I understand a grandma could have had a microwave. After all, I remember radar ranges with mechanical timers that were already relics when I was a child. But, now you've got me wondering what kind of VR/holographic microwaves kids are buying.
My latest bought a couple years ago still has a 7-segment vacuum fluorescent display. And a digital encoder knob and buttons rather than membrane controls. And a "cyclonic" inverter, which from the marketing diagrams, you would think can bend reality to your whims.
Those were the best. Dead simple to operate. That said I still have the Goldstar microwave I bought over 30 years ago, which has a keypad and digital timer.
I think maybe the original killer app for microwaves was baked potatoes? An hour to cook in a conventional oven. 5 minutes in a microwave. But maybe no one eats those anymore?
Technically popcorn is just warming up liquids as well. I'd say that's all it's good at, which happens to have a handful of usecases(some frozen meals, popcorn, melting cheese, heating leftovers).
It looks like they've instead made a ring version of the CA-53W, which - in the staggeringly few times I see someone wearing a calculator watch - is usually the one they're wearing.
I still wear a DBC-610 as my daily driver, and I do use the calculator and countdown timer features quite often.
Actually, I think an abacus ring is a great idea or it could be multiple rings on the same finger where the main benefit is you could keep keep count of something. If you had three rows of small beads, you could theoretically keep track of up to a thousand things, all without a battery and with perfect accuracy. Additionally, you could keep track in a very low profile way if the beads were on the inside of the ring toward the palm of your hand and you manipulated them with your thumb. The beads would have to have a slight friction to them so they stay in place but are still easy to move. But in general I like the idea and it's at least as appealing as the op Casio watch ring.
The best alarm clock I've ever had is a smartwatch that does this vibrating. No more stupid digital screaming. Just a nice gentle tapping pattern on my wrist, and then a fading bit of music. I'm usually awake and hitting stop before the music really starts.
I have the smaller older variant of the Timex Explorer and is still my most worn out of my whole collection despite its ugliness since it's by far the most useful due to the vibration alarms, great UX and features. Shame they don't make it anymore and has only been replaces with this gigantor edition.
That could actually be really useful. I'd love to wear a dumbwatch again, and if it's that much smaller then its that much better. Will be keeping an eye out for one that isn't nostaliga-themed.
Yeah, I actually got an extremely similar looking (but presumably more cheaply made) digital watch ring as a prize at an arcade type place that had games that spat out tickets that you could redeem for prizes around 30 years ago
$128 is really pushing the limit for what seems like a kitsch novelty. Were it a third of the price, I could see myself picking it up for my watch aficionado friend.
That said, Casio novelties do hold their value surprisingly well. For example, just by wearing my Gravitymaster, I’ve already “earned” $130 as the resell value has shot up.
N'ah mate, I feel Casio is also quite cheeky with their pricing for what is essentially mass produced budget commodity 80's tech made in China from cheap plastics.
Here in Europe most of their basic watches (excluding the F91W) are over 40+ Euros and all they do is show time/date on a cheap LCD display with poor viewing angles in a plastic resin shell who's paint rubs off after a couple of years.
Meanwhile for that price you can get an Xiaomi smart band with OLED display, gorilla glass, Bluetooth, vibration, heart-rate sensor, and it even tells time. Casio's profits must be crazy good on those watches.
I wish they would sell more models in metal casings like in the 80's and with updated internals with more functionality.
Six digit, not six segment. Each digit has seven segments.
I've seen this a LOT lately, when did everyone forget what segments were?
You don't need to read past the title for the first big error.
BTW, is The Verge sharing my browsing data with 855 partners? Folks, belive me, I am not that interesting!
> Folks, belive me, I am not that interesting!
Several of the greatest fortunes of modern capitalism have been made through surveillance of people that "are not that interesting"
> Folks, belive me, I am not that interesting!
you’d be surprised
Young people may not have ever seen a display like that.
They most likely see displays like that on microwaves.
In grandma’s kitchen.
I understand a grandma could have had a microwave. After all, I remember radar ranges with mechanical timers that were already relics when I was a child. But, now you've got me wondering what kind of VR/holographic microwaves kids are buying.
My latest bought a couple years ago still has a 7-segment vacuum fluorescent display. And a digital encoder knob and buttons rather than membrane controls. And a "cyclonic" inverter, which from the marketing diagrams, you would think can bend reality to your whims.
> But, now you've got me wondering what kind of VR/holographic microwaves kids are buying.
Our microwave has a fully graphic, monochrome LCD. And Wi-Fi. Of course. https://kalleboo.com/microblog/posts/109720164680381672.html
> radar ranges with mechanical timers
Those were the best. Dead simple to operate. That said I still have the Goldstar microwave I bought over 30 years ago, which has a keypad and digital timer.
I'm 46 and my grandma had a microwave by the time I was cooking in her kitchen in 1984.
Did air fryers already displace microwaves? I've missed the last couple meetings
Microwaves are great a two things (and little else...): warm up liquids and make popcorn. Neither are properly done by an air fryer.
I have both tools and they have completely different uses.
edit: both sport 7-segment digits though
I think maybe the original killer app for microwaves was baked potatoes? An hour to cook in a conventional oven. 5 minutes in a microwave. But maybe no one eats those anymore?
Tina's. Burritos.
I am a worm of class.
Also defrosting
Technically popcorn is just warming up liquids as well. I'd say that's all it's good at, which happens to have a handful of usecases(some frozen meals, popcorn, melting cheese, heating leftovers).
TIL I'm a grandma.
But they must have heard of the obvious word choice: "digit".
This is seems like "word I heard misappropriation".
Those are everywhere. Many are in storefronts
The original announcement from Casio said they'd be making a ring version of the venerable DBC-611 calculator watch as well: https://www.g-central.com/casio-to-release-casio-watch-ring-...
It looks like they've instead made a ring version of the CA-53W, which - in the staggeringly few times I see someone wearing a calculator watch - is usually the one they're wearing.
I still wear a DBC-610 as my daily driver, and I do use the calculator and countdown timer features quite often.
I am glad I learned abacus method to not rely on these gimmick watches with calculators.
Possible market for a watch with an abacus? Doodles on napkin
Wouldn't you need 10 rings; one for each finger?
I would wear 11 of them for the calculation functionality.
Actually, I think an abacus ring is a great idea or it could be multiple rings on the same finger where the main benefit is you could keep keep count of something. If you had three rows of small beads, you could theoretically keep track of up to a thousand things, all without a battery and with perfect accuracy. Additionally, you could keep track in a very low profile way if the beads were on the inside of the ring toward the palm of your hand and you manipulated them with your thumb. The beads would have to have a slight friction to them so they stay in place but are still easy to move. But in general I like the idea and it's at least as appealing as the op Casio watch ring.
Nope. One ring to rule them all.
Don't forget to include a sundial to tell time
The calculator buttons would probably be too small for a ring.
So you're saying it retains the authentic Casio calculator watch experience?
It's 30+ years since I owned one but I recall having to press the buttons with the corner of a nail and cursing if I thoughtlessly cut them!
Touch screen with graffiti input.
Haha, I love it! I wear the gold calculator watch because it's fun and peculiar. I'd love to get a gold casio ring.
It looks a bit silly but also a lot of fun!
It looks utterly stupid. I’ll take three, please.
I want one Casio watch ring for me and each of my friends and with our powers combined we are Captain Nerd.
> The ring watch’s screen even has a light, and an alarm function that will flash the display instead of playing an audible sound
That is a bit... Underwhelming isn't it?
A vibration motor would have been even better, but I suppose there wasn't enough space inside for that. Nor for a speaker.
This is Casio, though. If they really want to, the next version could very well contain all of that and a solar battery.
A vibration motor on the index finger could make be... multifunctional.
> A vibration motor would have been even better,
The best alarm clock I've ever had is a smartwatch that does this vibrating. No more stupid digital screaming. Just a nice gentle tapping pattern on my wrist, and then a fading bit of music. I'm usually awake and hitting stop before the music really starts.
Same, except I wear this: https://www.amazon.com/Timex-T49950-Expedition-Shock-Vibrati...
It's a "dumb" Timex watch, but also vibrates. So you get that same nice gentle vibrating without any "smart" alerts.
I have the smaller older variant of the Timex Explorer and is still my most worn out of my whole collection despite its ugliness since it's by far the most useful due to the vibration alarms, great UX and features. Shame they don't make it anymore and has only been replaces with this gigantor edition.
gorilla glass i hope, otherwise its scratch city for my clumsy hands
What is this, a watch for ants?
OMG, put it on a chain and wear it around my neck!
That could actually be really useful. I'd love to wear a dumbwatch again, and if it's that much smaller then its that much better. Will be keeping an eye out for one that isn't nostaliga-themed.
I have a gshock 5600-e that was passed down from my brother who wore it for uses in a metal fab mill. This watch is amazing. Definitely get a gshock
I love my G-shock GW/6900. It is pretty bulletproof. Apart from the strap - annoyingly I have to replace that once every ~3 years.
There are g-shocks with bracelets. I have a model with a plastic one.
I hope they included the iconic worst-in-the-world backlight into it.
True, their EL tech was one of the best in that day and age though. Weird how they pivoted from so bad to so good.
Digital watches in general have their charm https://youtu.be/mDVmdgao3RE?si=sfpEEkri1mmOvdAV
This feels like something you’d win at a carnival
Yeah, I actually got an extremely similar looking (but presumably more cheaply made) digital watch ring as a prize at an arcade type place that had games that spat out tickets that you could redeem for prizes around 30 years ago
No....nope. Don't like it. Why would someone spend $128 for that?
Looks like a mini GMW-B5000D: https://www.casio.com/us/watches/gshock/product.GMW-B5000D-1...
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42156565
Cool and functional. I hope this comes to Europe too.
Not for me but I love the idea.
In Japan. The price is high but I still like it.
$128 is really pushing the limit for what seems like a kitsch novelty. Were it a third of the price, I could see myself picking it up for my watch aficionado friend.
> kitsch novelty
you mean limited release collectable?
Blame Inflation :/
That said, Casio novelties do hold their value surprisingly well. For example, just by wearing my Gravitymaster, I’ve already “earned” $130 as the resell value has shot up.
>Blame Inflation :/
N'ah mate, I feel Casio is also quite cheeky with their pricing for what is essentially mass produced budget commodity 80's tech made in China from cheap plastics.
Here in Europe most of their basic watches (excluding the F91W) are over 40+ Euros and all they do is show time/date on a cheap LCD display with poor viewing angles in a plastic resin shell who's paint rubs off after a couple of years.
Meanwhile for that price you can get an Xiaomi smart band with OLED display, gorilla glass, Bluetooth, vibration, heart-rate sensor, and it even tells time. Casio's profits must be crazy good on those watches.
I wish they would sell more models in metal casings like in the 80's and with updated internals with more functionality.
A wrap around display ring would be cool.
This is the type of thing I would not purchase for myself, but I’m happy to see exist. Brilliant design.
hillarious