The history of Casio watches | Hacker News Reader

The history of Casio watches

casio.com

316 pointsqainsights171 comments

The incredible Sensor Watch after-market board is really worth a mention on a thread like this:

https://www.sensorwatch.net/

Joey et al.’s work ports the SPICE astronavigation library to the on board ARM m0 giving you a complete orrery in a classic F91W “Terrorist” watch. It is fantastic!

I really love being able to get an estimate of when and where The Moon will rise, or where Saturn is right now. Timekeeping and astronomy are two of the oldest forms of science we have and I love being in constant touch with them via the newest science we have: computers! (The source is all open and available for you to hack on, including a nifty emulator.)

The CGW-50 Cosmo Phase is impressive on that end for displaying realtime planet positions in 1989, now of course it's just another watch face to choose from on Apple.

Still I bet the Casio works offline longer :p

I'll have to revisit the sensor watch, I'd love to hit a button for sunrise and moonrise

The Yes WorldWatch has the same astronomical almanac but with a display purpose-built for it.

https://yeswatch.com/wrist-watch/worldwatch/worldwatchV7-col...

They're expensive, but beautiful.

It’s interesting how those watches are both objectively expensive for something nobody really needs and at $1,000 or less, dirt cheap by the standard of expensive watches.

> a complete orrery in a classic F91W “Terrorist” watch

It took me a bit of searching, but sure enough:

https://www.sensorwatch.net/docs/watchfaces/complication/#or...

Seems very tedious to actually use, but very cool to have it in the unassuming wristwatch.

The astronomy face is superior as it calculates the altitude and azimuth of the selected object based on your programmed location and, of course, the current time:

https://www.sensorwatch.net/docs/watchfaces/complication/#as...

What would be even better would be to acknowledge that altitude is somewhat moot when all these objects are in the ecliptic plane — unsurprisingly Jupiter at Jovian noon is roughly where The Sun was at lunchtime! — and instead cycle through the azimuths of each object in the sky, in the order in which they are visible.

I had the one with the TV/VCR remote functionality when I was in highschool in the 90s. During English class the teacher wanted to show Shakespeare plays on the VCR. I would pause the video, a friend of mine would walk up to the TV, and slap it on the side, while I unpaused it. We did this a couple of times until the teacher saw me do it and sent me to see the principal. Now that I'm more mature I realize how much that disturbed her class, and I kind of regret it, but maybe some people hold a fond memory of that moment.

The Casio CMD-40

https://old.reddit.com/r/casio/comments/15n9anq/did_we_all_f...

I am wearing one right now - it has been my daily driver for literally decades

(While it has VCR controls built-in, it can "learn" infrared frequencies for "new" inventions like DVD players - copying from an existing IR remote control. Surprisingly, still compatible with modern TVs - at least for basic functions like volume control.)

It was once "futuristic"; collectors now sell them as "retro" and "vintage"

I had the calculator watch when I was in highschool. We competed who has the toughest watch by throwing it on the blackboard. It survived. When I got older I realize how stupid it was and how expensive it was compared to the digital watch on that era.

*It was the C-80 and it was the 80s, it was rubberized all over like the G-Shock of today.

I understand where you're coming from. On the other hand, there's a lesson to learn from the teacher's point of view as well. We always need to take a step back to understand the weakest links in security. A small piece of electrical tape or maybe even a strategically placed VHS cover could solve the issue. Hopefully, this hadn't happened again.

It also comes to: should a teacher "trust" their students not to be intentionally disruptive in interesting ways? Now I wonder if I should similarly trust my users (who are co-workers who are at least getting paid to not cause disruptions)...

I'd be willing to bet that's the only time the teacher had to deal with that specific skulduggery.

Is it actually worth it for a teacher to spend time red-teaming basic lesson equipment? I really think not unless the teacher has reason to believe her students are particularly mischievous.

A punishment may (or may not) be deterrent enough for the people who saw it. However, when you get a new class/userbase regularly or when new technology becomes available (including devices that can control your hardware remotely), an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Perhaps using your watch as intended doesn't seem particularly mischievous in the moment. In this way, legitimate users/sys admins/script kiddies get into trouble because a sys admin didn't have reason to believe their users would be "particularly mischievous".

Exactly. I did the same with my wrist remote in class. After the second time the TV turned off, without saying anything the teacher went to his desk, picked up a notecard, and propped it up over the remote sensor.

I had one, too, and in hindsight I regret what an ass I was to the poor substitute teachers who had one job to do for the day and couldn't because I thought it was funny to turn the TV off when they bend down to turn on the VCR.

I also had the one that could do IR messages with other watches, and that was a lot less disruptive and still pretty fun.

Some of cool and the wild ones:

> The TM-100 was a highly unique wristwatch with the ability to transmit speech via radio. Outfitted with an FM transmitter and microphone, the watch allowed users to wirelessly broadcast their voice to a radio tuned to the right frequency simply by speaking toward the watch

> The unique CMD-10 delivered remote control functionality for TVs and VCRs. Its function-minded layout of large remote control buttons ensured intuitive operability. Users could turn their TV or VCR on or off, change channels, adjust the volume, and more using the watch on their wrist.

And then there is the sad one, too:

> The ever-innovative G-SHOCK brand takes a new step, launching a virtual community where people can co-create and interact with one another via digital platforms like NFTs and the metaverse.

This one too:

> Simply holding the watch’s built-in speaker up to the receiver of a push-button telephone allowed users to place calls to stored numbers

>> Simply holding the watch’s built-in speaker up to the receiver of a push-button telephone allowed users to place calls to stored numbers

So a miniaturized version of one of this (which I totally uselessly had as a kid): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z438yRW0rGQ.

How on earth did we never see some early 90s hacker-culture movie do some Blue-box phreaking using this watch, similar to the (fictional) Atari Portfolio ATM hack in Terminator 2.

As famously modded in 2600 mag, they were useful for a while...

https://phonelosers.com/redbox/tonedialer/

https://hackaday.com/2014/09/05/radioshack-phone-dialer-red-...

> As famously modded in 2600 mag, they were useful for a while...

And now that you remind me, that's totally why I bought one, but at the time I lacked the tools and electronics skills to do the mod.

I had CMD-10 as a kid. It was fun when it worked, but it wasn't pairing well with most TV sets and video players. Though it's possible I just didn't know how to set it up properly.

I have a fantastic memory of confusing my 4th grade teacher when I learned that it worked on the TV in our classroom after setting it up to work at my grandma's house... Sorry Mrs. Norris. You were lovely.

There was a mode where you'd just cycle through all stored "remotes" until the TV switched off. Then you picked that one, and most likely it would work (in my experience). It was great.

I once had a soldering course from a guy that is mainly known for creating a remote that could turn off any TV some years ago, really chill guy but also hillarious that he made a business out of a single gimmicky item like that.

I wouldn't be surprised if he lurks on here, if so, hi!

edit: it's the "TV-B-Gone" by Mitch Altman, who was at the forefront of creating hackerspaces - TIL they weren't as much of a thing in the US until 2008.

The temperature sensor was an interesting idea. Wonder if smartphones will ever get that. Probably not, since it is cheaper to get this information online (but then it is often inaccurate).

The pixel 9 xl has a infrared temperature sensor. I was surprised when I learned this.

https://support.google.com/pixelphone/answer/14103759?hl=en

what would be the point of a temperature sensor in a smartphone. the smartphone is carried by me. that means I already know if it's cold or hot.

Same with any weather app... you already know if it's rainy, sunny or snowing as well.

a weather app provides also forecasts and weather information for places you intend to visit in near future.

Interesting reading, especially as I didn't realise how far ahead of the times they were. The other thing that strikes me is that they'd churn out all sorts of watches - from incredibly beautiful things, to absolutely hideous (from a modern perspective) with bold colours on plastic, but some new geeky features. Also, I'd never thought about how many Casio watches I'd owned in my life!

When I was young I had the calculator watch. I guess C-80, as I remember the white buttons sticking out, but I can't remember any other features. Also not sure why I had a calculator watch I must only have been about 6 or 7 years old. Maybe I'd convinced my parents it was cool!

I also had a 50m water resistant watch, which isn't in the article, but looks like it was the W-59. This was black plastic.

I must have had another watch around this time too, as I remember having a skin reaction (eczema) to the metal back, and having to wear a cotton layer between the watch and my skin. It couldn't have been the next watch though, as the article says it was introduced in 1995 and the eczema would have been around 1986.

The AQ-230 was the last watch I wore before going watchless for about 20 years.

In the early 2000s the strap on my AQ-230 broke, and I realised that I now always had a mobile phone with the time and no longer needed a watch. I didn't get another watch until my first Garmin for running / hiking, but that was only worn during activities, and my most recent Garmin that I tend to wear most of the time.

> 2016 - First Casio outdoor watch to run Android Wear OS

Could you imagine the situation they were in as the most high-tech watch company in the world? For mainstream relevance you now have to anchor yourself to a smartphone platform that is either a) hostile to your very existence or b) completely abandons their platform and leaves you and your customers out to dry.

I know people complain about car manufacturers being hostile to CarPlay and Android Auto. But I think in the long run, the executives are being smart. Looking down the history of other companies that turned over responsibility of their user experience to tech companies - there's not a good track record of long-term successes.

I still think about the way the CEO of Nokia back in 2010 described what it would be like for them to abandon their in-house OS for Android: "Peeing yourself to stay warm".

Casio were decidedly not the most high tech watch company in the world in 2016. The Apple Watch had come out in 2015 and Android watches had been around for years before that.

They maintained a crucial lead in watches that could run for more than 18 hours.

> "Peeing yourself to stay warm".

Which in-house OS this was about? For Symbian, "burning platform" was at least honest.

> I still think about the way the CEO of Nokia back in 2010 describing what it would be like for them to abandon their in-house OS for Android: "Peeing yourself to stay warm"

This has intrigued me because eventually that’s what they ended up doing - although with two major caveats.

Firstly, the mobile space did not have room for 3 players - MS tried very hard and their Nokia phones were pretty good. But it was just one platform too many. They just couldn’t find a niche for itself as Android was being used everywhere due to their open source branch. Proves the point made by you though, there wasn’t space for a second Android if MS were to embrace open source. Nokia tried hard with Meego - I loved the UI but the market was moving at light speed back then.

Secondly, HMD started by branching off from the Nokia of yore and their Android devices are also very good.

I’ll always miss my old Nokias, they were the duopoly with the BlackBerry in the pre-smartphone era.

The tiles UI was simply not good.

The phones themselves were very good. I have a functional Windows phone in a drawer, that I sometimes charge (and it still works!), but after playing with the tile UI for few minutes... eww

Absolutely LOVED the tiles UI and so did everyone I know that gave Windows phone a shot. By far the best mobile experience I've had outside of a few apps I wanted missing. I really miss the OS. I think in general though the other commenters were correct that there was already too much market share coming from iOS and Android.

Agreed, for what we had in 2012, it was absolutely wonderful UI.

Also agree. Windows Phone 8.1 and 10 were great smartphone interfaces.

Would have been great if it had apps, too.

As an absolute harbinger customer, I wholeheartedly agree. I also think iPhone Air doesn't look so bad.

I absolutely loved the tiles interface and held onto my Windows phone for as long as I could. I eventually had to switch to Android when apps I depended stopped working on Windows phone.

> Looking down the history of other companies that turned over responsibility of their user experience to tech companies

Just.. mirror my phone onto the display. I don't need a car companies 10 year old ideas of "user experience." Just give me a few knobs for the climate controls and then get out of my way.

I, as the user, am happy to "take responsibility" for this.

>know people complain about car manufacturers being hostile to CarPlay and Android Auto. But I think in the long run, the executives are being smart. Looking down the history of other companies that turned over responsibility of their user experience to tech companies - there's not a good track record of long-term successes.

Car infotainment is full of examples of why the car manufacturers can't be trusted to have *short term* success. Garbage UI, constantly charging huge money for obsolete-before-you-get-them updates. The Google Graveyard looks like a fertility clinic compared to the car entertainment systems put out by GM/Ford/BMW/Toyota/Everyone

I think automakers can still find a happy medium, providing a fully functional vehicle that doesn't require CarPlay or Android Auto, but still supports them for customers, since they do exist right now and are extremely helpful.

The automakers should seek to win over customers by making the better experience, not by excluding the other options.

By 2016, Garmin was already building smart watches using their own proprietary OS that wasn't anchored to any smartphone platform. Casio could have done the same.

Suunto, Polar and probably a lot of others were doing the same. Android was attractive because it would be a huge saving on software development costs, have maps out of the box and allow third-party apps.

At least Polar had a watch that would run in low-power mode by default and had a separate CPU that could run Android Watch when needed but that would drain the battery quickly. They had the sense to not make it the flagship model and it looks like the current models don't have anything like that.

> Looking down the history of other companies that turned over responsibility of their user experience to tech companies - there's not a good track record of long-term successes.

We’re talking about the same auto executives that would sell you a $100k+ car and then try to charge you $200/year for map updates so that the built in navigation wasn’t out of date 1 year into ownership? Those are the guys worried about the tech stack in your car being “abandoned”?

Apologies if I’m skeptical that that aren’t just hoping to use the infotainment as another source of recurring revenue. Especially when they’ve said as much in earnings calls.

> I know people complain about car manufacturers being hostile to CarPlay and Android Auto. But I think in the long run, the executives are being smart. Looking down the history of other companies that turned over responsibility of their user experience to tech companies - there's not a good track record of long-term successes.

No car manufacturer suffered that badly from using standard-sized single-DIN/double-DIN radios for a couple of decades. CarPlay/Android Auto are just software versions of those. It's a way to let your car stay more relevant 3, 5, 10 years down the line.

But that conflicts with short-term revenue optimization, data gathering, advertising, etc.

From the 2000s section:

“The debut of the GW-300J introduced a new line — The G — driven by a passion for creating the ultimate wristwatch: one that would never break, never stop, and never fail to keep precise time.”

I have worn the same GShock GW-6900 continuously, all day and night, every day for 15+ years.

I wore it in war, diving in the pacific, skydiving, on stage pitching, on TV shows and am currently wearing it

I’ve replaced the band ONCE and it keeps perfect time and the backlight is a handy light in a pinch.

Probably the best purchase I’ve ever made

worth noting that there are many casio watches that are very similar to the g-shock series but are not g-shock.

they're probably worse but still incredibly good. I have one of these (W-735H-1AV - https://www.casio.com/intl/watches/casio/product.W-735H-1AV/)... Got it for ~20 euros off amazon in 2018 and it's still rocking.

I never had to change the battery (so far) but I had to change the straps twice.

I feel the same about my GW-M5610. I've only had it for about 7 years so I'm still on my original band.

Another GW-6900 fan here. I think you've done pretty well to only have 1 replacement band in that time. Maybe that is because you don't take it off at night!

The only other thing I have with similar levels of toughness is the rogue leather hat I wore for at least 20 years. https://rogue.co.za/collections/headgear But I eventually sweated a hole in it and had to buy another one.

Oh man I actually bought one of those back in like 2006 for a trip to Belize

I have no idea what happened to that hat, but it was very sturdy

As a kid I loved casio digital watches (metal band, digital display). But as a grown up I found I like analog watches better -- my brain is quicker at interpreting the visual image of the hands. For the last few years I wore this [1] very simple and robust casio watch and eventually gave it to my son to help him learn to tell time. Very clean crisp design and 1/3rd the price of a similar looking swatch.

[1] https://www.casio.com/us/watches/casio/product.MQ-24-7BLL/?u...

I have the exact opposite. After wearing a few automatic watches, I came back to my happy place - digital Casio watch, similar to the one I had as a kid. I think my brain is very used to reading time in that form. I wear ABL100, which is a bit bigger than usual digital Casio and therefore highly wearable.

I was having such a nice time reading all that until the final entry in 2023. Yuck.

why?

looks like DW-5000C - not so good, but "yuck" is a bit too much, no?

He's likely talking about the 2023 entry talking about NFTs and the Metaverse

Imagine being forced to pay full price for a watch just to add pixels to your avatar.

Those ideas feels so old already

Is innovation over ? It sure felt like this reading that entry

According to this their most recent innovation was in 2023 with a "virtual community where people can co-create and interact with one another via digital platforms like NFTs and the metaverse."

Then they stopped snorting coke and did a sensible walk-back?

Considering the heyday of Casio watches was in the 80's, maybe they need more coke.

It's disappointing. It reinforces the cliché that most hardware companies don't understand software.

The GPR-B1000 was promising, as it signaled Casio might be heading towards making watches with advanced features like GPS, yet a bit different from regular smartwatches and close to their traditional models. This model was tied to a phone app, but I thought this was OK for their first iteration.

Fast forward to 2023, their expensive DW-H5600 was very disappointing. They included a Polar heart rate monitor, which are known for their reliability. Nevertheless, hear rate readouts are extremely noisy to the point of being useless. Also, setting up the watch requires pairing it with a Casio app, which is absurd for a non-smartwatch.

I would love to be able to buy a normal watch that offers heart rate monitoring and basic GPS tracking but can be operated fully offline, doesn't need updates, and will not become abandonware in 5 years time. Garmin is nearly there with some models. Some Casio, Withings, Polar, and Suunto models also have interesting features but overall still far from that ideal goal.

Besides, in many regulated environments you can't have a watch with hardware radios like Bluetooth. Only Garmin seems to understand this. Suunto had terrific models, but is slowly falling behind and has been sold to a Chinese conglomerate.

I've been pretty happy with my Garmin Instinct Crossover. It looks like a regular watch, and so if Garmin decides to drop support for it, then it still has like a 2 month battery as a regular watch.

fwiw I bought a two-year old Garmin model on clearance like 5 years ago and they continued to support it all the way up until I bought an Instinct 2 this year. So I think you’ll be happy with the support you get.

With Gadgetbridge they can drop as much as support as they want.

Gadgetbridge has very limited aGPS support, right? Without aGPS updates, any GPS device is going to have terribly long lock times.

Ideally, watches should do like Garmin's. Mount as mass storage devices via USB, and let the user download activity data and upload updates or routes.

For my Instinct 3 Solar GadgetBridge it - as far as I can see - can deliver AGPS files.

Settings -> Location -> AGPS

They really do not understand software. Or at least human friendly interfaces.

I have a GBX-100, which does have basic smart features when connected to a phone. If you get a text or email, it will tell you that you have a notification.

You also have the option to read the contents of the message, if you press a single button six(!) times!

Fortunately I bought it because I wanted the time and I liked the way it looks.

Are there any current Garmin smartwatch models without hardware radio transmitters? I think they all have one or more of Bluetooth, ANT+, WiFi, NFC, or LTE. You can put them into airplane mode to stop all transmissions but the radio hardware is still there in the device.

I facepalmed when I read that last entry. I had a G-Shock watch for a long time, it was a great watch, I have a lot of sentimentality towards it, but I do not see any reason why anyone would want an NFT for it.

Post pandemic was a wild time for executives. All the video game company CEOs too were on the NFT train.

AI mania wiped all that away instantly.

I agree it is all a bit stupid, But I am feeling charitable this morning so I will give it a go.

If you wanted to create a registry of watch ownership a nft is certainly one way to go about it. and this use makes far more sense than most tokens. running on nothing more than a dream.

Really I think it is more that companies need to maintain a corp of engineers, these engineers are needed for key important projects, but a stable company is not in panic "put out the fire" mode all the time. so there is room for more speculative projects. and this is probably one of them.

I think they should have mentioned the ABL-100 from 2024 [0]. It is probably their most interesting recent watch. It has a step tracker, sets time via Bluetooth from a smartphone, and it is in a classic digital Casio style similar to the A168W and A158W.

0: https://www.casio.com/intl/watches/casio/standard/vintage/ab...

I was really surprised to find out that the F-91W was first released in 1989. I had assumed it was even older than that!

I wasn't too surprised to see their blurb leave out it's other (alleged!) known use

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casio_F-91W#Usage_in_terrorism

The F-91W is such a fun watch. Super functional, you're not scared of damaging it, because A) You can't and B) it's like $25.

The backlight is my absolute favorit feature. It's completely pointless. It can barely light up the hours, and only the left most digit and Casio never bothered to fix it. Absolutely delightful.

Casio is still super hit or miss with backlights. I have a Casio Lineage LCW-M100TSE-1AER and the light is even less useful for its display. Otherwise it's very nearly a perfect watch for me.

I wouldn't say my F-201WA has an amazing backlight, but it does work to see everything on the screen in the dark.

I strongly prefer the WS1400H; it's only about $10 more and your wrist won't accidentally bump the stopwatch buttons.

I always bump the 24H button on the F-91W, I'm not entirely sure why Casio felt like you should be able to switch between 12h and 24h at the push of a button. My assumption is that most people stick to either of the two formats, jumping between them seems like a edge case.

There existed watches with the same digits, features and buttons before that, but they were in steel. 1989 is about when Casio transitioned from metal to resin.

The metal watches were succeeded by the A158W, which is chrome-plated resin on the outside, same electronics module as the F-91W on the inside, and likewise is still in production.

After the resin case of my A158W eventually broke, I got a vintage W-34 with a broken movement and put the A158W's module inside. (It will get a SensorWatch PCB once I am done with my firmware mods)

Steel replacement cases for a F-91W are now also available on Aliexpress, so you don't have to hunt down a vintage watch if you want real steel.

> There existed watches with the same digits, features and buttons before that, but they were in steel.

I had an F-87W [1] when I was a kid, which was launched in 1982. It is almost exactly the same as F-91W.

[1] https://www.digital-watch.com/DWL/1work/casio_f-87w

FYI Casio recently brought out a minimalist series of the F-91W (same watch - just a bit less chrome on the face) e.g. https://www.casio.com/europe/watches/casio/product.F-91WB-1A

> https://www.casio.com/us/watches/50th/Heritage/1980s/:

> 1981, J-100, Jogging watch with pace-setting function

> 1982, AQ-500 (Janus) First Casio analog-digital combination watch with three hands

Interesting how they don't have a picture of these, they just have a black placeholder. I was able to Google a J-100 in seconds, including eBay listings for one for ~$390 and another for ~$520. There's an AQ-500 on Etsy. You'd think Casio could just buy one if their archives are missing an example.

I have an Apple Watch that I get into from time to time but generally it collects dust despite how many cool functions it has. Mostly because of the battery life & lack of customization. Most of the things it tracks or does I can see or do on my phone so it feels redundant & what can't don't need to monitored continuously in my life.

I daily a black LF20W-1A and I also use the A168W-1 and AE1200WHD. The faces and design are way more interesting to me and they are more affordable.

I wish I never got the Apple Watch ...

Apple Watch's killer feature is the alarm. It is so much more pleasant to be woken up silently by your watch vibrating than your phone beeping. And then knowing exactly where you can find your watch to hit snooze (on your wrist) vs reaching for your phone.

That's the only feature I use my watch for. It sits on the charger all day waiting for me to wear at night.

Vibrating alarms on watches aren't unique to the Apple Watch, fwiw.

I know! That's the point! I've spent hundreds of dollars to have a vibrating alarm....

I will say: a vibrating alarm is worth its weight in gold if you have a partner, child, early-morning wakeup … or all three.

Calling out the Apple Watch for lack of customization while using 3 different watches seems a bit ironic.

For me the Apple Watch killer feature is a bit embarrassing... it's the button that makes your phone ring so you can find it...

Oh man I forgot about this feature! It's really great except that I don't wear my watch so I just ask my wife to call me instead

1983 AT-550:

> This watch not only boasted a streamlined design combining analog hour, minute, and seconds hands with digital LCD, but was also equipped with a calculator function allowing manual input. Users could draw numbers and math symbols with a fingertip on the glass, and the LCD would then display the formulas and calculation results. This epoch-making watch is still known as one of the first watches with the kind of gesture recognition people use today on smartphones and smartwatches. Not bad for the early ’80s.

Indeed.

It's funny to me that the future of casio watches is currently this:

The ever-innovative G-SHOCK brand takes a new step, launching a virtual community where people can co-create and interact with one another via digital platforms like NFTs and the metaverse. The opening of the virtual G-SHOCK STORE and the sale of digital 3D-rendered G-SHOCK items are just a sampling of the new plans and unprecedented experiences to come.

100%. I got excited that Casio was doing an Evangelion collab, but then I saw the watch... definitely not for me.

Love my G-shock GW-6900. Only weak point is the resin strap, which needs replacing every few years. I do not want a 'smart' watch that needs to be regularly charged and is bleating at me all the time.

I run a 5600, I am not super familiar with the rest of the g-shock line but the straps do appear to be the weak point of the whole thing. I found an adapter that allows me to use nato style nylon webbing straps. I mainly wanted it so I could replace the straps easier, but I have not had a strap break yet. A word of caution and a recommendation. The first adapter I got was also made of resin and broke in about the same amount of time the resin straps did(~ year) I found a company called ritchie strap that sells a steel adapter which has so far lasted ~ 6 years.

On the needed adapter, webbing straps are intended to feed directly through the strap pins but g-shocks tend to have a very narrow and tight strap attach pitch(16mm), the webbing does not fit well and I wanted a wider 24mm strap. I do not want to be to damming, I think the narrow pitch is intended to be stronger than a wide pitch but it does make things inconvenient for us g-shock with webbing strap connoisseurs.

You could always put it on a bracelet

Does anyone make a decent third party fabric or black metal strap for a G-shock?

UNESCO should declare the F-91W a part of humanity's cultural heritage.

I had one of those as a kid. Great watch.

Reading the wikipedia page for it may make you rethink that thought though :(

I was around 16 years in the early 90s and i bought a digital watch (different brand) with a lot of functions. I remember when I came home from the shop. My aunt was visiting. I explained that the watch could keep lap-times for two separate cars. Without her saying anything, I realized that this was totally useless and I regretted the purchase.

I feel like most gadgets I've purchased in my life were totally useless. Don't really regret buying them though. Even though I'm pretty sure they're all in landfills now.

by your own petard!

Obviously it's subjective, but I really feel the design quality took a nosedive from the 90s onwards. Compared to the sleek simplicity of those earlier watches they just look cluttered, gaudy and over-the-top!

I'm glad they still manufacture their classic lines, such good watches.

I really would like some official casio faces on my apple watch.

It’s a shame that Casio are relentlessly pushing the g-shock watches upmarket. Part of their appeal was that they were affordable and tough. I still put on a g-shock if I absolutely have to know the time and couldn’t be faffed winding an automatic.

The GB-800 is pretty cool, has a step counter and the time can be kept by using the g-shock app including adjusting for daylight saving. The 5600 is my favourite though.

Im not sure that's the case, they've been doing MR-G watches for a long time (29 years) as a push upmarket. Just look at the latest GW-BX5600 (released in 3 days) it has a new MIP LCD panel on a new module. This retails for $150 .. no doubt the module will be put in much more expensive watches but one thing Casio continues to do is produce good value digital watches and at the lower price points. im hoping they add a model like the 5600u, with this module, with a screw in case back and higher quality resin. Also, my current favourite is the JDM yellow (original style) LCD F-91W. That was released 4 years ago and cost me $11 plus shipping. long live Casio!

Casio is leaving money on the table by not producing MR.G tier $5,000+ G-Shocks. Every other watchmaker is moving upmarket as well, most of them are far more greedy than Casio has been.

You can still get a DW*-5600 for $60 and a GW*-5600 for $120, Casio still offers value for a good price :)

I wear a Swiss three-hander that costs more than a MR.G, so my perspective on watch value might differ from the average person.

What's the appeal of a step counter in a Casio? For me this is just highlighting their utter lack of meaning- and useful innovation.

It was unexpected I guess. I bought that watch second hand and didn’t realise it had that function. I like it a lot better than a smart watch.

I'm wearing a ~$4000 MR-G today and I'm really happy with my choice. IMO the best thing about Casio as a brand is that they sell $15 watches and $8000 watches that do basically do the same things but appeal to different people. The existence of the higher end models doesn't diminish the utility or value of the classics. There's really something for everyone.

I used to have the W-520U and it was the best watch I've ever owned ...also the only watch/thing I ever lost in my life, I left it at the gym class in school and the next day boom, gone.

http://www.digital-watch.com/DWL/1work/casio-w-520u

My favorite series since 10-20+ years ago is the ProTrek, which I guess it's part of G-Shock but I don't see them in the site. (I guess the PRT-1GPJ is there at 1999).

https://www.casio.com/us/watches/protrek

https://www.casio.com/europe/watches/protrek/brand/collectio...

https://www.casio.com/intl/watches/protrek/30th/history

Could the 80s Data Bank watches be considered one of the first PDAs?

Yes, absolutely.

As I was going down this list I was mentally checking off basically every feature of the Apple Watch, somewhere introduced by Casio a decade+ earlier.

This site is a stroll down memory lane for me. I had one of the calculator watches as a kid. Used it everywhere, especially when shopping or going out to eat with parents. It was cool to cross check totals and check tax calculations. I was a nerdy kid and craved math.

That brought nice memories of having my Casio Data Bank in the 80s and feeling like the coolest kid in school. It looked so futuristic and slick :) I remember spending quite a bit some time entering the phone numbers of my friends and relatives.

Memories. I had first Casio sometime in 1980s at age 8 or so, and it was solar fueled. I put it under desk lamp which was probably 100W back then to charge it faster, I guess, and then the plastic deformed. Little I knew putting it into a refrigerator will not make it back to be nice and square. 8 year old. And there has been so many styles, every year to release new catalog and for so many region/countries there are different styles. I can imagine there is one person out there, a real boss-level-type dude, who has a basketball-size room with all brand new Casio watches, each one style, still unopened.

1992 BP-100:

> World’s first watch with optical blood pressure monitor > The BP-100 calculated blood pressure by analyzing changes in blood flow measured by an optical sensor and ECG signals. No wristwatch had ever incorporated a blood pressure monitor before. Simply touching a fingertip to the sensor produced a reading — and unlike conventional monitors, it was accurate without requiring constriction of the arm.

Wow. Why don't we have that yet in today's smartwatches?

I'm guessing they aren't widespread yet in doctors' offices due to cost. As near as I can tell, the results are acceptable for clinical settings?

> Why don't we have that yet in today's smartwatches?

Because it doesn't actually work for accurately tracking individual BP changes over time, though it may be useful for broad aggregates.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9630063

"And a Casio..."

Long live John Candy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Fm5tmIyAKc

https://youtu.be/euNmIoe83FQ?si=LL0RCulF2ibWo6no

Seems like they too jumped onto ‘Web 3.0’ bandwagon:

> 2023

Check out the Goodwatch from Travis Goodspeed https://github.com/travisgoodspeed/goodwatch

It is a"replacement circuit board for the Casio 3208 module, used in the Casio CA-53W and CA-506 calculator watches" and very neighborly.

Funny how they don't mention Al-Qaeda's use of the the F-91W as an IED timer.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/apr/25/guantanamo-fil...

What a silly comment, why would they?

- Toyota doesn't mention the Toyota war.

- Microsoft doesn't mention the millions world wide who use their OS for nefarious purposes.

- Starbucks doesn't mention that one time someone got a spiced pumpkin latte, while on the run from the FBI.

Why? Because in watch nerd and military circles the F-91W is known as the terrorist watch.

But Böcker sure as hell jumped on the louvre heist.

https://petapixel.com/2025/10/27/how-a-ladder-company-turned...

That they were used as IED timers was never confirmed. The F-91Ws connection to Al-Qaeda was purely on the basis of many Al-Qaeda members wearing it. Which is not that surprising. The watch is a favorite of conscripts and anyone else the world over, that needs a sturdy timepiece as cheap as possible.

I find the creativity of the Casio watches impressive (had a few), but I really don't get the UI / design. Since I got my first Garmin, I'm never going back. Garmin's watches are way more convenient and complete IMO (and certainly so if you do sports).

The Garmin design is hideous in my opinion. It's the only thing keeping me away from them.

I’ve always wondered what “resin” means on watch ads. Presumably it’s a kind of plastic, why not say that?

For marketing reasons

In Casio’s context it means “molded plastic” and is used to imply good ergonomic fit.

In the larger scope, resin is plastic in an unfinished state. For wearables, it’s commonly used as a marketing term to imply it fits well.

Thanks.

I had wondered if it meant some kind of thermoset / epoxy cure-in-a-mold, to set it apart from injection-molded thermoplastic.

Weird wording. What other kind of plastic is there than 'molded'?

> The Casiotron (QW02-10 line) was priced at 58,000 yen, nearly a whole month’s starting salary for a university graduate in Japan back in 1974. The digital watch as a luxury item — another Casio innovation.

It is interesting to see something like this presented in a positive light.

I can't believe they left out my favorite Casio, the AE1200WHD-1A aka the Casio Royale!

It's interesting to see how the analog display remained dominant and kept the scope for being artistic and rich, while the digital display appeared exhausted of it's curiosity and awe of 70's and can no longer be made to look trendy.

Lots of people still like G Shocks and digital casios. They are very popular among college students in the U.S

My kid loves the cheap digital Casios. They're super useful to kids without a smart phone.

Check out the Armitron 7-segment LED Watch. I bought it for the retro feel of having ultra lo-fi digital time but without an LCD.

SDB-300W family is still the best running watch I've ever had. I still have 1.5 copies of the WS-110H around on their last legs.

The key features that I've missed from any watch since is 1. good buttons and 2. "immediate" reaction time.

https://www.olleewatch.com/ is a very interesting project touching Casio watches

Some of those watches from the 1980s onwards ran 5 years on a single battery, or even had solar and need no battery replacement (or recharging) ever. Remarkable.

I've a Citizen solar power watch from around '98 or '99.

It still runs, although the cell seems to have aged, and now needs longer in the sun to charge. In the winter when not being worn, I have to leave it on a window ledge to get sufficient charge.

I'm confused as to why some of the watch images are just silhouettes like they're in the witness protection program.

What happened in the 90s? So many ugly watches!

Very cool! I've had a F91-W for years and never knew the history. I thought it was way older than '89.

Wow, I never would have expected that fantasy-ish Lord of the Rings style font on the original Casio watch.

I wish there were more watches like the IA-1000.

A flip watch goes so hard. Would be a cool flex

I wish Casio would release Databank with updated specs and LoRa Meshtastic

I use older G-Lide series, just the right amount of Mecha vibe

Will we get a Casio AI watch in the 2030s?

Disappointed the left out the peak scientific calculator watch, the CFX-400. Wore one for a long time.

Also the ProTrek PRW2500 series, I still have one with radio setting and solar power that I haven’t worn since my first Apple Watch.

Casio should release one of their "game and watch" products again, or create a new one based on the old models. Production cost cannot be higher than that of a normal watch, and a lot of people would love to own one.

I am always disappointed when I see products like their pac man watches that just have a print on it without any game related functionality. This has damaged the brand a lot already, and tbh, after many years being a hard core Casio fanboy I have moved on. But one more gaming watch...

>Casio should release one of their "game and watch" products again

Game and watch is a Nintendo product. They bring out remakes every now and then.

https://www.nintendo.no/products/game-watch

You are correct, they are probably just called Casio Game Watch like the Casio GC-7, GS-12 or GD-8.

I might have missed it, but they did not include any of their "game" watches from the 1980s in the history, somehow! I spent many a happy hour on the submarine one (https://www.techrepublic.com/pictures/the-handheld-museum-a-...). The pyramid one was also popular.

I always had Casio watch when I was a kid. Nowadays, I prefer having none on my wrist. As a developer, it hinders my hand movement when typing.

Unfortunately Casio QA is garbage today. And don’t expect competency from their customer service

not true

Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.

It's a pretty ordinary claim, to be fair.

It's the first time I've heard of it, and I consider myself pretty plugged in when it comes to watch news.

Maybe he confused Casio with Seiko.

Still consistently better quality than 99% of the clones out there.

I don't know about their customer service but I have bought a few of their watches recently and they seem as good as ever. (Which is the reason I don’t know about their customer service, of course)

Reply on news.ycombinator.com