I have a different opinion about this after visiting Japan for the first time this summer. I think they need to accommodate an aging population with technological advancements. It's a classic problem of making old systems work with new technologies. And this in itself is a great achievement if you look at it holistically. Yes, young(er) people can complain that is to hard to buy train tickets or have to interact over the phone for things that can be accomplished online, while old(er) people will probably have harder times adjusting to things like contactless payments, but in the end they managed to make the entire society, as a whole, function and move forward. It can be done better? Yes, definitely, but I think this is iterative and it will improve over time.
Just to add on “The rise of Grand Seiko has leveled that playing field quite a bit”: there is also Credor. Owned by Seiko and (maybe) not that well known outside Asia
I became interested in Seiko watches after recently buying a Seiko Astron while visiting Japan. It’s amazing how much they shaped the watch industry. With the Astron series they buried a lot of Swiss manufacturers when it was first launched. Also, their “Spring Drive” technology is amazing. It’s basically the perfect hybrid between a mechanical watch movement and a quartz crystal. The movement is mechanical, with the spring releasing energy and powering the quartz crystal (there is no battery), which in turn acts as a “referee”, applying an electromagnetic brake and regulating the mechanical movement.
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