G-Shock and Casio collectors: this one may have slipped under your radar, but it should definitely ‘ping’ your interest. While many under $30 dollar Casios are a bit small and/or delicate, the new-ish Casio DW-291H series looks built to take a beating, has world time functionality, and great legibility and ergonomics. And with a typical selling price of around half of the entry level G-Shock 5600 series, which usually sells for around $50, Casio’s already legendary value proposition levels up yet again. Do I have your attention yet?

The Casio DW-291H may not have gotten the attention it deserves, because the brand has categorized it as a ‘youth’ watch, but at over 46mm across, this is no kid-sized case. For about the price of a nice lunch, you’ll get 200 meters of water resistance, mineral glass crystal, a 10-year battery, a 1/100th second stopwatch, countdown timer, world time functionality with easy access (Multi Time) to 4 different cities, an additional analog display, and 5 separate alarms. The Casio DW-291H all comes packaged in a square-ish case slightly bigger than the 5600 G-Shock, available in 3 colorways; all black, gunmetal gray faceplate, or my favorite, the gunmetal faceplate with racy red accents.

 

The Casio DW-291H looks like something Richard Mille would come up with (if his design brief was a mass-market digital beater). 4 small screws secure the faceplate, and, in a welcome improvement over the base model G, large function buttons protrude out of guards along the side of the case, making operation a snap compared to the DW-5600 series, even with gloves on. The way the button guards angle out from the case reminds me of motorcycle cylinder heads. So if you’ve got $25 bucks and a dream, the Casio DW-291H should find a place on your wrist too.

More specs available at Casio