The Seiko line of kinetic watches feature a movement that converts kinetic energy into electrical energy, which means these watches are powered by the movement of your body and not by the power of a battery. Problems have arisen over the years with these timepieces, such as capacitor leakage, capacitor failure, LiOn cell movement requirements and water resistance problems.

In the older models of the Seiko Kinetic line, the watch capacitors are known to leak and movement will perpetually slow down and stop within a matter of a day. According to the Yellowstone Watch Co, Seiko Kinetic watches won’t hold a charge after any type of leakage from the capacitor and therefore will need to be brought in for repair to receive a replacement LiOn (lithium ion) cell.

If the Seiko Kinetic watch isn’t keeping time, especially if it is sitting overnight (perhaps while you are sleeping), it is because the capacitor isn’t working. Capacitors need movement to keep time. According to It’s About Time, before you bring your watch into the repair shop, fully charge your Seiko Kinetic by shaking it up to 2,000 times. If the watch fails to run within 24 hours it will need a new capacitor, which will actually be replaced by a LiOn cell.

Seiko’s newer line of Kinetic watches feature LiOn cell rechargeable power resources instead of the older capacitors. When the Kinetic watches are brought in for repair, the capacitor is normally replaced with the LiOn Cell. The LiOn Cell, according to the manufacturer (Maxell), needs about 25,000 swings of the watch for it to be fully charged, whereas the old capacitors for these timepieces needed only 800 swings for the movement to work properly. With such a power requirement, the watches have the ability to stop working properly much quicker, if they aren’t perpetually in motion or set upon their charging station (sold by Seiko).

Seiko Kinetic watches usually come with sapphire crystals and are marked as water resistant without an ATM rating (i.e. how much water can the watch actually resist?). When Seiko Kinetic watches go in for repair and their crystals are removed, water resistance tests are performed and usually fail the test. Crystals are then needed to be replaced so the watch can resist water properly upon return.