (though if they do, that would be spooky).

The Aesthetics of the Final Product

This is of course subjective to personal taste because we chose the elements, but we think it’s a beautiful watch.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

I like the subtle UNDONE branding at 6 and how the colouring of that matches that of the text and the peripheral minute railway track. This colour also matches with the numerals on the bezel. I do like watches that are legible and this is super-legible, both with and without lume. All these elements on the faux-patina numerals and a thicker crystal on top hark back to vintage military watches and I really like the execution of the various elements here. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

The caseback is one of my favourite features. The blacked-out case nicely frames the movement window, that is covered by our logo.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

The caseback itself is layered, adding to the three-dimensional look I was referring to earlier. I also appreciate how the bezel groove are matched to the blacked-out case, and it is this attention to detail that really elevates the quality of this watch. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

Though what does bother my OCD is that the 6’o clock horizontal marker is not the same length as the 3 and 9’o clock ones.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

The Bezel

The bidirectional bezel doesn’t sound at all, it has no clicks. I know for a dive watch it’s not practical, but let’s be honest, who goes diving with these or any of the billion luxury Swiss-made rotating bezel dive watches out there? They are all essentially statement watches. And a statement the UNDONE watches Basecamp does make. I particularly liked the bezel because it’s quiet. And that is different. I generally use diving bezels for timing errands, and a sans sound rotation of the bezel is kind of novel. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

Plus, unlike some standard click versions, it is super easy to rotate/turn and for those who like to fidget, like me, it’s a great companion. Quite frankly I would definitely recommend this for those who like to fidget. 

Straps Galore 

I feel like a kid in a candy store but UNDONE lets you choose from a very wide range of reasonably priced strap options, that not only come in different colours but also materials.

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A couple of things to note here though: one, the alligator strap option was easily imported into Australia, which means either UNDONE has some arrangement with CITES or something like that. I know from online forums that importing alligator straps is always tricky, and knowing this the buyers can choose the alligator option without worrying. The second thing to note is that the strap itself was very stiff and took a while to break in. It also felt a bit cheap — the only, sole aspect of the package that felt this way — and I think that’s because it’s a mix of alligator and calf-leather. 

Date Wheel 

You can customise the date wheel colour, and choose between white and black. I frankly haven’t seen or heard of any other company doing this, and I think that’s fantastic. 

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The Crown 

I like how the crown is embossed with the ‘U’ logo, is a screw-down crown keeping it more water-resistant, and has an octagonal shape to it rather than a simple circular crown that also coincidentally matches the case back. It is also large enough to grab easily. My only beef with it is that it felt a bit delicate to use. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

The Dimensions

The 40mm diameter watch wears much smaller due to the 3mm thick lens’ magnifying and reducing quality, the rather short lugs and the only 48mm lug-to-lug distance. The watch face itself feels even smaller, especially given it’s covered by only a 28mm diameter lens. For me, these dimensions worked well as I have small 16cm wrists. 

To put this into perspective, below I have placed this next to the new Tudor BB58 Blue, which is technically a smaller 39mm diameter watch but owing to larger lugs and a smaller crystal on top wears bigger. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

In terms of the side profile though, the Tudor is only 11.9mm and the UNDONE watches Basecamp is a much thicker 15mm. That said, the lens itself is 3mm, so essential from the top they both look and appear to be very similar. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

Gift To Your Heart’s Content

At this price point of $335 USD, I reckon the watches make for perfect gifts as well. Special events like Christmas, birthday of a family member, weddings, staff bonding/bonus watch idea, there are a variety of reasons why these watches would make for great gifts. And since these allow for initials on the dials and a photo to be placed on the back, they would make for ideal gifts even to oneself.

UNDONE watches Basecamp
The beautiful Tom & Jerry watch would make for an excellent light-hearted gift as well

What We Didn’t Like 

There were a few aspects that jarred on closer inspection and after wearing it for a while. 

  • We have already mentioned how the alligator strap was uncomfortable. Next, the black coating while looks good, but on touch doesn’t feel refined. It’s got a certain paint job feel to it, rather than a proper DLC coating smooth finish. 
  • Only one year warranty is frankly poor. If I am buying a watch I do not expect it to start malfunctioning within one year, and this short warranty becomes a moot point. They should at least increase it to the two-year mark. 
  • In my opinion, the sapphire crystal is a must. I don’t like the idea of my crystals/lens to have a lot of scratches.
  • They say that they individually test all watches, and while there was nothing wrong with this one particular, I did have trouble with the other watch that I personally bought. I was so impressed with their website and products, that I did order another one. And in that one, the second’s hand came “undone” as soon as I pressed the chrono pusher. I felt I should talk about it because that was their limited edition JINX Tom & Jerry watch that I felt should have been even more tested as that couldn’t be customised and would have been ready to ship anyway. The watch was still working mind you, just the second’s hand fell off inside the dial. The watch overall looked amazing, and it was a shame that I had to send it back for repairs. The customer service process for repairs was smooth enough, and while I appreciate that the brand would reimburse the shipping costs up-to 20 USD, I still ended up paying around 49 AUD which is still more for a watch that was brand new and still within their 14-day return policy. I haven’t received the fixed product yet so I can’t say how the fixing process went. Again, this is not reflective of this particular watch I am reviewing or the brand as a whole. I just felt I should be honest about this.
  • The Basecamp has a very masculine look, and I feel the brand should have a ladies version too (with an automatic movement). 
  • This is not an issue for me but technically Basecamp is a homage to military-style watches and the Rolex Explorer, and some people may find that to be a copy or offensive. 
UNDONE watches Basecamp

The Movement

The UNDONE watches Basecamp comes with the Seiko NH35A movement. You might be wondering if it’s good enough? Well, yes and no. 

Yes because in itself it is a very common, reliable, workhorse Japanese movement that I see no issues with. Lots of brands such as Invicta, Seiko, Spinnaker use it liberally and frequently. So as a movement, it is absolutely fine and trustworthy, especially at this price point. 

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No, because I feel given the relatively high-end look of the UNDONE watches Basecamp that we received, the body deserved a Swiss heart. Heck, increase the cost by a couple of hundred dollars, add a sapphire crystal on top and an SW200-1 movement inside, and boom, you have yourself an immensely formidable force to work with. They can even go for the Swiss Technology Production STP1-11/3-13/5-15 calibres that are essentially clones of ETA 2824-2 and offer a higher frequency (4Hz) and offer bigger power reserve than SW200-1 (44-hours). 

Nothing against Japanese movements either, I mean put a Grand Seiko calibre in this and it would give most Swiss movements a run for their money. 

But the NH35A calibre is used in very entry-level watches and I reckon that takes away from the feel of this watch. This may almost be akin to comparing apples with oranges, but one can currently find on Amazon an Invicta Men’s 9094OB Pro Diver with a steel bracelet that features the same movement and a 200m water-resistance for less than $100 USD. And that’s my trouble with this, is that while Invicta offerings are amazing value for money, the UNDONE offering should have something more, that extra edge other than customisation. As I said, put a Swiss movement inside and I can foresee these watches going up way more in demand. 

Anyway, coming back to the movement itself, this stock standard Japanese TMI NH35A Automatic Winding Mechanism (supplied by SEIKO Manufacturing (H.K.) Limited) is a bi-directional winding movement featuring 24 jewels and beating at the frequency of 21,600 vph (3Hz). 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

This 12 Ligne mechanical movement that usually comes in a three-hand and date option uses the Diashock absorption system it’s trusted by Seiko.

This 27.4mm diameter and 5.32mm thick movement usually offer accuracy of -20 ~ +40 seconds per day (though I haven’t checked it on this watch) and 41-hours power reserve. 

Overall, even though it is not a high-end Japanese movement or a Swiss movement, it nonetheless works well as a beater watch and due to its common use, its replacement spare parts should be very easily accessible should the need arise.

The Competition

Technically at this price point and these specifications, there are a plethora of other options one could potentially go with. For instance, take the Orient Mako II USA ref. SAA0200BD9. Housed inside a 41.5 x 13mm steel case is the Orient in-house Cal. F6922 automatic movement with -15 second – +25 seconds accuracy per day. It beats at the same 3Hz frequency and has a similar 40-hour power reserve. More aimed at diving, it offers a 120-click unidirectional bezel and a 200m water-resistance. It also comes only with a one year warranty, is not Swiss made and Amazon has it listed for 205 to 351 AUD. 

Or say the Dan Henry 1970 Automatic Diver. It houses the exact same Seiko Caliber NH35 automatic movement inside a similar 40 x 14.8mm 316L stainless steel case, offers a smaller 45.7mm lug-to-lug sizing but a larger 22mm strap lug width. Instead of an external bezel, it has a 60-min inner rotating bezel and a screw-down crown. The other specifications are similar too: 3Hz frequency, 41-hour power reserve and 200m water-resistance. It again offers a one year warranty and is not Swiss made, costs a similar $290 USD and uses a sapphire coated double domed mineral glass. 

The point I am trying to make is that there are lots of options for someone to choose from, and they read with similar specifications and come at similar pricing. 

But where UNDONE has an advantage is the customisation bit, which is very impressive and doesn’t really cost extra if you start comparing the prices.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

Now let’s look briefly at what’s around in the watch customisation world. There are again a lot of players emerging on the market. 

Bamford, we have all heard of, though they mostly operate in a different price and luxury watch segment with the likes of customisable Girard Perregaux, TAG Heuer and Zenith watches. Their own watches are cheaper than the above brands, but are still more expensive than UNDONE options, coming in around 400 Pounds. 

Then there is Eoniq, again Hong Kong based. They have a lot of customisable categories of watches too, including an impressive Swiss made version that uses the above suggested SW200-1 movement. They are however higher priced at $728 USD and do not currently have a dive watch offering. 

Besides these two there are other brands as well, that are either already offering customisable options or have them listed as coming soon on their websites. These include the likes of Timex, Nixon, Enoksen and Monta. They all seem to offer bespoke options, up to varying degrees. 

But what sets UNDONE watches apart is their own design language that guides a lot of this customisation process. In the case of our UNDONE watches Basecamp, the way the big California dial numerals complement the numerals on the bezel and the peripheral minute markings track, and then the way the brown strap complements the rest of the colours, it’s all a joy to look at. And sometimes that’s all one needs from a watch, something that is well-built and looks great.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

UNDONE also do a lot of cool, official collaborations, whether be it with DC Comics/Warner Brother for Batman watches or Popeye in partnership with King Features (read review here).

Test Drive Results 

The alligator strap aside, the UNDONE watches Basecamp wore like a glove once I swapped the straps. Perhaps due to the fact that we customised ourselves, or because the finished product looked so good, I found myself wanting to wear it often. The stealth look we were going for was fully realised and to put it simply, it felt like a great watch to just show-off to people (hey, I am human after all).

UNDONE watches Basecamp

In terms of the wrist size and the diameter of the watch, on my 16cm wrist, the 40mm case fits snug and just right. I was afraid that the 3mm thick LEXAN Polycarbonate lens on top would be too jarring and obtrusive. But unless you specifically go looking for it from the side profile, the way it’s curved you barely notice its height. What you do notice instead is how it makes the dial appear smaller, and overall adds to the appeal of the timepiece.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

The short curved lugs with chamfers feature angled cuts along the sides, though their surface treatment is the same. I am guessing that’s due to the black coating and I wish UNDONE has used a mix of polished/shiny alongside matte/brushed finishes.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

As I spend my working time writing, I always check any watch I am reviewing against this. Frankly, I found no issues here. It’s a pretty lightweight watch as well (66g) and overall, feels good on the wrist. When out and about, I also enjoyed the light bouncing off the thick lens and that subtle gradient effect on the blue in natural lighting.

UNDONE watches Basecamp

If and when I did need to glance at the time, due to the strong contrast of the lume and the blue dial, it was always legible. Even inside the car park, the lume stayed for a fair bit. It may not be the brightest lume I have seen but it was enough to keep me content.

UNDONE Customised 59

Watch Ya Gonna Do About It

I will seek the help and wisdom of three poets from three different parts of the world and from there different centuries to wrap this up. 

UNDONE watches Basecamp

Follow your own star,” said Dante Alighieri, the famed Italian poet who wrote his work in the 1300s. UNDONE watches lets you follow your own heart, to let your creativity rule the canvas. 

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference,” wrote the American Robert Frost, another eminent poet who was active in the beginning of the 1900s. UNDONE allows you to have the freedom of not copying everyone else and buying the same watch as everyone else. 

“What is genius but the power of expressing a new individuality?” asked the Victorian-era English poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning. In a world where more focus is being laid on bespoke products, I think UNDONE has hit on a winning formula that’s nothing short of genius. 

Bottom line, you go from being part of a fashion herd to an exclusive watch nerd; the UNDONE watches Basecamp lets you ‘follow your own star’ by traversing the ‘road less travelled’ that allows you to express a ‘new individuality’.  

To find out more the UNDONE watches Basecamp, please head to their website here. All images are ©Watch Ya Gonna Do About It unless otherwise stated. We would again like to thank UNDONE watches for sending us this watch to review. 

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