A watch that tells the time......and does not do much else! (Casio F91W1XY)

Member Name: Trev11

Product:	Casio F91W1XY
Date:	05/07/09 (137 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Very cheap, slim design, lightweight, lasts a long time

Disadvantages: Only water resistant - not waterproof

When most people think about Casio digital watches they recall models such as the G-Shock which is very tough and has lots of features or those in the Sports range that are suitable for diving and measure various things such as barometric pressure and temperature. This Casio watch however does none of those things and has no such features! It is probably one of the cheapest Casio watches available and has the fewest features!

*** Who is this watch for? ***

I remember having a very similar watch about 20 years ago when I was at school and the fact that it is very cheap makes it a good watch for kids who have grown out of watches with cartoon character designs and want something more serious-looking. It only has a few features and is therefore easy to use too. It is also surprisingly durable given how cheap it is.

It is also suitable for adults such as myself who are feeling nostalgic about their childhood because it definitely looks like it was designed in the 80s! The real reason I bought it though was to have a watch I could use whilst backpacking around the world. I wanted something that did not look expensive so that I would not get hassled by people for money and to reduce the risk of being identified as a tourist with lots of money and getting mugged. I have to say from my travelling experiences this definitely worked and nobody showed any interest in wanting my watch!


*** Who should not buy this watch? ***

Anyone wanting more from a watch than the time, date, an alarm and a stopwatch! Also, those of you looking for something stylish will no doubt take one look at the watch and decide against it. Unless of course its retro look suddenly becomes fashionable!


*** Features ***

-- LCD Screen --

The time is clearly visible with the choice of a.m. and p.m. or a 24 hour time format displayed. The day and date are shown in the top right hand corner (the month is not shown though). The top left hand corner has 2 alarm symbols shown if activated (see below).

-- Alarms --

There is a daily alarm that sounds at the same time every day when activated. I only need one alarm to wake me up in the morning so this is perfect for me. There is no snooze function though and the alarm is not very loud so it may not be usefully for everyone. It works just fine for me though.

There is also an hourly time signal which gives a double beep on the hour every hour if activated. I really can't see why anyone would want to use this and find it annoying so I always leave it off. Although it is not very loud it carries on throughout the night if activated so if you value your beauty sleep then make sure you switch it off!

-- Water resistant --

I have tested this by wearing the watch when it is raining and it still works. I would not subject it to a torrential downpour however as it is not exactly clear how much water it will resist! It is definitely not waterproof though so don't take it with you when swimming or relaxing in a hot-tub.

-- Micro light --

This is a simple but very useful feature that lights the back of the LCD screen so that you can tell the time in the dark. To use it you just hold down the top left button on the watch for as long as you want the light on and it switches off once you release the button.

-- Stopwatch --

There is a stopwatch that measures times to 1/100th of a second and can measure split times. This is as advanced as the functions get on the watch but I have never actually needed to use the stopwatch. Maybe I will time myself doing laps on my bike one day just to make use of the feature!

-- Other specifications --

The watch is nice and light, weighing in at just 20g. It is also much slimmer in design than all the other Casio watches that have lots more features. It has a black resin strap that is comfortable and durable. The battery life is supposed to be about 7 years which seems great to me. I have had my watch for over 3 years now and have not needed to replace the battery yet.

This watch is currently being sold for £6.62 at amazon.co.uk and if all you need is a very basic watch that continues to work for a long time then this is a great deal!

Summary: A cheap digital watch that works well and is perfect for those who only need very basic features.