I have always had a love-hate relationship with Summer. I’m not too fond of the humidity and sweat. But I enjoy the summer breeze during the twilight hour and the evening.
It’s just the best feeling I get after grinding through a cruel summer’s day – a feeling of peace and relaxation that reassures me that everything is going to be alright.
Like all the best things in life, a summer breeze is free. However, the same can’t be said for getting into the watch game. A lot of us get interested in watches early on in life without being able to afford them.
Back in the mid-noughties, I remember yearning for a Victorinox Swiss Classic Chrono XL watch. I would often close my eyes and imagine wearing it to college every day. After learning that the watch would cost the same as my Honda Dio, I continued to daydream.
While I temporarily parked my dream, I set out to find a reasonably priced watch. I discovered a world of budget-friendly watches by Casio and ended up owning an all-black Casio digital watch.
It cost me Rs.1,000 and some change, and I rocked that bad boy every day in college and a few years after graduation; Until one day, its cheap rubber strap disintegrated from my wrist. The plastic bezel was deformed, and the case was battered thanks to the harsh and long summer and rainy seasons.
After facing what I can only describe as hardware abuse, it was time to say goodbye to the old workhorse (Unsurprisingly, the battery didn’t die after more than five years).
A few G-shocks and Swiss and German watches later, sometime last week, I felt the urge to splurge on another Casio digital watch. So I bought the Casio Youth AE-1200WH.
The AE-1200 was released in 2012 and is available in multiple versions. I chose the all-black model with the resin strap (if you prefer the touch of metal on your skin, there’s another version of this watch with a stainless steel strap for about Rs.1000 more).
My Casio Youth AE-1200WH-1AVDF
First Impressions
Right out of the box, the quartz watch feels lightweight. The bottom half of the easy-to-read LCD display shows the local date and time (including running seconds).
I adore the square-shaped plastic case and mineral glass display. It isn’t large and fits well around my wrist. The geometric/geeky look, although muted, stands out, especially in today’s age of smartwatches.
The Casio AE-1200WH is water resistant to 10 bars (100 metres or 328 feet). What I have learned from my experience is that such Casios can not only manage the odd splash or spill, but confidently take on torrential rains.
There is also a countdown timer, a stopwatch, five alarms, and a full auto calendar. But the coolest feature of this watch is the World time display located at the upper-right of the dial.
If you are travelling, then selecting another time zone is a piece of cake. Simply press on the button labelled Search to select the time zone of choice.
(I had to read the manual to adjust the World time settings but after a while; I had a basic sense of how the four buttons work).
Wrapping Up
This watch is perfect for those just starting their watch collection or looking for a practical timepiece. With a retail price of roughly Rs.2,500, this watch costs a lot less than my first scooter and is equally fun and alluring.
At this price point, it’d make an excellent gift for college kids with empty pockets and audacious dreams.
Tech Specs
- 10-year battery life
- 100 m water resistance
- 5 alarms
- Stopwatch
- Countdown timer
- LED light
- 31 time zones (48 cities + coordinated universal time), daylight saving on/off, Home city/World time city swapping
