good idea and bad idea casio watches
Over the years, I've bought many Casio digital watches. I still own a small pile of them, but I've also bought and returned a few - some on the same day I bought it.
I'm going to list a few of the good and the bad, and the reasons for each.
Good: Casio F-91W
Why it's good: Small and thin, but legible and easy to use. Not-so good night light, but has that classic loud beep if you decide to use the alarm feature. The basic black is the best version.
Bad: Casio CA-53W calculator watch
Why it's bad: Small display, no night light, and pretty much entirely sold on nostalgia alone. True, it wears very comfortably, but once the nostalgia wears off, it is (said nicely) difficult to use the calculator feature. The buttons are tiny and can only really be pressed effectively with the eraser end of a pencil. Also, it does have a date feature, but that's not shown on the display by default and requires an addition button press just to see it.
Good: Casio W218H
Why it's good: Fantastic legibility, fantastic night light, light in weight. It's basically a slightly larger F-91W as the feature set is identical (with the same loud beep). Buttons are a joy to use. Easy to press, and work every time.
Bad: Casio AE1200
Why it's bad: Time is big and night light great, but Month-Date is tiny, and that's made even worse by the insert that casts a shadow over it when trying to read it in sunlight. Buttons on this one are completely hit-or-miss. You might get one where the buttons work properly, and another where you have to mash it with your finger just to get a button press to register.
Good: Casio AE1500W
A big watch that actually delivers with big time and month-date display, but surprisingly can still fit small wrists (note: the long-strap version is the AE1500WHX). If BIG digits and BIG date is what you need, this absolutely works.
Yeah, it's built tough just like all G-SHOCK watches are with 200m water resistance. But the battery life is poor (you're lucky to get 2 years before a battery change is needed) compared to regular Casio watches, the display has nasty LCD washout, the recessed 'adjust' button is infuriating to deal with, and overall visibility is poor. You're basically trading readability for toughness. At least with the GWM5610 you get solar power. Legibility doesn't improve that much, but the battery will last a whole lot longer.
And never, EVER get a negative LCD display. That's the worst. Doesn't matter what watch it is. Nobody ever said, "Yes, I want something that makes the watch more difficult to read", and nobody ever will.
Published 2024 Nov 12
