There was some sun today, and so I took another of my solar watches to blog. It also shows that I have a liking for the ana-digi Waveceptor line too!

So this watch is one of the Casio Tough Solar watches. It has a big chunky body in silvered plastic. It is also a Waveceptor model, and has world time, so it might be a multi frequency version which will auto set around the world (although the one reference I found suggests it is only compatible for the Japanese frequency of the Kyushu /Fukushima station).

It has a two hand electronic dial and a two line LCD display (with 4 digit time along the top and a tiny dot matrix below). For the modes, it has world time, a data bank (data memory 25), alarm (x3), and stopwatch. All this comes from the Casio 2741 quartz module. The back also shows that this is an illuminator model too. The stainless steel strap is designed to match with the body and has the part number S-933L.

The watch originally came out sometime around 2002/03, but this model was discontinued by 2008. The calendar in the module starts at 2000 and goes all the way to 2039. It may also be a Casio WVA-310D with a number of WVA-310DQ-2AJF.

Today's watch is from Nike, but is probably the smallest Nike digital watch i have.

The watch is from the Presto series, and called the Presto Cee Small. The Presto name is on the battery cover on the back along with a letter S in a circle which I assume stands for small. The watch is an LCD design with a 4 digit dot matrix display (with round dots). It has only two buttons, one on each side with the left changing modes, and the right triggering the el-backlight (or setting mode if held). Changing modes shows text explaining what the mode is before the mode starts, and the options are date and stopwatch.

The design is using a one piece transparent hard strap with a gap where you squeeze your wrists in, and rubber ends either side of the gap. The particular model is WT0001-601 with the colour description of Trans Coral Rose and White with Grey Stone tips. It is a small watch so just fits on my wrist.

On the back it shows a model number W990-4010 which reads like a Seiko code. It is 30m water resistant, and made in China.

It's another Sunday boxed watch today, and another Transformers watch, but one which doesn't transform very much.

The watch is the Megatron Tank Watch, and is a promotional item for Transformers. This is a genuine Transformers item and has the statement Transformers Robots in Disguise on the packaging.

It is a watch for the character Megatron who is the leader of the Decepticons, and has had various different looks over the years. The original design was a pistol, but this was not allowed to be re-released for safety reasons, so in the Generation 2, Megatron had become a large green M1A1 Abrams battle tank. This places the watch in the 90s as generation 2 came out in 1992.

This particular watch features the Megatron tank form, and appears to have light and sound with an LED on the end of the barrel. The watch display pops out of the front of the tank and is a basic 4 digit LCD with time, date, and seconds.

It was a special model released for the shop chain Woolworths in the UK. It was issued as a free item, exclusive to Woolworths as a promotional item for Hasbro, and may have come with a video or magazine. Looking at eBay, these seem to sell for around £30/$50 at the moment.

A second robot running today, but this one is more more recognisable.

The watch is a Star Wars watch which was released in 1999 as one of the promotional products for the release of Stars Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace. It is a die-cast metal watch and part of the same series as the Darth Maul watch I blogged in April. It is by the US based company Hope Industries, Inc who seem to not exist anymore.

The watch is a model of the robot R2-D2 who was one of a small few characters who featured in all 6 of the Star Wars movies so far. The watch body is a metal model of R2, and pressing down on his middle leg lets his body flip up and reveal the LCD display. As with Darth Maul, the time is displayed in 4 digits over two rows. There are two buttons below the display with one to cycle between time, date, and seconds, and the other for setting. Both buttons need to be pressed with a long pointy object suggesting that it isn't really designed to show the other display modes. The strap is a moulded blue plastic design with a texture design like a circuit board.

I have many Casio Data Bank models, but this one caught my eye (or maybe ear) due to its special feature.

This model is the Casio DB-V30 Easy Rec, and you can tell it's a little different as soon as you hear the beep as it has the crackle of a speaker rather than the normal crisp beep. This is because this model has a built in speaker and microphone, with the speaker sound coming from holes in the back, and the microphone being visible on the front (at the bottom right). The Easy Rec has the ability to record and play back voice memos up to a length of 30 seconds. These memos can also be used as the alarm sound if you want a personalised wake-up message. Memo recording and playback is controlled by two buttons on the front below the display.

It uses a 1590 module with a 3 line LCD display. The time (6 digits) is along the bottom, and date above (using 4 of the possible 6 digits). The top line is dot matrix array which is designed for 6 characters. Above that there is also a small set of indicator dots for how much of the 30 second memo is used. Other modes are data bank, timer and stopwatch (on top of the aforementioned alarm and voice memo).

This particular model is a special Sampling Mania edition. These models came in different colours than the normal, and had patterned straps. This one has the words Sampling Mania written in gothic script on one half of the strap, blue flames on the other half, and the text 30 seconds on the strap connector. The backlight also holds a picture, this time of what looks like a Celtic cross.

The DB-V30 was originally launched in around 1995, but new ones still can be found for sale. I don't know when this special edition was released.

Smartwatches have become very popular nowadays and are seen by many as new gadgets. Since the early 80s, many designs of smartwatch have been released, and today's model is one of the early ones.

This watch is the Seiko Memo Diary, and was released in 1984 at the height of a Japanese economic boom. It is very similar to the UC-2000 (or UC-2001) Wrist Information System, but this model seems to have been aimed at a more upmarket crowd with a heavier and more refined look, and choice of shiny silver or gold colours. There was also a keyboard for the watch which would communicate through the back of the watch (by magnetic pulses) to help input memos.

It has a 4 line dot matrix display with each line having 10 characters (each being 7x5 dots). It could store a memo of up to 1000 characters, but the schedule function was quite impressive. Overall, it would hold up to 31 days of appointments with up to 15 per day (although no more than 43 in total), which meant you could keep the next months appointments with you at all times. Apart from the memo and scheduling there is an alarm function, but nothing else.

The full model number is UW02-0010, and it has a Seiko GA13B stainless steel strap.

It's a simple but chunky watch for me today with this bonbon watch.

The watch looks to be one of the Standard range of watches that go under the brand name Bonbon watch. Bonbon watches was started in 1989 by Alexandra Pisarz (just referred to as Alexandra on the watch itself). The first Bonbon watch store was opened in Disneyland Paris, and there are now stores throughout Paris, with the brand also appearing in the Japanese market in 2000.

The watches are designed with the theme of candy (with rounded edges and clear outer ring), and are made with acrylic cases and plexiglass to make them hardy. Inside there is a Swiss quartz movement, and the watches are hand finished in France.

This particular model does not appear on the website anymore, but is similar to many of the Standard range which sell for around ¥13,000 to ¥15,000. This model has no numbers on the dial, but appears to have an outline of a duck moulded into the face (or possibly on the movement itself judging by the placement of screws). It is a 3 hand dial design with a date window at the 3 o'clock position.

It's a dial watch again today, but a little more unusual model, and one that I've not been able to find on the web.

The watch seems to be called E.O.W Ready To Timer (based on the text on the back) and is made by Eishin Inc. The company Eishin Inc is a Japanese company based in Osaka. They are registered as a manufacturing company making small machinery.

It is a 3 hand dial design, and has a quartz movement. This watch is a camouflage design with a one piece (nylon?) fabric strap. The strap surrounds the watch case and is sewn into the connection. The face of the watch is also fabric and follows the camouflage pattern. The softness of the strap makes this comfortable to wear, but you need a reasonable size wrist for it to sit well.

The model number is EQ-357, and apart from that, I don't know anything more!

Today's watch is a mystery as there is no information for me to trace.

The watch has a dual dial on a large metal face. It is a big watch with an industrial feel. The case is rectangular with the top right corner removed, and is etched with screw and plate marks to make it look like it is part of a large machine. The two dials are at the top left and bottom right corners of the massive face - the bottom right is the largest dial with a crown at the 3 o'clock position, and the other smaller dial unusually has a crown between the 10 and 11 o'clock positions. Both dials are 3 hand design, and have a quartz movement. Because the watch is so large, the back of the case is curved so it can fit more snug on your wrist.

The back and inside of the watch have no markings, and there is nothing on the case. For this reason, I can't find any information about who made the watch or when it was made.

I blogged one of these watches just over a year ago, and this is a variation on that model.

This is a Pez watch which acts as a sweet dispenser holding 6 of the rectangular Pez sweets. It is one of a range of dispensers that Pez released but is not as well known as the cartoon head dispensers that Pez is associated with.

The watch dispensers were released in 1995 and came in a variety of colours. They were made in China by a company called Malibu Fun Stuffed Inc from California (with an international arm which started in 1992 and dissolved 2001). This model has some different box art than the others, and has a Dream Castle logo on the front and Time 2 Go (tm) on the back. Dream Castle are another California company and are the place to make warranty claims to.

The watch part is a standard 4 digit LCD model. It has the usual basic features of time, date, and seconds, but you need a pen to press the buttons.

I've got quite a few watches that are a bit of a mystery. I'm blogging them with as much as I can deduce, so hopefully this will be of use or interest to others out there.

This watch today is called School Time. It is a 3 hand dial watch, and there is a window at the 6 o'clock position for the day of the week (in Japanese only).

From the style and colouring, it looks like it is from between the 50s and 70s but that is just a guesstimate. I would also guess that this was a watch for children to learn the time from, based on the name, style, and it's smaller case size. The watch has a model number on the back which is 6659-7000 and reminds me of the Seiko numbering system.

The manufacturer logo is placed on the dial as well as etched on the back. This logo looks like a cockerel or rooster and may be a stylized Japanese character. I feel I've seen  this logo before but can't quite remember where. There is also another image on the back which I can't recognise but looks a little like a flying bird.

Today's watch is an unusual model by Casio with a name which defies definition.

The watch is called the Accelator by Casio and is a sports model. The name Accelator doesn't appear to have a real definition, but is found in anime (Power Accelator Boots in Shichisei Tōshin Guyferd), a brand name of a clarifier, and various other products, as well as the Casio watch.

It looks to be a watch designed for runners with lots of sports related features. It has a stopwatch with a 50 lap memory, a playback for past runs, what looks like a stimulation mode for planning a run (up to a marathon based on the text on the display), a timer mode, and of course an alarm.

It uses an LCD display with 2 lines of digits. The bottom line is larger and covers the time (with 6 digits). The top line has a 6 digit display (for date and timing) along with a small dot matrix array (12x5) which is used for the day and other required text.

The watch case has a slightly unusual design which looks more like a stopwatch shape. Timing functions are operated by the two buttons on the front, while the side buttons cover mode, light, and data search.

The model number is ACL-200, and it has a Casio 1531 module. It seems to be am uncommon model, and many that are for sale are listed as rare (in Japan or elsewhere).

For a person with so many running watches, I do surprisingly little running.

Today's watch is another of my watches aimed for sports use, and particularly running, and this time it is by the Seiko brand Alba. The watch is called the Track Tech and is part of the ViViDiGi line which was released in both the Alba and Pulsar brand names.

The design is quite curvy with a raised section around the LCD display. The LCD panel has 2 lines of digits, both with 6 digits. The top line is used for day and date, text describing the modes, and some timing features, and the bottom line is for time and the main functions. It uses the W151 module and was made in 2001 (-the calendar doesn't start until 2000,so it can't be a 1991 model). The functions include chronograph, 100 lap memory, timer, and alarm.

This particular watch had been given as a gift for someone who had reached 5 years service with the Japanese engineering company Meitec and it has thus engraved on the back plate (surprisingly in English).

The full model number is W151-4A00.

We're expecting a storm to pass here over the next couple of days, so I decided to choose a watch that can survive the elements.

The watch I chose was the Vector black by Suunto. The Finnish company Suunto Oy was created in 1936 and are manufacturers of outdoor watches, dive computers, and compasses. The factory is next to the headquarters in Finland, and many of the watches are still hand finished.

The Vector model is called the original outdoor watch on the Suunto website, and is one of the most popular models. It is a compass and barometer watch, and uses the air pressure change for altitude calculations. The watch case is quite large and ruggedly built with a custom strap. The front us dominated by the large round LCD display. Time is shown on the largest digits in the centre, and the seconds are shown in a ring around the edge of the dial, or they can replace the date on the bottom. In the top left is a little barometer sign showing the air pressure trend. The compass mode shows the North using the markings around the edge, along with your bearing in digits at the centre. There is also a little spirit level bubble on the glass to make sure it is flat. The altimeter shows height in meters, and has a rate of climb/descent at the top of the display. You can change this to show air pressure in millibar, and in this display, it also shows the temperature. The other watch modes are alarm (multiple), stopwatch, and timer. It takes a very large, and not so common battery, the CR2450, which is accesses with a coin opening slot on the back. My one has had a bit of a hard time in the past so has lost its printing around the face.

This model has been popular in the movies and on TV, appearing in the movie Shooter, the TV series Supernatural, and being the main prop on the film Clockstoppers.

The storm is still here so I'm wearing a tough watch again today, with this one from Casio's Baby-G range.

The Baby-G watches are the smaller ladies (or unisex for those with a small wrist) tough watches that spun off from the G-Shock line.

This model is the BG-184 and is one of the square design Baby-G watches. It still has a rugged feel, and the LCD display is set deep inside the casing. The range came in a variety of colours and so you can get one to match with all manner of outfits. The display is a white LCD panel with mirrored numbers over two lines with the mode indicators inbetween.

It has a 2902 module and is quite light on features for a Baby-G. All it has is an alarm, timer, and stopwatch. As with all Baby-Gs, it is 10 bar water resistant and shockproof.

This line are still shown on the Casio website, so appear to still be on sale.

I've picked my watch based on weather again. It's really snowy today so I decided to blog the 3rd of my Skiathlom watch variations by Timex.

In previous posts I mentioned that there were two colour schemes for the head, and two styles of strap. I've now concluded that each watch came with both a resin and an elastic strap (as this one came with both), and each watch colour had a different colour elasticated strap (-i don't know about the resin one yet).

So, this one is the light blue and purple variation, and it came with a bright pink elasticated strap with the Timex name on. This elasticated strap also has a plastic clip fastening (that the blue strap didn't).

The Skiathlom was one of three different sports watches based around the same module. The Skiathlom was the skiing watch, the K-28 Surf was for water sports, and the Hooks was for fishermen (with all 3 to be found on this blog).

The design has a two line LCD with time on the bottom and day and date at the top. The watch has a temperature sensor (with a bar readout at the top of the LCD), timer, and chronograph modes, and the start and stop buttons are large enough to use with gloves.

It originally came out in 1987 and cost ¥14,500.

I've blogged about the J-Axis watches before, and they are a mystery as you can't find too much about them. They produced watches that have familiar designs, and there were a few specific lines of watches.

This model is part of the Cybeat range and has a very Casio/G-Shock feel. This is an Ana-digi model with two separate modules operating the analogue and digital displays. The watch seems to be the I.T.9.B model (based on the number on the back), and has an LCD split into 3 sections. The time is in a 4 digit window at the bottom. Seconds are in a little round window in the top right, and there are day markers in the top left. Modes on this model are time, stopwatch, and alarm.

As well as the model number, the back has a string of writing around the outside. This says "modern timepieces, alarm-chronograph, professional, multifunctional model".

Today's watch is another variation on a watch I've blogged before. This time, it's one of the watches by Car and Driver.

The Car and Driver watches are a little unusual, and there is not much published about them. It looks from the model numbers like a Seiko watch, and based on the guarantee certificate that came with the watch, I can now confirm that. The logo is exactly the same as the Car and Driver magazine, and so looks to be connected to that, however these watches are not the normal cover mounted giveaway as they are hood quality watches with a high retail price on the label. The Car and Driver magazine is the world's largest motoring magazine and is published by a unit of Hearst Corporation who are one of the world's largest producers of monthly magazines.

This model is a colour variation of a Car and Driver watch I've blogged before. It is based on the V336 module and has a rounded rectangular 3 hand dial with day and date dials at the 9 and 3 o'clock positions (looking a little like a car dashboard). The strap has the same colour scheme as the watch face with lines of different shades of blue.

Based on other Car and Driver watches, they were released in the late 90s, and the serial number would then suggest this was from 1997.

The model number is V336-5A20, and the catalogue number is AVBF001. The original sale price was ¥13,000.

Casio has made many different models of their Data Bank range of watches. Today's model is another of those, and one which seems they sold for very little money compared to what it does.

This model is a DB-37H (or DB37H), and is one of the Multilingual Data Bank models. It runs with a 2524 module and manages to get 10 years of life put of its CR2025 battery. Although this model first came out in the early 2000s, it still seems to be available today. Looking online, it is quoted as having a list price of around $25 which seems pretty cheap for what it does.

As this is a multilingual model, it can display in 13 languages (Eng, Por, Esp, Fra, Ned, Dan, Deu, Ita, Sve, Pol, Rom, Tur, Pyc), and the language choice suggests a world or european market model. The data bank mode is a 30 slot telememo, and it also has 5 alarms, a countdown timer, stopwatch, and dual time functions. Light it provided by a green LED behind the bottom corner of the display.

All the buttons for this watch are on the front, with 3 below the LCD display, and two more lower down on the case. The LCD display can show a lot of digits, with three lines of display. The middle and bottom line can show 7 and 8 digits respectively, and the top line is a dot matrix array.

This model has a Casio metal strap which has the part number S-928L. The case itself is plastic with a steel back plate, and the watch is 50m/5 bar water resistant.

Today is the second of my Converse watches, but this time with a more traditional style.

I don't know the name of the watch, but the model number on the back is B05239-60. There is also a sticker which gives a number WC0011QW which could be a catalogue number or a number from the QA process. On the face, case, and strap there is the name Cons. The Cons line is a particular line of shoes made by the American Converse shoe company, and this watch must have been part of that line. The Cons name on the strap is the most noticeable being in large letters and coloured like the American flag.

The watch is a 3 hand dial design in a large tough rubber case. There are hour marker blocks, and around the dial in very tiny numbers are minutes and minute markers. Between the minute markers are little lines for 1/5th seconds, but as the second hand only has one beat per second, they are only for decoration.

It looks like it is designed for rough outdoor use, and it is 10 bar water resistant.