Casio AW-80-1AV
A Feature Packed Everyday Ana-Digi
The Casio AW-80-1AV is one of those watches that perfectly demonstrates what Casio does so well: pack a surprising amount of functionality into an affordable, lightweight and genuinely useful everyday watch.
At first glance, the AW-80 is fairly understated. The silver coated resin case gives it that familiar practical Casio appearance, while the traditional analogue hands make it a little less obvious that it’s a digital than many of the brand's other watches. Look more closely, though, and there's a lot going on.
Analogue Simplicity Meets Digital Functionality
I'm a big fan of ana-digi watches when they're done properly, and the AW-80 gives you the best of both worlds.
The analogue hands provide an instant, easy-to-read indication of the time, while the digital display takes care of the additional information and functions. This includes the date, day, seconds, world time, alarms, stopwatch and countdown timer.
There's even Casio's Telememo feature, allowing up to 30 sets of names and telephone numbers to be stored in the watch.
In an age when virtually everyone carries a smartphone, Telememo admittedly feels like a feature from another era. Personally, though, that's part of the charm. It's a reminder of a time when manufacturers were trying to make the wristwatch genuinely useful for more than simply telling the time.
Made to Be Worn – With a Small Change
One small change I've made to my AW-80-1AV is swapping the standard black resin strap for the black canvas strap from the AW-80V.
For me, it really suits the watch. The canvas strap gives the AW-80 a slightly more rugged, field-watch feel while still looking completely at home on the case – hardly surprising considering it's a strap Casio themselves use on another version of the AW-80.
It also makes my particular AW-80 feel a little more individual without turning it into an obvious modification. It still looks like it could have left the factory this way.
The resin construction keeps the watch itself extremely light, and combined with the canvas strap it's a comfortable and practical combination for everyday wear.
It's a simple change, but one that I think improves the overall character of the watch considerably.
Plenty of Useful Features
Casio managed to squeeze an impressive specification into the AW-80.
You get world time covering 30 cities across 29 time zones, a 1/100-second stopwatch, 24-hour countdown timer, three independent daily alarms including a snooze alarm, hourly time signal and a full automatic calendar running through to 2099.
There's also an amber LED light with afterglow.
Water resistance is rated at 50 metres, which is perfectly reasonable for an everyday watch of this type. It's not a serious diving watch, but for normal daily use it gives the AW-80 another layer of practicality.
Perhaps one of its best specifications, however, is something you won't need to think about very often.
Ten-Year Battery Life
The AW-80 runs from a CR2025 battery, with Casio quoting an approximate battery life of 10 years.
That's exactly the sort of specification I love on an everyday Casio.
No charging, no apps and no regular battery replacements. Put a battery in it and, under normal conditions, you potentially don't have to think about the power source again for the best part of a decade.
There's something very appealing about that simplicity.
What I Like About the AW-80
For me, the appeal of the AW-80 isn't any single feature.
It's the complete package.
You have an analogue watch that's quick to read, backed up by a digital display containing far more functionality than most people will ever actually need. It's lightweight, comfortable, inexpensive to run and doesn't feel overly large or bulky.
With the AW-80V canvas strap fitted, I think mine has an even more purposeful appearance. It adds just enough of a rugged, outdoorsy feel without changing what the watch fundamentally is.
I also think there's a slightly old-school charm to the AW-80.
Features such as Telememo may have largely been replaced by smartphones, but that's precisely what makes watches like this interesting to collect. They're little snapshots of the period in which they were designed.
The Casio Collector Verdict
The Casio AW-80-1AV isn't flashy, expensive or particularly exotic – but that's really missing the point.
This is a practical Casio through and through.
It's comfortable enough for everyday wear, packed with useful features and powered by a battery that Casio rates for approximately ten years. The combination of analogue hands and a digital display also gives it a character of its own compared with the countless purely digital Casios available.
The black canvas AW-80V strap has made mine even more appealing to me. It's a very simple swap, but it gives the watch a slightly tougher, more field-oriented appearance that suits both the design and the way I like to wear my watches.
If you want something inexpensive that you can simply strap on and use without worrying about it, the AW-80 makes a lot of sense.
And from a collector's point of view, I think its old-school Telememo functionality gives it just enough quirkiness to make it more interesting than your average everyday quartz watch.
Practical, uncomplicated and packed with features – exactly the sort of Casio I enjoy.
Specifications
Model: Casio AW-80-1AV
Display: Analogue-Digital
Case: Resin
Original Strap: Black resin
Strap on My Watch: Black canvas strap from the Casio AW-80V
Glass: Resin / Spherical Glass
Dimensions: 46.8 × 40 × 13.5mm
Weight: 34g (standard specification)
Water Resistance: 50 metres
Battery: CR2025
Approx. Battery Life: 10 years
World Time: 30 cities / 29 time zones
Telememo: Up to 30 name and telephone-number records
Stopwatch: 1/100 second, up to 24 hours
Countdown Timer: Up to 24 hours
Alarms: 3 independent daily alarms, including snooze
Lighting: Amber LED with afterglow
Calendar: Full auto-calendar to 2099
Accuracy: ±30 seconds per month
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