Perfect Time

F-91W (left) and F-105W

Just a few hours ago, John Mayer wrote an open letter to IWC about his feelings for the company’s line of watches and how that feeling has evolved throughout the years. Not that it matters to anyone, much less to him, but I have a love/hate relationship when it comes to John Mayer. On one hand, I can admit that he is a talented pop musician and I do, to a certain extent, enjoy his music. As a matter of fact, I own most of his albums. Oh, c’mon don’t give me that look. So what?

On the other (more important) hand, he seems to be constantly gargling poo every time he opens his mouth. I hate John Mayer.

But never mind, this is not about John Mayer or IWC. This is about what I think when I imagine the perfect watch. As a confused adult in my late 20s, I subscribed to this romantic idea that a person’s watch offers an accurate summary about him – his character, level of success, priorities, taste, etc. I also justified the need for a respectable watch by exaggerating its purpose. There is this great quote amongst watch enthusiasts that goes something like, “Owning a watch isn’t about telling time. It is about a relationship with time”. I pity the idiot who came up with that cheesy quote, and I pity myself even more for once believing it.

Anyways, I ended up with an Omega Speedmaster Professional which I paid for out of my year-end bonus in 2009 (or was it 2010?). I thought I was happy, but let’s face it – it’s not ‘me’. I like things that are flawless in function, beautiful in aesthetics and made for the lazy folk. While the Speedy Pro is great and all, it is not as accurate as a quartz movement, it has to be manually wound every day and because it is quite expensive, I don’t feel comforted using it on a run, while swimming or in the shower.

Enter Casio, the greatest watch company in the world. There are two Casio watches that I love with all my heart.The Casio G-Shock DW5600 and the Casio F-91W.

The 5600 is simply the most durable watch in the world. I literally can’t find a reason that would force me to take it off my wrist besides to change the battery (which I was told is once every 10 years). It is currently my running/swimming watch. It is functional and indestructible.

Meanwhile, the F-91W is the slimmest watch ever. It feels like it dissolves into my skin and only surfaces when I need to tell time. Personally, I don’t care much about it’s association with Al-Qaeda, but that’s one of the reasons why the watch is iconic.

My only gripe with the 5600 is its bulk. I also wish that the F-91W has electro-luminescence (EL) backlight and water resistance of 200 metres. Basically the perfect watch for me is one that has 5600 functions in F-91W aesthetics.

Though Casio has yet to release such a beast, it comes close with the F-105W I bought today. The only thing that separates this watch from perfection is water resistance of 200 metres. And maybe afterglow for the EL backlight, but that’s just me being ungrateful.

So Casio, if you’re reading this, release a watch that is identical to the F-91W in terms of design, typeface, colour etc, and give it EL backlight and water resistance of 200 metres. If you’re feeling generous, throw in a more accurate quartz movement, something that’ll keep time to +/- 30 seconds a year, maybe. Then upgrade the case and strap with more durable material. Call it the F-91W-PWN and sell it for double the price of the F-105W. I will wear this watch on my wedding day, no joke.