Automatic or manual: the real difference

The rotor

An automatic carries a rotor that spins with wrist motion and winds the mainspring. It adds about 2mm of thickness and gives a watch that is always ready.

The ritual

A hand-wound movement wants twenty turns of the crown each morning. For some people that is exactly what they want from a watch.

Service

Both need a service every five years. The hand-wound is simpler and therefore slightly cheaper to maintain.