Casio Montre GW-A1100FC-1AER

Intended to be my last watch purchase, and after a lifetime of Casio ownership, I decided to treat myself and buy the Casio GW-A1100FC-1AER. The FC variant referring to the 3-fold resin clasp/bracelet that Casio use instead of a heavy steel bracelet. If you need to adjust the bracelet the links are help with spring rods so a visit to the local watch-mender might be needed. I had spent a long time on the net looking at photographs and reading reviews before committing myself to this watch. On opening the box, this Casio looks quality but it was a lot darker than I had anticipated. The blue surround was nowhere near as bright as some pictures had led me to believe. A large, dark face and one which the Compass Button, Fly-Back Button and Crown Bezel do nothing to make smaller, it is still surprisingly light on the wrist. If you are a long-sleeve shirt wearer you might have a problem with your cuff. This version is the one with the blue flashings and these do nothing to help make the operational features more visible. The lower small dial takes care of the day and also the world time, stopwatch, trip meter and alarm. The upper small dial is simply a 12-24hour indicator. One of the quirkiest features is the trip meter during which the hour, minute and second hands all go backwards – well it keeps the kids (and me) amused! I am sorry to say that in all but the best light I found it almost impossible to use and see the extra features. Yes, you can tell the time but for anything else a lot of hand-waving is required to get as much light as possible onto the face. If you have looked at the watch you will know it is an analogue display made more visible by the diver-type hands. There is no extra illumination and the batons are halved to allow for more of the blue paint. The hands and batons need to retain enough light energy to last through the night to stay visible. However, if you want to do anything other than tell the time then you are going to need a torch so it might not be for you. I was very disappointed. It is not a terrible watch. Indeed, I have now bought its brother watch. If possible, I would urge you to have a look at it in-the-flesh before you commit yourselves – luckily ChrisElli have an excellent returns policy or I would have been lumbered with a watch I could not use, apart from time-telling, without a torch. Quite expensive – yes, but it does have quality – if only you could read it!