vanagon
July 14th, 2008, 06:39
After shopping around for a new watch, I settled on the G-Shock AWG100.
I was originally looking for an analog watch with a good feature set, but when I noticed the solar/atomic option from Casio I decided to take interest in the Analog digital combinations. I ended up settling on the AWG-100, which arrived a few days ago. It retails for $130, but is available online for under $100.
First let me say, I am very happy with the watch. I think it looks really great---much better than in the official rendered pictures of it. Here's a real photo I found of it online:
http://b-get.cc/images/gn/brand/CASIO/AWG100-1A_0.jpg
Apart from the good looks, there's a lot to like about this watch. I'm a big fan of not having to change batteries, and I like that it's always showing exactly the right time. It's also great to have the standard functions of digital watch: stopwatch, alarm, etc. One of my favorite features is actually the countdown timer. I use it to track how much time is left on my laundry. Not exactly Navy Seals stuff, but... important nonetheless!
This watch is also available in another color configuration, the awg101. Apart from the color scheme, there are two functional differences between the models. The AWG101 has "negative" digital displays, instead of normal ones like on the AWG100, and the analog hands of the AWG100 are "slotted", as you can see in the picture above. I've seen a number of people post that they think the screens of the AWG101 are hard to read---particularly when concealed by the analog hands. With the AWG100, I have no trouble reading the screens. Even when there's a hand over the screen, the slot in the hand makes it so that I can actually still quickly read the screen, although I may have to angle the watch slightly to make sure I'm reading it right.
Let me say just a few things that I think are not quite perfect about the watch:
The lighting. The LED is great for reading the analog hands, but not the LCD screens. Don't plan on checking the date in middle of the night.
The third lower screen: All this screen does is show whether the last sync attempt worked, and which signal (US/Britain/Germany/Japan1/Japan2) it received. The sync information could easily have been integrated into one of the other displays, either eliminating the need for a third display, or freeing it up for something else (moon phases? or, my favorite: compass?)
Daylight savings:
Maybe this is a problem with all waveceptors, but based on my reading of the manual, there is a good chance this watch will have to be manually adjusted for daylight savings time. This is because it makes its first automatic sync attempt at 12am, and then forgoes further attempts if that attempt is successful. The problem is that Daylight Savings doesn't usually start until 2am (right?), so it will not get any information on a change in Daylight Savings until the next night. It seems to me that this means that the "auto DST" function is not really that useful.
Anyways, overall this seems like a terrific watch. Sharp-looking, functional, rugged, with an analog display and a bunch of great functions. Can't go wrong!
Here are the official specs of the watch from Casio:
Multi-Band Atomic Timekeeping (US, UK, Germany, Japan)
Receives time calibration radio signals which keep the displayed time accurate
Auto receive function (6 times per day)
Manual receive function
Signal: US WWVB, UK MSF, Germany DCF77, Japan JJY40/JJY60
Frequency: US 60kHz, UK 60kHz, Germany 77.5kHz, Japan 40/60kHz
Tough Solar Power
Shock Resistant
200M Water Resistant
LED Light with Afterglow
World Time
29 times zones (48 cities), city code display, daylight saving on/off
Daily Alarm
Countdown Timer
Measuring unit: 1 second
Countdown range: 1 minute to 60 minutes
1/100 second stopwatch
Measuring capacity: 59'59.99"
Measuring modes: Elapsed time, split time, 1st-2nd place times
Hourly Time Signal
Auto Calendar (pre-programmed until the year 2099)
12/24 Hour Formats
Accuracy: +/-15 seconds per month (with no signal calibration)
Storage Battery: CTL1616
Battery Power Indicator
Power Saving Function
Approx. battery life: 7 months on full charge (without further exposure to light)
Module 4765
Size of case/total weight
52.0 x 46.4 x 14.9mm / 54.3g
You can download the manual for the watch from casio's website using the module number above.
I was originally looking for an analog watch with a good feature set, but when I noticed the solar/atomic option from Casio I decided to take interest in the Analog digital combinations. I ended up settling on the AWG-100, which arrived a few days ago. It retails for $130, but is available online for under $100.
First let me say, I am very happy with the watch. I think it looks really great---much better than in the official rendered pictures of it. Here's a real photo I found of it online:
http://b-get.cc/images/gn/brand/CASIO/AWG100-1A_0.jpg
Apart from the good looks, there's a lot to like about this watch. I'm a big fan of not having to change batteries, and I like that it's always showing exactly the right time. It's also great to have the standard functions of digital watch: stopwatch, alarm, etc. One of my favorite features is actually the countdown timer. I use it to track how much time is left on my laundry. Not exactly Navy Seals stuff, but... important nonetheless!
This watch is also available in another color configuration, the awg101. Apart from the color scheme, there are two functional differences between the models. The AWG101 has "negative" digital displays, instead of normal ones like on the AWG100, and the analog hands of the AWG100 are "slotted", as you can see in the picture above. I've seen a number of people post that they think the screens of the AWG101 are hard to read---particularly when concealed by the analog hands. With the AWG100, I have no trouble reading the screens. Even when there's a hand over the screen, the slot in the hand makes it so that I can actually still quickly read the screen, although I may have to angle the watch slightly to make sure I'm reading it right.
Let me say just a few things that I think are not quite perfect about the watch:
The lighting. The LED is great for reading the analog hands, but not the LCD screens. Don't plan on checking the date in middle of the night.
The third lower screen: All this screen does is show whether the last sync attempt worked, and which signal (US/Britain/Germany/Japan1/Japan2) it received. The sync information could easily have been integrated into one of the other displays, either eliminating the need for a third display, or freeing it up for something else (moon phases? or, my favorite: compass?)
Daylight savings:
Maybe this is a problem with all waveceptors, but based on my reading of the manual, there is a good chance this watch will have to be manually adjusted for daylight savings time. This is because it makes its first automatic sync attempt at 12am, and then forgoes further attempts if that attempt is successful. The problem is that Daylight Savings doesn't usually start until 2am (right?), so it will not get any information on a change in Daylight Savings until the next night. It seems to me that this means that the "auto DST" function is not really that useful.
Anyways, overall this seems like a terrific watch. Sharp-looking, functional, rugged, with an analog display and a bunch of great functions. Can't go wrong!
Here are the official specs of the watch from Casio:
Multi-Band Atomic Timekeeping (US, UK, Germany, Japan)
Receives time calibration radio signals which keep the displayed time accurate
Auto receive function (6 times per day)
Manual receive function
Signal: US WWVB, UK MSF, Germany DCF77, Japan JJY40/JJY60
Frequency: US 60kHz, UK 60kHz, Germany 77.5kHz, Japan 40/60kHz
Tough Solar Power
Shock Resistant
200M Water Resistant
LED Light with Afterglow
World Time
29 times zones (48 cities), city code display, daylight saving on/off
Daily Alarm
Countdown Timer
Measuring unit: 1 second
Countdown range: 1 minute to 60 minutes
1/100 second stopwatch
Measuring capacity: 59'59.99"
Measuring modes: Elapsed time, split time, 1st-2nd place times
Hourly Time Signal
Auto Calendar (pre-programmed until the year 2099)
12/24 Hour Formats
Accuracy: +/-15 seconds per month (with no signal calibration)
Storage Battery: CTL1616
Battery Power Indicator
Power Saving Function
Approx. battery life: 7 months on full charge (without further exposure to light)
Module 4765
Size of case/total weight
52.0 x 46.4 x 14.9mm / 54.3g
You can download the manual for the watch from casio's website using the module number above.