Seiko F033-5000

Today's watch is one of my old LCD watches - the Seiko Quartz F033-5000.

The watch was released in 1978 based on the F033 module (which was first featured in 1977) and is a simple 5 1/2 digit LCD panel (with only a 1 possible for the first digit). Pressing the button displays day and date (day), but the settings mode included the month (presumably to determine how many days before going back to 1 again). For the day name, there are some extra segments in the digits to allow different letters (for example the T in SAT). 

The more unusual part of this watch is the display panel. This model features a special reflective display panel (sometimes called a fluted display) which makes the numbers really clear to read and have a wide viewing angle.

Original price in 1978 was around 27,000 yen

Overall, I think this model is a nice thin and light 1970s watch, with an attractive light (and light catching) face.

Alba Disney Mickey & Minnie Y950 Ana-Digi

In April 2013, I blogged about a vintage Alba watch with an analogue dial and an LCD in the glass. One of the conclusions of the blog post was that it was quite an uncommon model.

This watch shares the same module as that watch, the Y950, but this time it is a Disney version.

The Y950 watches came out in the early 90s and was one of the designs which seem to have been reasonably high tech and expensive for the time. The Y950 has a 3 hand dial which uses a crown for setting purposes. The glass has an LCD display built in with various display options. At the top and bottom of the LCD are two lines of digits, the top one able to show letters too. By default, these show day and date at the top and time at the bottom, but are also used by the alarm and stopwatch modes. In the centre of the display you can normally bring up a full month-view calendar with this module, however in this watch, the calendar has been replaced with an LCD picture of Mickey & Minnie.

This particular version is done as part of the collaboration between the Seiko brand Alba and Disney which has been going on maybe since the Alba brand was established. The watch face features a picture of Mickey and Minnie Mouse, and above the face are the words 'Mickey & Minnie'.

This watch was made in 1983 (same as the previously blogged model) and has a full model number of Y950-5030.

Casio Wrist Camera WQV-10

Today is the 4th in the series of Casio Wrist Camera watches. After the improvements made in models WQV-1 thru 3 comes the best of the models, the WQV-10.

When looking at the screen, you see the first (and main) improvement which is that the display is now in colour. The screen is a 20x20mm display with 6240 pixels (78x80) and is capable of displaying 4096 colours. Because of this, you can select different display colours (3 colours and 2 layouts), and the calendar feature returns, but with the possibility of choosing a day's colour.

The camera is a 0.025 megapixel colour camera (176x144 pixels) with a 1/14" CMOS sensor. As with the others, the lens is at the top of the camera, the screen acts as a viewfinder, and the shutter button is on the front. The watch has 1MB of memory which can hold up to 100 photos, and they can be transferred to a computer (at 115 kbps) through the infrared connection (located next to the lens). Shutter speed is 1/5.5 to 1/1660, and there is a manual shutter speed option. The watch also allows for a 2x digital zoom. Pictures can be given a title within the watch with up to 24 characters possible per image.

The watch uses a 2412 module and has alarm and stopwatch modes as well as the camera and playback. This is powered by a CR2032 battery accessed by the coin opening slot on the back which gives a life of around 6 months of average use. Low battery is signalled by a red marker on the display, and stops the camera and playback modes working.

Casio Wrist Camera WQV-3

Today is the third in my series of Casio Wrist Camera watches, and was the follow-up to the WQV-1 and WQV-2 that I previously blogged.

The WQV-3 was an improved version  of the first two models and was released in September 2001 (US). It kept the same monochrome LCD display with its 120x120 resolution, but upgraded the sensor to provide colour images instead of the earlier models monochrome photos. Images taken are 0.03 megapixels (176x144) on a cmos sensor through the f2.8 lens. When taking pictures, the contrast can be edited, and there are multiple presets for outdoor, indoor, etc.

Power comes from a CR2032 battery and there is memory protection to ensure you don't loose the photos when the power runs out. Overall, the watch can hold up to 80 pictures in it's internal memory, and the pictures can be transferred to your computer through an infrared connection from the transmitter next to the lens.

The watch contains a 2411 module which gives it 5 alarms, a timer, and a stopwatch. There is also a calendar display mode accessed by the forward and reverse buttons.

From a design perspective, this model is more rounded than the first two designs which used a rectangular shape, and so this looks more like a regular watch. The WQV3 came in two designs, a black resin model with resin strap, and this version which has a silver case and stainless steel strap.

Seiko Alba Y950 Ana-Digi with Calendar Display

The old LCD watches came is all shapes and sizes. Some were very basic and cheap-looking, but others, like today's, were much more classy looking.

This watch is by the Seiko sub-brand Alba, and is a high spec Ana-Digi watch. It comes from 1983, and looks like it would have been a relatively expensive model. It now seems to be relatively uncommon, with not too many Internet references.

The dial is operated with the crown, and is a 3-hand dial with a rounded square shape. The LCD display is built into the glass in front of the dial, and has various display options, or can be switched off entirely.

The basic display covers time and date, with day and date in a row to the top, the time (6 digits) at the bottom, and the middle blank. The alarm and stopwatch modes also use the same lines of digits.

The last mode is a calendar display. In this one, the day and date are still along the top, but the bottom line covers year and month. In the middle is a full calendar, showing the whole of the current month, with a letter S marking the column of Sundays. While showing the calendar, the right hand buttons scroll forwards and backwards through the months. The numbers in the calendar don't actually move, just the S for the Sunday column.

Full model number of this one is Y950-5010. Other watches were released with the same module, but different designs (and also under the Pulsar sub-brand).