Vancouver based Momentum Watches has announced today their new follow up to the Format 2 analog/digital sport watch. The new model, dubbed the Format 4, is larger in size and features a more prominant set of digital screens than the outgoing model (see included comparison). The dual screens are backlit and enable functions like day/date, five distinct alarms, a chronograph, a countdown timer and a world time feature. The closed lug case design and ultra legible dial and hands look like a winning combination and Momentum has made this new model more versatile with larger buttons and 100m water resistance. The Format 4 is slated for release later this month and will cost $285 on a rubber strap or $295 the leather strap seen in the photo. We love a good multifunction watch so soon as the Format 4 is available we will start working on a review.
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Casio recently updated their mid-range Pathfinder lineup — the "Solar Triple Sensor" line — by adding the PAG-240 which sports a series of refinements. The Pathfinder line is famous for melding large LCD screens with navigational and atmospheric data, all in a wrist-top package. The Casio PAG-240 uses a new duplex screen, and a new manner of navigating its many features.
- Plastic resin case
- 51 x 15.5mm, 65g
- Casio 3246 movement (+/- 15 seconds)
- Solar powered
- Compass
- Altimeter
- Barometer
- Thermometer
- Sunrise/sunset timer
- Duplex LCD (two layers)
- Countdown timer
- World time
- Automatic Calendar
- Auto back-light with afterglow feature
- Resin strap
- Retail price of $250
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If there's any one company that continues to innovate, it has to be Casio. Their newest Pathfinder/Protrek, the PRW-5000, takes their kitchen-sink feature list and completely rethinks to design with an emphasis on analog hands.
Let's start with the features:
- Solar powered.
- Atomic timekeeping, six bands: US, UK, Germany, China, Japan (2x).
- Altimeter, barometer, compass, and thermometer.
- Wold time, stopwatch, countdown timer, five alarms.
- Low temperature resistant down to -10C.
- Water resistant to 100m (330ft).
- Mineral crystal, fixed stainless steel bezel.
- Casio movement 5114 (PDF), with self-correcting hands.
- 49mm across, 14.6mm thick, 85g on the 22mm resin strap.
- List price of $450.
Please read on for the full review.
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Announced today is the new Casio Pathfinder, model PAG-110C-3. Emphasis on this one is "Go Green," showcasing the environmentally friendly features of solar power, recycled packaging, and of course the vivid green color, introduced in conjunction with Earth Day.
Feature set is typical Pathfinder:
- Compass.
- Barometer/altimeter.
- Thermometer.
- Five alarms, stopwatch, 30-city world time.
- Water resistant to 100m (330ft).
- Tough solar power.
- Low temperature resistant.
List price is $250, exclusively available via Amazon. Keep an eye here for a full review.
By Paul Hubbard
As big Pathfinder fans here at WatchReport, we're happy to report that the new PAW-5000-1 will ship this April for $450. Departing somewhat from the dominant style of "mostly digital face", the new model sports a reduced-size digital screen and more dive-watch-style face. Somehow, it works for us. Casio PR has promised to try and get us a review unit, so keep an eye out for a full review. Here's a list of specifications to pique your interest in the meantime:
- Tough solar power.
- Six-band radio set timekeeping.
- Water resistant to 100m (330ft).
- Plastic case, urethane band.
- Triple sensor (temperature, altimeter/barometer, compass).
- Resistant to low temperatures.
- New tough movement, as seen in the GS-1200 and the MTG-1500, where it can check and correct the position of the hands. A very cool piece of engineering.
- The second hand doubles as a compass needle. Clever, huh?
The watch hasn't been officially announced in the USA yet, but keep an eye on Casio's website for the announcement.
By Paul Hubbard
We're big fans of outdoor and analog-digital watches, and this new Wenger model scratches both itches. It's a men's quartz watch, with an old-school LED digital display beneath the analog hands, adding a compass to the more usual repotoire of functionality. Available on bracelet (model 70436) or red-stitched black silicone strap (70430), this one looks pretty good:
- 316L brushed-finish stainless steel case, 43mm across, 22mm lugs.
- Water resistant to 100m (330ft).
- Mineral glass crystal.
- Swiss quartz movement.
- Non-screw-down crown.
- Bracelet version is 5-link, alternating brushed and polished, with deployant buckle.
- Digital portion has a digital compass, day/date/month, second time zone.
The specifications leave some questions unanswered – are the hands driven by the movement, or set separately? Is the analog portion illuminated, lumed, both or none? Does it have a low-battery indicator? Can you turn off the LEDs for a cleaner face? (Almost certainly considering the power consumption of LEDs). Despite the unknowns, it's an attractive watch and I hope we can get one for review.
A quick internet search finds it for sale at around $400 USD. That's pretty good, though for that price I'd prefer to get a sapphire crystal.
By Paul Hubbard
Up for review today is the Suunto X10m, an improved version of the X9i I reviewed in 2007. It’s a GPS watch with a long list of features that belie its understated appearance:
- GPS: Routes, waypoints, tracks, speed distance, 1 meter (3ft) resolution.
- Plan and visualize tracks on a PC ahead of time, then download to the watch.
- Google Earth compatible (screenshots and more below).
- Altimeter: Altitude, vertical speed, alarms for set altitudes and rates. Temperature compensated.
- Barometer: Absolute pressure, sea level pressure, trend graph, weather alarm.
- Integrated temperature sensor (which isn’t accurate unless the watch is worn outside your sleeve).
- Watch: 3 alarms, time optionally set via GPS, dual timezone support with 30-minute offsets supported.
- 100m (330ft) water resistant as long as you don’t press the buttons.
- Integrated lithium rechargeable battery, specced for 500 charge cycles, recharged via the included USB cable.
- Available in different colors as well as the supplied military version (all black, reverse LCD, red backlight, with support for the military grid coordinate system and ‘mils’ compass readings).
Full review continues below.
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Introduced in 1961, the Alpinist line has been Seiko's product for upscale outdoorsmen. Designed for the 'Yamatoko' or 'mountain man,' these are watches for those who hike and climb mountains. Over the years, Seiko has introduced both mechanical and quartz versions, many with compass bezels and usually waterproof to an unusual 200m (660ft).
The Alpinists are now being redesigned with three new models set to drop in late July for the Japanese domestic market. The case shape has changed considerably, and the crown is now at the 4 o'clock position, and from these pictures, it appears that they're using a variant of the classic SKX-series divers' watch case.
There are three new models, all with the 6R15 mechanical movement.
The first one I want to talk about is the ion-plated black SARB063 (top right). List price on this is 71,400 Yen, or about $720 USD. For that, you get a plated case and bracelet which gives the watch a fashionable flat black look. The black-framed hands are a trifle less legible but still quite readable in my opinion. The white-on-black bezel pops visually, and looks very functional.
Next is the SARB059:
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On April 1 2009, Casio will start selling the newest Protrek model: the PRX-2000T. It's an evolution of the ABC watch (Altimeter/Barometer/Compass) reduced in size and upgraded in terms of build materials. Here are the specs from the translated press release:
- List price is 99,750 JPY, or about $1,030 US as of Feb 2009. Yes, it's expensive.
- "World's thinnest" ABC watch at 11.3mm by 47.7mm by 57mm.
- Sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating – excellent, I have been looking forward to this.
- Titanium case and band, carbide hardened.
- Waterproof to 100m (330ft).
- Low-temperature resistant down to -10C (14F).
- Six-band atomic set up to six times per day.
- 24-hour stopwatch.
- 24-hour countdown timer.
- Dual-layer LCD: one layer for compass and another for the rest. LCD segments are fixed in shape, so this makes sense.
- Five alarms.
- World time with 31 time zones and 48 cities. Not clear if this includes fractional hour offsets.
- Automatic EL backlight.
- Tough solar power, 23 month power reserve.
- The compass claims "16 azimuth angle of orientation" and "orientation correction function," which I would guess means it's more accurate when not held perfectly level.
- Lots and lots of measurements and modes for the altimeter/barometer, graphing and so on.
- Basic temperature measurement, but unless they've invented something new it mostly measures the temperature of your wrist and is therefore almost useless while worn. (This is a problem with all ABC watches.)
Overall, it looks like a really nice watch. The reduced size, streamlined case and improved materials are something I look forward to reviewing. I do wonder why they priced it so high, though: The Ultimate Pathfinder has a similar feature list, and is only $400USD. It's not clear to me why this one is worth over twice as much.
By Paul Hubbard
At WatchReport, we're big fans of outdoor watches. We've reviewed several Casio Pathfinders, and today we have the Suunto Core Light Green. There are eight Core models, differing in case design and coloration. I chose the Light Green for both functional and aesthetic reasons – it's the lightest of the bunch, with aluminum bezel and vented rubber strap, and I prefer normal black-on-white LCDs to the negative variant.
The Core is an altimeter/barometer/compass watch, much like the Pathfinders, but with a completely different design aesthetic. Before we start comparing, here's a list of the features onboard:
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Vancouver based Momentum Watches has announced today their new follow up to the Format 2 analog/digital sport watch. The new model, dubbed the Format 4, is larger in size and features a more prominant set of digital screens than the outgoing model (see included comparison). The dual screens are backlit and enable functions like day/date, five distinct alarms, a chronograph, a countdown timer and a world time feature. The closed lug case design and ultra legible dial and hands look like a winning combination and Momentum has made this new model more versatile with larger buttons and 100m water resistance. The Format 4 is slated for release later this month and will cost $285 on a rubber strap or $295 the leather strap seen in the photo. We love a good multifunction watch so soon as the Format 4 is available we will start working on a review.
