Quartz History

• Quartz-powered watches were developed in the late 1960s and eventually overtook automatic and windup mechanical watches in overall sales among buyers, according to Smithsonian.org.
  
  

Automatic Origins

• Automatics, also called self-winding watches, began to appear on the market in the mid-1920s and was perfected by Rolex with the Rolex Oyster Perpetual watch in 1930.
  
  

Quartz Technology

• Quartz watches use a crystal that sends electronic impulses to a tuning fork that that vibrates, which powers the timepiece.
  
  

Automatic Mechanism

• Automatics are powered by a spring mechanism called a movement and uses a large half-moon-shaped disc that rotates with arm movement to keep the watch wound, according to Timezone.com.
  
  

Quartz Features

• Quartz watches can lose or gain only a few seconds a year. It requires a battery with a lifespan of about four years to keep running.
  
  

Automatic Advantages

• Automatics can lose or gain up to eight seconds a day. It never needs winding if the watch is worn daily. It needs no battery, but should be serviced every five years.