Casio Cult
So, back in November 2024, I was working out and realizing my smart watch, the Google Pixel, was serving only one purpose: fitness measurements. Everything else was functioning as designed. They were just in the mode of notifying me every 10 seconds or so about the mundane and innane. Also, I was paying to a subscription. All of these amounted to costs in my patience, the watch was checked so much, and to may bank account, the subscription wasn't cheap. The small use cases where important people in my life would contact me didn't justify any of these costs.
Enter the Fediverse.
I have heard endlessly about the Casio Cult. It grabbed attention because I wore Casio watches in the 80s. Because not only have I always wore one and were therefore comfortable with one on the wrist, finding the time with the turn of the wrist was a necessity. Deciding it was time to get an affordable watch again, I mosied on over to the Casio website and found it: the A168WA-1 (pictured above). It brought back nostalgia as it was my first watch and there it was for an affordable price!
And so, here it is nearly six months later and I'm still wearing it still. I have no regrets. It doesn't buzz me or charge me a monthly fee. It may not have apps, but I didn't really use them before. As for heart rate measurements? Those have proved to be useless and unnecessary in the fitness journey.
The moral of the story is don't buy smart watches unless one really can't live without their features. Simple is often better. Also, Casio does have fancy looking watches to fit your taste (I'm not talking about the A168WA-1).