I often tell myself that I am conscious and rational when it comes to gifts. I don't care about brands, but rather the value something offers. Yet I do have a soft spot for "Made in Japan" Casio vintage watches and Sony devices.
To me, they represented the highest form of functional and consumer utility at a justified price. No fluff, no marketing that bordered on propaganda. Japanese consumer technology meant something incredibly precious to people in underdeveloped and developing nations.
It wasn't just about utility. It was about social status, too, and owning a generational asset that would continue to work for decades.
A Japanese consumer device meant that you had worked hard to afford a luxury, and that luxury did not derive its merit from a brand name, but rather from manufacturing ethics, quality, and the long-term, sustainable value it offered, all while being at the cutting edge of technology.
A Rolex watch uses essentially the same mechanical principles that have existed for generations. Its merit today is largely in its brand, not in being at the cutting edge of technology. An iPhone, on the other hand, is largely seen as consumable. Most modern electronic devices are treated as disposable, depreciating products.
But a Made in Japan Casio watch in the 1980s or 1990s was an asset.
There is a beauty and a tragedy in those vintage Japanese watches.
I see it when I talk to people in their 60s or 70s who struggled to raise families in developing countries on middle-class incomes. A Casio calculator for their children when they start their high school. A Sony TV for the family to gather around and watch. A Toyota as their first family car.
These weren't merely consumer products. They were milestones. They represented years of hard work, sacrifice, aspiration, and the dignity of finally being able to afford something that was genuinely well made. Something that would last. Something that could be passed down.
I don't want to hear about GDP, artisanal blue jeans, or deer based tourism industry when it comes to Japan. I see how an industry and an economy that once produced these things on such an extraordinary scale have been diminished.
I don't want to rationalize it or dissect it.
I simply find it truly beautiful what that nation once built on an industrial scale.
Casio watches especially gschock really feel like they solved the goal of watches. Let people know the time accurately and cheaply.
I have a few “dress” watches I’ll wear to weddings and my smartwatch which is nice for the gym and general. But I still have a gshock I keep around for traveling or when I just want something that will work.
The idea you can toss it in a bag or throw it on and it will just tell you time accurately without worrying about it dying or having to maintain it is still incredible.
I can totally relate. The quality of Japanese-made products is incredible and that's as true today as it was back then, for the most part. Especially woodworking tools like chisels and saws are outstanding. And I don't just mean the expensive, handmade ones. Even the mass-produced tools feel years ahead of their Western counterparts.
CGW-50 showing the planetary orbits and Hailey’s comet is really cool. I cherish and realize how fortunate I was to witness and experience awe inspiring memories of Hale Bopp as a child while camping with clear skys as a child. I know it’s not the same comet, but still comets evoke awe and it left a lasting impression and interest of space.
Out of curiosity went to check if I could buy it but they unfortunately discontinued and now secondary markets list it in the thousands.
I like Casio watches but I'd like them more if the watch faces weren't splattered with "Water resist", "Chrono alarm", and such labels. Yes I don't need to be reminded this watch indeed is an chrono alarm, like an advertisement, every time I look at it.
I had a Casio in 1985 that I swear fell out of a time portal. It had a large touch screen face and allowed me to enter 50 contacts (name + phone) and had calculator functionality via touch screen (no key pad). It is not shown on this Casio page and I’ve never seen a reference to it despite it being years ahead of its time.
It used to be harmless things like a watch, or a portable music playing device. After 2000 you started to worry about what technology extracted from you, and now we're getting to the stage where are worrying about what it's going to do to us intellectually, and soon, physically.
I often tell myself that I am conscious and rational when it comes to gifts. I don't care about brands, but rather the value something offers. Yet I do have a soft spot for "Made in Japan" Casio vintage watches and Sony devices.
To me, they represented the highest form of functional and consumer utility at a justified price. No fluff, no marketing that bordered on propaganda. Japanese consumer technology meant something incredibly precious to people in underdeveloped and developing nations.
It wasn't just about utility. It was about social status, too, and owning a generational asset that would continue to work for decades.
A Japanese consumer device meant that you had worked hard to afford a luxury, and that luxury did not derive its merit from a brand name, but rather from manufacturing ethics, quality, and the long-term, sustainable value it offered, all while being at the cutting edge of technology.
A Rolex watch uses essentially the same mechanical principles that have existed for generations. Its merit today is largely in its brand, not in being at the cutting edge of technology. An iPhone, on the other hand, is largely seen as consumable. Most modern electronic devices are treated as disposable, depreciating products.
But a Made in Japan Casio watch in the 1980s or 1990s was an asset.
There is a beauty and a tragedy in those vintage Japanese watches.
I see it when I talk to people in their 60s or 70s who struggled to raise families in developing countries on middle-class incomes. A Casio calculator for their children when they start their high school. A Sony TV for the family to gather around and watch. A Toyota as their first family car.
These weren't merely consumer products. They were milestones. They represented years of hard work, sacrifice, aspiration, and the dignity of finally being able to afford something that was genuinely well made. Something that would last. Something that could be passed down.
I don't want to hear about GDP, artisanal blue jeans, or deer based tourism industry when it comes to Japan. I see how an industry and an economy that once produced these things on such an extraordinary scale have been diminished.
I don't want to rationalize it or dissect it.
I simply find it truly beautiful what that nation once built on an industrial scale.
Casio watches especially gschock really feel like they solved the goal of watches. Let people know the time accurately and cheaply.
I have a few “dress” watches I’ll wear to weddings and my smartwatch which is nice for the gym and general. But I still have a gshock I keep around for traveling or when I just want something that will work.
The idea you can toss it in a bag or throw it on and it will just tell you time accurately without worrying about it dying or having to maintain it is still incredible.
I can totally relate. The quality of Japanese-made products is incredible and that's as true today as it was back then, for the most part. Especially woodworking tools like chisels and saws are outstanding. And I don't just mean the expensive, handmade ones. Even the mass-produced tools feel years ahead of their Western counterparts.
> These weren't merely consumer products. They were milestones.
Right. Thanks, ChadGPT.
CGW-50 showing the planetary orbits and Hailey’s comet is really cool. I cherish and realize how fortunate I was to witness and experience awe inspiring memories of Hale Bopp as a child while camping with clear skys as a child. I know it’s not the same comet, but still comets evoke awe and it left a lasting impression and interest of space.
Out of curiosity went to check if I could buy it but they unfortunately discontinued and now secondary markets list it in the thousands.
I like Casio watches but I'd like them more if the watch faces weren't splattered with "Water resist", "Chrono alarm", and such labels. Yes I don't need to be reminded this watch indeed is an chrono alarm, like an advertisement, every time I look at it.
I had a Casio in 1985 that I swear fell out of a time portal. It had a large touch screen face and allowed me to enter 50 contacts (name + phone) and had calculator functionality via touch screen (no key pad). It is not shown on this Casio page and I’ve never seen a reference to it despite it being years ahead of its time.
[delayed]
Okay, AI found it for me. I can’t believe they didn’t add it to that page:
https://chatgpt.com/s/t_6ae62084ab4081918e5fa21a4ec916a2
Archive in case the site is giving you an error: https://archive.is/XD4QB
F91w and g-shock are top tier. Love them
It's hard to describe how optimistic society, and futuristic such consumer technology felt as it rapidly advanced in the 60s-80s. There used to be television shows about the technology of the future, like https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomorrow's_World and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beyond_Tomorrow_(TV_series)
It used to be harmless things like a watch, or a portable music playing device. After 2000 you started to worry about what technology extracted from you, and now we're getting to the stage where are worrying about what it's going to do to us intellectually, and soon, physically.
They worked then, they still work.
Exactly what a watch should do.
Casio nailed it!
Tried some other watches for kids, the interactions are so confusing compared to casio.
This site is a great flex in innovation over decades.
Wearing a Casio watch right now (gifted to me by my brother), I really love Casio ;)
One watch is enough for me and that's casio for me.