EEVblog

A dual layer touch screen calculator watch in 1983? Amazing!
Teardown of the rather obscure Casio TC-500
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[@DextersTechLab]

Great vid Dave, never seen that model before. It's amazing how many watch models Casio pumped out in the 80s and they were usually pretty reasonably priced too, perfect for schoolyard bragging rights!

[@EEVblog]

I love to know the number of models produced in the decade!

[@Pommster]

My favourites were the thermometer watches.

[@thanthanasiszamp4707]

@@EEVblog why you didn't show the microprocessor of the watch?

[@xenonram]

I don't know where you went to school, but kids were mean to kids with calculator watches. Certainly not "schoolyard bragging rights."

[@pjakobs]

I wish you could bring someone in for an interview who hast designed a product like this and go through the product and their memories together.

[@EEVblog]

It would be great

[@francoisdastardly4405]

Fantastic idea.

[@airmann90]

I gotta throw some thanks to you for teaching me all kinds of stuff about electronics. You've helped me work through tons of books by either helping me with concepts or helping me with the traps for young players lol. You, applied science and w2aew have me addicted to building things in my lab. Thanks for all your great vids, I'm gonna watch this one now!

[@EEVblog]

Glad to hear, thanks.

[@zx8401ztv]

I had the one with the tiny rubber buttons, you needed a matchstick to do calculations :-D. Casio was always clever.

[@thedave7760]

I always wanted a calculator watch for cheating in math exams but they went allowed obviously, with this watch it would have been possible because of stealth.

[@Mirandorl]

As its a metal casio watch strap aka a wrist epilator, you know have at least 5 less hairs on your arm

[@Spector_NS5_RD]

ouch.....ouch.......ouch.

[@EEVblog]

In my best Maxwell smart voice "and loving it"

[@Mirandorl]

@@EEVblog From the moment you put that watch on, your wrist hairs will be in constant danger of plucking! Lets hope they come out leaving a nice EEV Blog logo :)

[@xenonram]

@Dave Micolichek it's those weird metal tank track style watches, not regular watch bracelets. The stretchy/bungee style bands were even worse.

[@thekaiser4333]

That is how we detect capitalist spy. Look for missing hair on left wrist.

[@otakujhp]

Jesus, you count fast.

[@bovinespongiformflu]

I always wonder how much engineering time goes into building something like this.

bovinespongiformflu and without the help of a computer nor cad tools

[@scotshabalam2432]

I would think after it's designed the real engineering has only just begun. The next step is designing a system for mass production and I think Casio was better at this than designing the watches.

[@dtiydr]

@ They had cad tools and computers but not near as advanced as today.

[@dtiydr]

Think that you have to invent something that doesnt exist, it takes years.

[@thorham1346]

@ - No CAD tools? No computers? There's a computer in the the actual watch.

[@deltoid77-nick]

$29 in 1983 → $73.11 in 2018

[@mishelklauce]

but in the reality it's vintage -> very many $.

[@userPrehistoricman]

Could you buy a similar watch today at the same price?

[@JamesPotts]

It was $79.99. books.google.com/books?id=f0Hw30gTTckC&pg=PA137&lpg=PA137&dq=casio+tc-500&source=bl&ots=6mcsOVkZuv&sig=RIVZuzYUom8RZ6guGCxfmA5lL0g&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwij-bHY1N3fAhVoooMKHbMiC0UQ6AEwGHoECAgQAQ#v=onepage&q=casio%20tc-500&f=false

[@mishelklauce]

@Spiritpoweredinternet where? pls give me url.

[@gustavfenk4021]

I hope that you did that calculation on a calculator watch.

[@davidf2281]

Dave is a man who still thinks digital watches are a pretty neat idea.

[@zx8401ztv]

Hitch hikers guide to the galaxy? :-)

[@somedude4122]

They are.

[@Intermernet]

​@@zx8401ztv "my left arm's come off too.' A frightening thought struck him: 'Hell,' he said, 'how am I going to operate my digital watch now?"

[@zx8401ztv]

Intermernet LOL yep he was a silly sod and a tea-a-holic. 'Is there any tea on this space ship?' Mind you, i'm a tea-a-holic too :-D

[@SeanBZA]

Still using a Seiko from around that era. The watch would be no longer manufacturable, not because the design files and moulds are not around ( they would be on paper and the moulds probably in an archive, and also used partly for other models) but the machinery to make the LCD display, the IC fab to do the custom ultra low power CMOS ASIC no longer exist, though they would probably still have the original photoliths for the LCD and the original mask set for the ASIC. But the actual machinery to make them would have been repurposed over the years , upgraded and replaced. Biggest thing would be the LCD, as that uses 3 layers of glass in it, one in the middle that is ultra thin and coated both sides with ITO, and then 2 regular LCD panel glass layers. However, it is likely there is a warehouse, inside the Casio company, that has a few hundred of the spares to make complete units sitting in a corner.

[@johnfrancisdoe1563]

SeanBZA There are still factories making 4000-series CMOS logic. One of those should be able to run the Casio ASIC masks.

[@atmel9077]

A recent low power microcontroller could probably do the job.

[@ewcm1878]

@seanBZA cool story bro.

[@johanlaurasia]

Yep, had one back in the day. In '83, I was just out of high school, and my "rich" friend had one, and I asked how much it was and was surprised to hear it was so affordable. Even with my just out of high school, low wage that I earned back in the day, $30 bucks (I think I paid $25 actually) was really affordable. I liked calculator watches, but didn't get one because it just screamed GEEK with the keyboard and all, but the TC-500 and it's fancy pantsy capacitive touch screen was as high tech as you could get, and, like you said, didn't look like a calculator watch, and so I was able to have the on-wrist ability to calculate w/o the Geekburger with cheese look. I think I owned two or three of them throughout the years as they'd wear out or I'd loose it, but it was easily replaced. Definitely takes me back to my early geek days for sure. Great teardown as I never got much past the main cover to replace the battery, and its very interesting to see the technology employed back then to make it all happen.

[@rich1051414]

It saddens me that 'geek' is an insult. This is mostly an issue in the US, it is taboo to be smart.

[@thedave7760]

@@rich1051414 The only people who think that geek is an insult are NERDS.

[@johanlaurasia]

@@rich1051414 There's a difference between smart and geek. I'm smart, but I don't look, act or dress geeky.

[@GamingWithNikolas]

@@rich1051414 I think it's because the u.s. education system, in general culture is prioritizing muscle and appearance over brains. I would say that's the country's biggest problem. This country is just sad.

[@rich1051414]

@@GamingWithNikolas Why would anyone be jealous of constantly being socially abused? They are scared, not jealous.

[@Peter_S_]

I had one of those back in 1983-1984. The electrodes are not etched into the glass. A layer of clear conductive material is deposited on top of the glass and the electrodes are etched into that. I scratched the face on mine and to use the calculator with all the keys I had to fill in the scratch with pencil lead before use.

[@MarianKeller]

They etch the ITO-coating, that's what he meant.

[@WanJae42]

lol. Exactly the same here. Watch was a present from my parents and they were pissed I put a scratch on it within days of receiving it.

[@radry100]

This must be the most epic digital watch ever

[@LeelooMinai]

What is this dude talking about - this watch is not so old, I remember one of those. *looks at the calendar* O, right:(

[@EEVblog]

Yeah, Damn....

[@jovangrbic97]

Dave you say that the watch gives an error when you multiply numbers to large to fit the screen. This isn't true, the example you tired, 25236522x5525=139431784050, is given as 1394.317E by the calculator, the E standing for 10^8.

[@funnlivinit]

I've got one of those in a drawer somewhere. I never wore it because the wristband always ripped the hair out of my arm!

[@douro20]

Trimmer cap in the back for fine adjusting the quartz oscillator...you almost never see that anymore

[@johnfrancisdoe1563]

douro20 They quickly figured out how to do this on-chip via menus.

[@douro20]

@@johnfrancisdoe1563 Any of the better quartz movements will have a trimmer for fine adjustment.

[@macieksoft]

It's easier to do by software, no need for any extra parts that you have to fit in there.

[@raindogred]

I've been a Casio fanboy since primary school. I'm 54 in May. Currently sporting the Casio world timezone watch (with 31 timezones) which I have been wearing continuously for 5 years. Invaluable if you live overseas and travel a lot. The beauty of a casio is the price. When the battery dies, throw them in your junk box and buy another. Far cheaper than the bother of having battery change and pressure test, which will cost you more than purchase price if done at a jewellers :) They have zero coolness factor!! They are a functional workhorse, and you don't get upset if the band breaks and you lose them, or break them..they get the job done... you just go out and replace them.

[@DejanTesic]

I understand where you're coming from, but throwing away perfectly good watches (and things in general) is wasteful. That will be the downfall of our civilisation.

[@cuteswan]

+Dejan Tesic Perhaps one of many, _many_ things that will be the downfall of human civilization. However at least the alien archaeologists will be happy we left them so much to work with. ;)

[@raindogred]

Actually not throw any iaway. They are in a junk box here at home. Some could be considered collectible..i should see what they are worth on ebay..maybe a few bob to be had :). Point taken about our disposable society we have these days. I don't buy the theory the world will be screwed by putting this stuff in landfill, thats a semi-responsible way to dispose of our trash. I recently returned from living 5 years in sumatra..there they don't even have landfill tips..same as the rest of Indonesia and plenty of the worlds poor countries. Garbage is burnt or thrown in creeks and rivers..most ending in the ocean. Ocean's are full of plastic, horribly fished out due to zero regulations..decimated in much of SE Asia. The land has been stripped for palm oil /cocoa/coffee production, oil and coal mining. Animal species are dying off as we speak as there is little habit for them to survive in. Fireants bought in container ships are killing native species of insects, which has impacted bird populations, bees...thing i noticed the most was silence in the mornings up there...no bird noises, whereas here in Australia you wake up to crows, galahs (at least my place). anyways imho, we have a lot more to worry about than stuff ending up in landfill. Anyways on that happy note...

[@scotshabalam2432]

I always bought into the Timex sales line "Takes a lickin'" and to their credit my Timexs' only reasons for retirement were dead battery, worn appearance, and better functioning/looking model. Timex is a decent price too.

[@flymypg]

During this era Casio briefly had a calculator watch on the market where you drew the digits over the face using a finger. The touch consistency and the stroke recognition both sucked, so the product was promptly withdrawn. For me, the big downside of calculator watches was they were always stuck on the arm! I often needed to write and calculate simultaneously, which a watch made impossible.

[@EEVblog]

Oooh, product part number?

[@Damien.D]

@@EEVblog kzbin.info/www/bejne/i5m5cqanncubp7c

[@Damien.D]

@@EEVblog All the best things are(were?) definitely made in Japan...

[@johnfrancisdoe1563]

BobC Did you wear the calculator on the wrong arm?

[@captainwin6333]

@@johnfrancisdoe1563 Maybe he's just got the one arm which would suck for, ahem, 'one handed surfing'.

[@CyberlightFG]

I still got a cfx 400. I don't know if it's repairable. The keypad fell off and the battery is probably leaking.

[@RedTopProductions]

Wow! I've completely annihilated so many electronics by dissecting and tinkering with them and inevitably break some tiny fragile connection or component and don't understand it well enough to repair it...yet I've also fixed a number of things in the process. Watching you de-construct such a legacy piece of precision equipment from the 80s seemingly with ease... I'm so jealous. I strive to meet your skill level, Mr. EEV Blog! Keep up the great content, folks like me learn a lot from them!

[@trulyspinach]

Well, still looks better than Apple Watch

[@Palikroked87]

I'll take a Casio over an Apple watch anytime, or i'd sell the damn overpriced piece of crap and buy a couple of Casio watches with that money instead

[@iRepairElectronics]

amazing, i cant remember ever seeing SMD's back then, or flex printed resistors for that matter. such a great find. thanks for sharing this one.

[@westelaudio943]

Panasonic "Mr. Thin" radio from 1977, already used tons of SMD components. That's the earliest instance of them in everyday electronics I know of.

[@richardgoebel226]

That is one for the trophy case.

[@gaboaaa23]

Ok, the wath arrived! Put a new battery in and it works(old battery was put in upside down...no wondern it didnt worked :)))) ) Everything works except the calculator touch pad. TV remote ect all is working but not the calculator. I had this before on another casio calculator watch, where ive replaced the battery and some kind of "black rubber/plastic" piece flew out of the watch housing. The black piece that is showen in you video that connects the "pcb" as i know now from you video. I didnt knewed how or where to place it and from there on the touch pad never responded anymore. Here on tis TV watch i hadnt seen this "black piece"! Should there be one? Or what else could be the problem, that the touch pad dont respond? Ive did the AC reset succesfully and the watch showed @. Thanks

[@okaro6595]

I do not get why Casio puts the 12/24 mode for the key. Citizen has it in the time settings so you will not accidentally touch it. On my current Casio if you press it before noon, you have no way to notice as there is no AM or 24H sign. Nobody uses both modes, one uses just one of them for all time.

[@ethanpoole3443]

Okaro X On most of the displays of that period there were frequently AM/PM indicators on the LCD, and sometimes a “24”, but the “24” was much less common if there were “AM/PM” indicators since the absence of them would infer “24”. That said, many Casio LCD watches today still include at least am “A” and “P” on their display. But I think the main reason they placed 12/24 on an external button was partly because the could and partly because a watch that could be both 12 and 24 hour time was pretty novel in the 80s. Over time this setting did tend to migrate to the internal time setting programming menu rather than an external toggle. But as far as not knowing whether you were in 12 or 24 hour mode in the morning, it really did not matter and once 13:00 came around you would know you were in 24 hour mode and could just tap the toggle button if you wanted 12 hour time - though I don’t recall ever accidentally toggling the time mode despite having worn such watches from the early 80s up until the mid 90s as the buttons had to be fully depressed and required a bit of force to fully depress.

[@okaro6595]

@@ethanpoole3443 Yes, that was at the time. Current ones that I havbe have only P for PM. I have set alarm on 14:00 so I can tell which it is. I do not use the alarm and I actually silenced it. I have pressed it several times accidentally.

[@arthurbesnard1536]

I would wear this one without hesitation, still a big fan of casio watch ...

[@stevesibaja3123]

Casio Watch Technology of the 80's Era

[@TobyDeshane]

Loving the Microgramma typeface on the virtual calc buttons. It's such a great font; timelessly futuristic.

[@Petertronic]

Stunning watch. I found the 2 layer LCD fascinating - I've never seen that in anything else and it seems to be very effective, so I wonder why it didn't catch on?

[@electronicsNmore]

I remember that watch......I was 11.

[@maxsnts]

I had a CFX-400. I loved that thing.

[@florianlucs7229]

i want one. i had one calculator watch that i got because a teacher found it and i was the first student at the desk to get it this was bach in the mid 2000. i dont know where it is or if i still have it but i think it was a casio. i know that mine had no armband (probabbly ripped off) it had rubber buttons below the display. i never figured out how it worked but i liked it. if anyone might have an idea what calc watch i was please let me know. i still know how it looked.

[@Jegbonto]

You should really get a Japanese engineer from Sony, Casio, Yamaha or something on the Amp Hour. Too bad they hardly speak any English as I imagine.

[@Dochirin]

That would be amazing, I really want to see interviews with Japanese engineers who were active in the 80s working for either Sony, Casio or Seiko.

[@tonerotonero1375]

Always loved the Casio watches. They were always introducing nicely finished sophisticated and innovative stuff. You own a jewel, thanks for sharing.

[@RelativisticVelocity]

Many Casio watches will activate all LCD elements when pressing all physical button simultaneously. Have you tried it on this one?

[@pault6533]

Great overview Dave. I lusted after the next great Casio in my pre-teens and would save allowance money. I can't believe I missed this one, perhaps I was lusting after cars and girls by then. I share your enthusiasm for calculators and 80's technology.

[@NetworkXIII]

I was surprised to learn that Casio still sells calculator watches. I owned a Texas Instruments calculator watch in the 80s, I wish I had stockpiled a pallet of them.

[@victorpalacios1017]

So awesome for the time, casio is a master, thank you for sharing such detailed video. I have the DBC-600 and the vdb-200 but this one shown is so cool.

[@WacKEDmaN]

i had one of the casio watch calcs back in the day...cant remember which model...pritty sure it was just a 4 banger..but with physical buttons...iirc i pulled it apart to see how it worked...and it never worked again...and i got my ass kicked by my parents for screwing it!...thanks for the retro memories Dave! :P

[@Drew-Dastardly]

Was this really from the early 1980's? Also that plastic PDA thing was something from the early 1990's surely. My early '80s CASIO calc watch had the black strap while my older brother had the deluxe one with the metal strap as our Christmas presents. These both had the rubber buttons and believe it or not we actually played the "games" on that tiny LCD. Early '80s PDA's where from the likes of Sharp with receipt printers as docking stations, not the '90s memory bank stuff @18:03. In fact they weren't PDA's at all as diary apps and stuff didn't exist then.

[@ChrisG3253032]

Nice. Always been a fan of Casio. I have a gold Casio calculator/databank watch. DBC-611G module 3228. A Chinese vintage reproduction I think. The calendar goes from 2000-2099. Has 13 languages, 5 alarms, auto-illumination function.....tilt 40degrees and the light goes for 1.5sec. And holds 25 name/phone number contacts. Dual time, stopwatch, day date etc. Gold colour metal case w/ matching metal bracelet strap. Pity it's not an original made in Japan watch, but I really like the look of it and it cost only $59(NZ).

[@timothylynch1380]

Thank you for posting this and taking me back to my childhood. I saved up my paper route money and bought a Casio Touch by the end of the year they came out. Which was actually in 1982. I know it was 1982, because I had it for Winter and the next Summer (1983) I wrecked my bicycle playing chicken with friends, broke my arm and scratched the screen on pavement. While the clock, alarm and chrono all worked, the calc was dead. Central Ohio, it cost me $299us. I only wish it was $29.99 :). Mine was all chrome though. I can't remember if it was a TC-500. Mine said Casio Touch on the top. We got a lot of electronics "early" in Central Ohio. I think it's because we were also a food test market for brands like McDonald's, Borden, Kroger, Big Bear, Pepsi, Coke, etc.

[@TheShivABC]

Awesome vid, brings back great memories, I still have my cfx-400 to this day, although the watch band part is broken I can't seem to toss a great piece of vintage tech

[@TheShivABC]

@Lassi Kinnunen The band is not the problem the hole is broken out in one of the catches

[@EEVblog]

It's still worth big money broken

[@TheShivABC]

@@EEVblog Awesome, good to know!

[@DavidLindes]

Somewhat random request for future videos... Could you fade out the text overlays, e.g. at 18:45, instead of cutting them out? I ask because I tend to watch at increased speed (2x or so, usually), and somehow it seems like my brain thinks the removal of the text is new text, and so I have the sense that I missed something... I *think* with a fade-out, my brain wouldn't play that trick on me. It could be quick... 1/4 second or something... And maybe I'm wrong that it would help, just a thought I had. Thanks for making these! So much interesting stuff... and yeah, I remember actually having a little savings project at one point in my childhood, saving up for a calculator watch from Casio. :D Oh, and see you put a photo of this watch on Wikipedia! Nice one!

[@michaels3003]

Dave, it was NOT a cheap consumer watch. The $80 original price is AT LEAST $200 in today's U.S. dollars. How old where you in 1980s? Do you understand inflation?

[@kevinvo3843]

I have the successor 1986 model of the Casio watch you have, the TC-600. It has the same exact dimensions and module, different bracelet, but no front black plastic bezel. Bought it broken without a screen and replaced it with a screen from another non-working TC-600. I wear it daily but the touchscreen doesn't register any of my touches even though there are no heavy scratches on the glass screen. May get around to fixing it in the future.

[@KanalFrump]

The dual layer LCD is such a neat trick. I wonder if OLED fabs can make segmented , transparent two-layer sandwiched displays with individually selected emission wavelength for each layer and the light from one layer shining through the next.

[@pasixty6510]

times have changed... Nowadays we have expensive smart watches doing almost everything (you might consider useful) on their screens, emptying the battery in a few hours. In the eighties we had smart engineers making cheap but brilliantly built little machines like this doing something (considered) useful with a battery living for months. None of both are really useful, only nice to have... There's one significant difference besides of battery life: The watch shown here will probably work when powered on again in 30 years. The smartwatch probably won't. Great technology and also a great video. I like it.!

[@killymxi]

One thing not shown in the video is how the double-layer LCD was wired to PCB. Was it two zebra strips? I also wonder is there any other products using multi-layer LCD and can it still be produced nowadays like your custom LCD? (Any news there btw?)

[@dtiydr]

1:51 I have a "DBA-80 [555]" watch on me that is with all day long which I got 1991 and was the very first in my town I later found out. And this also have tungsten bulb like this one and I'm not kidding you when I say its about size of a 0603 SMD, but little smaller at the width. How the hell do they make them?!

[@atmel9077]

The LCD is (probably) made out of two stacked LCD glasses, but as in a normal LCD there probably are only two polarizers. The liquid crystals shift the polarization by 90 degrees but are transparent, and the symbols thus appears on the top polarizer, so you can't see the two layers.

[@hearnia2k]

Anyone know where I might get a new zebra strip for the TC-600? I've got my fathers old one, it's got a new crystal, but still the touch does not work properly, and I think it's the zebra strip. Also, it's running a bit fast, is there a solution for that on a digital watch?

[@zer0b0t]

My favorite watch ever is from the 80s, even now the technology is not as good as it was, at least for the "cheap" lcd category. Oh an it's the ts-100.

[@reprapmlp]

Not specifically related to the watch, Dave: I trust you regularly get your skin checked - the closeups show what looks like a lot of sun damage on the back of your hands and wrists. (I grew up in NQ and it's _really_ a big deal there; perhaps not so much in Sydney.)

[@thisnthat3530]

I had the Casio Tele Memo 50 - it could store 50 phone numbers with names (max 8 chars + 12 digits). The case ended up snapping near the band mount. It lasted about 10 years. I haven't worn a watch since.

[@JerryEricsson]

I still have several Casio watches, however my calculator watch went with my son to college, and I haven't seen it again, not sure if he still has it or lost it, you know how wild those college kids were back in the 90's.

[@AM-dc7pv]

Fucking awesome. I remembered wanting one of these well into the 90's and by then, handheld gaming devices were getting commercial and I ended up getting a couple of those instead. Oh, the nostalgia of past glory days....

[@dtiydr]

8:34 So cool, it looks EXACTLY as in my DBA-80 bought -91, minus the round thing above the battery and the plastic bezel is non existent.

[@teuton8363]

I'd rather have a mechanical watch...preferably from Switzerland...and a cheese fondue

[@ErsinGencturk]

this is how casio forced the swiss watch makers almost going bankrupt during 80s. lessons learned and swiss specialized good branding and how they survived.

[@scottfirman]

Casio was my favorite until they started making the case from chrome plated plastic. I owned 4 of them! I worked as a building maintenance person and did auto mechanics so most of my watches were ruined because I wore them all the time. One was electrocuted! One was destroyed by chemicals( carburetor cleaner) and one was busted by a pulley on a car( missed my arm anyways). My last one stopped working and after that, I found they were made with cheap plastic. I did have a caculator one and used it too. I swore if I ever found a prestine one again ( in metal) I would buy it.

[@ewcm1878]

And mechanical fanboys say "digital timepieces cannot be repaired" lol. CASIO is legendary.

[@MusicFanatical1]

Really sci-fi for 1983 but more than that I would love to get one of those CFX-400s!

[@ats89117]

Wearing a calculator watch in the US identified you as a super geek...

[@ethanpoole3443]

But I was a proud calculator watch wearing geek from 1981/2 onwards. Though, truthfully, for a period in the early 80s these watches were such novel geekware that even in middle school most were fascinated by the watches until they became more common and the kids more cliquish with high school.

[@scotshabalam2432]

If you wanted to be cool you wore a Swatch. www.retroland.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Swatches.jpg

[@ats89117]

Swatches were very popular with junior high and high school girls...

[@Milan_M95]

I work with hosiery knitting machines we still have few working from the 80's and they have 10 inch touch screen, japanese design.

[@scotshabalam2432]

Wrist watches were a big deal in the 80s. I would say they were an even bigger deal than smartphones are now because if you have an ugly phone you can just hide it in your pocket.

[@Meatlips527]

Holy crap! I had that watch when I was a kid! It got one teeny tiny scratch on the display and that ended like three numbers. The scratch was really small too, but you could see it severed three of the embedded contact lines in the screen. I was really disappointed.

[@peregrine1970]

C... Clear... 48 years old and never realized why they were C and CE. /facepalm

[@cuteswan]

@peregrine1970 That's not so bad - I'm 50 and didn't figure out until a few years ago why Batman didn't just buy a gun and shoot his enemies. For scatterbrains like me the CE was useful, but the back/backspace would have been even better if it had been a standard thing.

[@danz409]

just bought a TI-108 off amazon for only $9 best nostalgia impulse buy ever.

[@richardbrobeck2384]

Well Dave I have always loved Casio and old Timex watches I have a collection of them .Anyway thanks for sharing

[@martinda7446]

Dave Jones...Casio....Yep, that makes sense.

[@politicartisan1339]

I remember one with little rubber buttons...I salivated over that thing.

[@NeilVanceNeilVance]

I was always a big fan of Casio. I used to think they somehow pinched technology from the future! :)

[@AntonyTCurtis]

Casio had a great repair centre in London which would repair their watches even years after the warranty had ended. I broke the case of my databank watch and they were able to replace the case. Fast, efficient and strangely deserted little repair centre.

[@coolciaran69]

I really thing Japanese watches don't get enough love

[@scotshabalam2432]

they are obsolete everyone has smartphone and even phone tethered wrist devices that can be watches and many other things.

[@oliverer3]

My smartwatch has a calculator, though for I'm fairly sure this one has quite a bit longer battery life.

[@ibanezleftyclub]

I wonder if a polarized filter would help you see the glass traces better. We used to use polarized lamps to see where the plastic flowed in injection molded lenses.

[@chrislundberg1]

I thought the 'E' was a notation that there where more decimal places not shown . Not sure just what I thought back in 85 .

[@Zodliness]

That's pretty cool, in my younger days I proudly wore a Casio WR DBC32 database watch!.... It was horrible to use with shovel-like hands! It's a far cry from the Galaxy watch I use nowadays!

[@stevesibaja3123]

Watching in 2022

[@SimoWill75]

I had one of these back in the day. Had it only a week or two at most when it got a small scratch on the glass. Game over. I was gutted.

[@Defgum]

Hmm..Should i feel silly for wearing a casio calculator watch every day?

[@truthseeker3907]

Thank You and Keep up the Good Work! Thumbs up Indiana USA.

[@kenseastrand7428]

A friend of mine had one of those, mine had the rubber buttons and my math teacher took it away from me, LOL.

[@Zadster]

Casio were absolutely on fire at this point in the 1980s, both their calculators and their watches had some superb design and functionality. It seemed though, when they made the IR remote control and data bank watches that they just lost interest somehow. Such a shame that they didn't progress to a full dot matrix display and programmability. I wonder if the core design team retired or moved on to something else instead? Always preferred the CFX-200 form factor, even without the hex conversion, having physical buttons rather than ZX81 type "touch" keys seemed so much better.

[@scotshabalam2432]

The 80's was a great time to be making wrist watches period they were in extremely high demand. Seiko, Casio, Swatch, Timex, and others were all doing well.

[@vaio232]

And it still beats app watch... Battery wise... reliability, price and screen readability

[@shyleshsrinivasan5092]

MIB wore them ? That's still modern enough ! Thanks a lot for this tear down sir !

[@PecanPie1102]

The Casio Data Bank was the ultimate best. I had it for 10 years

[@Billy-rr7re]

current lcd do not last that long. a dark spot begins growing in the middle of the screen and ruins it.

[@firstnamesecondname5341]

I had one of these but stupidly in a rush to turn off an over flowing tap it got soaked and that was the end of it.😞

[@abcvideoyoutuization]

Long advertisement at the start of the video. About a class to teach people to trade stock.

[@eletronica1857]

CASIO de best watches ever... i only use casios watches

[@rich1051414]

10:38 Is that layer some kind of doped tin oxide? Maybe indium doped tin oxide?

[@stevesibaja3123]

Casio C-500

[@Krishna-of1hv]

nice video. thank for antiquity watch video

[@kermit30au]

Got this watch in 1983 and still have it in the original case. In calculator mode the recessed button silences the calculator beeps and in time mode press and hold the mode button to alternate time/calculator display.

[@EEVblog]

Nice!

[@samulinukala585]

Typing on a smart watch is also hard mainly because I do it so rarely

[@IvanStepaniuk]

I still have the all-plastic version! Unfortunately, even a small scratch on the surface ruins the traces that makes the touch trick work.

[@EEVblog]

Didn't know they had a plastic version

[@IvanStepaniuk]

@@EEVblog the TC-50. There was a also a really nice TC-600. The design really stayed relevant, IMO.

[@VintageTechFan]

Is that notch under the adjust button intentional or is the case broken?

[@kermit30au]

It's not broken. They have the cutout notch so your fingernail can depress it.

[@ethanpoole3443]

Thomas Matovinovic Agreed, the notch is intentional so that you could still depress the set button with your finger nail, without the notch you would have needed a narrow tool to depress the button. Thankfully there was no great notch controversy in the 80s and 90s, that’s a modern first-world crisis!