Just imagine what kind of statements this products allows its owner to make: You have made your fortune, as may be clearly seen by the fact that you could obtain this product. (That is, it was affordable to the middle classes, but who knows, this must have been as expensive as it is futuristic!) You are aware of and interested in modern developments, which probably relates to how you made your fortune. You're not someone who just inherited their wealth, indulging in sentimentalities. You care for hard facts. You are a modern business man. You are probably self-made. You are important enough to justify a significant investment to keep you as up to date as possible. It's of vital importance to you and probably an unknown quantity of dependents that you won't miss the news. You are always on the go and you have an extraordinary situational awareness. Etc, etc. Also, you are James Bond. (The Yuppiness of this item is quite immeasurable.)
Exactly. This watch was the Bored Ape NFT profile picture of its time. It shows you're rich and you're with / ahead of the current times. And in comparison to a bored ape, it cost less, could be taken to parties and other in-person social functions and you could even sneakily follow sports events during boring meetings.
I think, it's important to note that consumer goods in the 1980s were very much culture building (in the sense of terms like "nation building"). They allowed consumers to express themselves, to align themselves along a certain set of values, to show off, to organize in recognizable cultural tribes, they provided identity, etc. In a sense, 1980s tech was what the FB profile became to the internet generation. (I personally enjoy this cultural aspect.)
There's a scene in season 1 of Halt and Catch Fire where rich grandparents give one as a gift[0], which seemed to say they felt that their daughter had married below her station.
