This Award-Winning Brand’s Latest Watch Offers Shockingly Affordable Richard Mille Vibes

It even has an in-house skeletonized automatic movement.

a ciga design skeleton watch on a mans wrist

Published January 25, 2025

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Most watch styles are available at all price points.

If you covet, say, a Patek Philippe Calatrava dress watch, you can find a similar-looking, classy dress watch from a brand like Orient. Want a Rolex Submariner but don’t have the budget for it? There are a million affordable dive watches that replicate the Sub’s iconic style.

Then there are watch styles that seem reserved for the one percent of the one percent. One of the most notorious is the signature style of Richard Mille.

While considered a polarizing brand to some enthusiasts, RM is nevertheless one of the most influential and significant watch brands today. Despite having only been around for a little over two decades, Richard Mille already ranks as the sixth most valuable Swiss watch brand, outranking much older stalwarts like Breitling, IWC, Vacheron Constantin and more.

richard mille watch on a mans wrist — Richard Mille’s style is … distinctive.

The brand’s trademark tonneau case shape and complex skeletonized dials are instantly recognizable. To paraphrase former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart, you’ll know a Richard Mille when you see one.

The problem is, RM’s point of entry is nearly impossible for the vast, vast majority of people to even dream of entertaining, with an average retail price of around $300,000. So if you really love the Richard Mille aesthetic but only have a budget of, say, $500, how can possibly you go about getting a similar look without winning the lottery?

As of today, you can pick up a Ciga Design Z Series Hunter.

It’s not a Richard Mille, but it’s better than you think

a ciga design skeleton watch — Getting Richard Mille vibes and an in-house skeletonized movement for under 500 bucks is wild.

Let’s get a few things out of the way up front.

Yes, the Ciga Design Z Series Hunter is a Chinese watch. The brand is quite up-front about its origins. But being Chinese doesn’t mean it’s junk. Ciga has quite a solid track record, with several Red Dot Design Awards to its name and even a prestigious GPHG Award — AKA the Oscars for watches — on its mantle. (The brand’s Blue Planet won the academy’s Challenge Prize in 2021.)

No, this watch is in no way comparable to a Richard Mille outside of its RM-influenced design. There is a reason why Richard Mille watches cost so much. The crazy amount of proprietary technology and materials packed into an RM watch is mind-boggling, as is the attention to detail and levels of craftsmanship. You’re not going to play tennis in this Ciga Design watch. Hell, you probably shouldn’t even get it wet.

Now, with those disclaimers out of the way, let’s get into the watch.

a ciga design skeleton watch held in hand — The case of the Hunter is surprisingly complex.

The Hunter is the latest entry in Ciga Design’s Z Series, and it is both the most impressive so far and the most visually stunning. The watch has a dodecagonal tonneau-shaped case that’s full of sharp angles and contrasting finishes. It’s surprisingly complex, especially its skeletonized design that leaves large gaps between the inner and outer portions of the case that are secured together via screws at the four corners.

The movement is fully skeletonized and pleasantly symmetrical, with the balance in full view at 6 o’clock and a branded mainspring barrel at 12. The rotor is anchor-shaped and is signed on both sides, which is a nice touch as you can clearly see it spinning through the front sapphire crystal just as easily as through the sapphire display back.

The movement’s bridges are in the shape of an X and secure to a barely-there mainplate via four screws at the corners. This mimics the screws holding the case together, giving the watch a very cohesive and well-thought-out look.

the caseback of a ciga design skeleton watch — The skeletonized movement’s origins are somewhat murky, but it’s pretty nice to look at.

So, what movement is it exactly? Ciga Design calls it Caliber CD-07 and claims it was designed and developed fully in-house, with each movement taking 90 days to assemble. Both of those claims sound pretty dubious to me, but in any case, the movement’s specs are respectable, with a 28,800 bph beat rate, 24 jewels and a 40-hour power reserve.

Ciga Design makes no claims about the movement’s accuracy, and that’s probably for the best. My review sample was not very accurate, gaining about a minute per day. Honestly, I’m not mad at that performance. The watch’s design and build quality are worth the extremely low asking price, and I don’t think anyone is buying this watch expecting chronometric precision.

The case and bracelet are both stainless steel, which somewhat surprised me because they look like they’re made of titanium. That’s courtesy of a carbon-colored DLC finish all over, which is missing in spots of the watch that aren’t normally visible — like in between bracelet links — but it does its job well. My sample remains scratch-free after several days of wear.

the clasp of a a ciga design watch bracelet on a mans wrist — The bracelet is surprisingly nice for a watch this cheap.

The bracelet is surprisingly nice. It’s tapered with flat H-links and has great articulation. It’s equipped with quick-release spring bars and a butterfly clasp that’s signed with the brand’s logo. The tolerances are great and there aren’t any hot spots. Honestly, I’ve seen far worse bracelets on far pricier watches. I also think the watch would look great on a rubber strap, and the quick-release spring bars make it easy to experiment.

The hands are easy enough to read, though the indices could certainly stand to be more prominent — it usually takes me a second to find them. There is allegedly lume on the hands and at 12, 3, 6 and 9, but it’s probably the worst lume I’ve ever seen. I had trouble getting it to glow, even with a UV light.

a ciga design skeleton watch on a marble surface — It’s not the easiest watch in the world to read, nor is it the most accurate, but that’s not the point.

Pricing and Availability

I am well aware that the Ciga Design Series Z Hunter is not for everyone. In fact, I assume some people reading this review will outright hate the watch. But for anyone who wants that distinct Richard Mille look for a song, you really can’t beat it. It’s fun to wear and cheap enough that virtually anyone can afford to do so.

Ciga Design is currently crowdfunding the watch on Indiegogo, where it has already easily cleared its modest funding goal. The planned retail for the Z Hunter is $549, but right now you can pick one up through the campaign for the comically low price of $389.

It’s no Richard Mille, obviously, but the overall build quality, materials, design and (allegedly) in-house skeletonized movement make the Ciga Design Z Hunter well worth the asking price and then some.