When the Seiko 5 Sports automatic GMT watches were announced costing only $475, it changed everything — at least in the world of affordable watches. They look fantastic, but there was a wider implication: it would lead to more affordable GMT watches from third-party watchmakers using the movement.
We didn’t have to wait long, either. The new Nodus Sector GMT is one of the first of these new timepieces, and it looks pretty damn good.
The NH34 powering Nodus’s Sector GMT is the same as the 4R34 movement found in Seiko watches (the “34” is a hint), as Seiko’s practice is to brand movements for third-party sale in this way. An evolution of the Seiko’s basic 4R/NH movements, their underlying construction is tried and tested in many hardy and reliable watches. The addition of a GMT offers more utility as well as interest, as watch complications at this price point are rare.
Nodus
NodusOk, so it’s one of the first watches to make use of Seiko’s affordable GMT movement. What about the Nodus Sector GMT watch itself? It’s a version of Nodus’s Sector series, which has already come in a range of variants — but we’d venture to say that the GMT is the best looking one yet. Its design is restrained and refined and yet remains interesting, and the 38mm diameter is just right for our tastes. That GMT movement is a little thicker than the plain automatic, and here it results in a case measuring 12.25mm thick — still quite reasonable.
The sizing also shows that there’s room for creativity with the movement and that it can power watches much smaller than Seiko’s 42.5mm GMT. It might be obvious if you stop to consider the nature of watch movements, but it also doesn’t dictate an asymmetric 4 o’clock crown as Seiko chooses. The Nodus Sector is pleasantly symmetrical and relatively traditional with a 3 o’clock crown — and placing the date at 6 o’clock instead of 3 o’clock is merely a matter of the digits’ orientation on their disc and where the window is on the dial.
Further, the Nodus Sector is even ever so slightly cheaper than the Seiko — $25 cheaper. At $450, this is now one of the most attractive and affordable GMT watches you can get — and even as we expect more fun GMT watches in the future, this Nodus will still hold up in terms of quality and looks. It comes in two dial variants of blue and gray, both on leather straps, and they’re available for purchase from the brand now.
