Casio CA53W1 Wrist Watch for Men

I've been wearing the CA-53W (an earlier incarnation) ever since the 1980s, dutifully replacing it every few years (see below for the reason). Its accompanied me on all my travels and proved its usefulness for everyday life.

Imagine my horror when it stopped being available a few years ago. It seemed to have fallen off the face of the earth. None of the bargain shops (Target, K-Mart) carried it anymore, it wasn't available on the Casio website, and even Ebay only had a few surplus copies for sale.

Fortunately, it recently resurfaced as the CA-53W1, which, as far as I can tell, is a duplicate of the original. Close examination reveals not a single difference. I bought it at K-Mart for $19.95, though it's slightly cheaper at Amazon.

Description

The watch body is a little over one-inch square, under 1/4" thick, and lightweight. All of it, including the straps, is made of black plastic, with stainless steel used on the back of the body. A rectangular screen presents black-on-gray digital information controlled by 16 buttons below it. Fortunately, the buttons are raised, allowing even my middle-aged fingers to press them. To the side, are two metal buttons: one for selecting functions and one for selecting individual digits.

The numbers on the watch body are small but readable because of their light grey color on a black background. However, their accompanying text and function signs are indecipherable because they are half the font-size and are colored dark grey and red. You really need a magnifying glass or teenaged eyesight to make them out.

The unit comes packaged with a small booklet in several languages that describes how to use the watch. The type is barely readable because of the small font size but diagrams and arrows clarify any questions.

According to the copy, the watch uses a type CR-2016 lithium battery for up to five years of battery power. I can't attest to this because I replace the watch every two years: without fail, this is when the straps break. (The straps are relatively durable at first but weaken over time so that a quick tug can tear them.) Because the straps are nearly as expensive as the watch and hard to find, they aren't worth repairing.

The case is splash-resistant. I've worn the watch while washing dishes or walking in the rain without any problems. But it's not designed for swimming or scuba-diving.

Features

This watch boasts several features:

Time and Date. The displays shows both the time (hours, minutes, seconds) and date (month, date, year, and day), pre-programmed to the year 2079. The time can use 12- or 24-hour format.

Calculator. You can perform addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division on numbers with up to eight digits including constants and a floating decimal point. This makes it easy to convert foreign currency values while traveling or calculate tips in a restaurant.

Dual Time. This feature is especially useful for travelers: set one time for your home city and the other for your destination. However, setting the second time doesn't depend on choosing a time zone. You actually have to manually enter a new time digit by digit.

Alarm. The alarm beeps for about 20 seconds. Pressing any button silences it. You can turn the function off but this also silences the audio button feedback. Strangely enough, this audio feedback usually stops working only after a few months.

Stopwatch. The stopwatch records net time in 1/100-second increments with a beep every ten minutes up to 23 hours, 59 minutes, and 59.99 seconds. You can also record lap time, and 1st-2nd place times but the unintuitive steps require a reading of the documentation.

Bottom Line

I love this watch and wear it every day. The convenience of having a handy calculator, dual time zones, and an alarm, is worth the occasional snicker and catty comments from those unfortunates who think it looks nerdy. My only complaint is the straps that break every two years. But that is mitigated by the cheap price.

© 2006 by alocsin