Casio WSB1000 has one fatal flaw

On paper, this thing sounds darned near perfect. But there's one thing about it that's not-so good. Bad, in fact.

I really like that Casio has been introducing a good amount of squared-off digitals lately. There's nothing wrong with round, but LCD digits by their very nature are angular, so a square/rectangle shape totally works with it. The WS1700H is a good example of that, as that model is big, square, and not sorry about it.

But then comes the more reasonably sized WSB1000:

46.2mm lug-to-lug, 41.3mm case, 11.6mm thick. Nice dimensions all around.

The WSB1000 has a trick up its sleeve. You can connect it with Bluetooth to your phone to sync the time. At top, you see STEP TRACKER. This watch will track up to 999,999 steps. That's not a typo. Step goal ranges can be set from 1,000 to 50,000 using 1,000-step increments. It also has a step reminder feature that will show on the display and beep at you if you like. There's even a step count graph on it at top left. When active, it replaces the weekday display.

But even if you don't use the step tracking feature, this is still a good looking digital with nice big buttons on it for easy operation.

What's the flaw?

Two-year battery life from a CR2016.

True, CR2016 batteries are dirt cheap, but I'm totally used to Casio watches with a 10-year battery life.

I did look up to see if there are any more Casio Step Tracker watches that have a longer battery life. The one that stuck out was the WS2100H. That's a bigger watch, but also has the bigger CR2025 battery which Casio claims lasts 3 years instead of 2. The tradeoff is no Bluetooth sync with that model.

As far as I can tell, no Casio watch exists that has the step tracker feature and 10-year battery life. Not even for G-SHOCK models. The GBX100 has a 2-year battery life. If you want a longer battery life, you have to go solar. Two of the few models I know that has step tracker along with everything else and the kitchen sink and is solar powered is the G-SHOCK DWH5600 and G-SHOCK GBDH2000. Those are cool watches, but at that point you're going far beyond just having a basic step tracker.

The WSB1000 is cool and I like it. I don't like the short (for a Casio) battery life. But I do like the step tracking and the very low price point to get a plain digital watch where you can sync the time with Bluetooth. That's just a nice feature to have.

Published 2024 Jul 15