Casio is proud of this new mean and green Casio Pathfinder PAG110C-3 watch intent on reminding you that Casio Pathfinder watches are green friendly. In celebration of Earth Day, the watch comes with special recycled packaging, and I first discussed the this Casio Go-Green Pathfinder watch here. That is pretty much it for the special eco-friendly features unique to this watch. Why? Because as far as Casio is concerned, the Pathfinder series is green enough as it is. So I suppose that is a better thing given that many of their watches, not just one, is comparatively eco-friendly. Much of this has to do with the solar (or any light) charging Casio quartz movement in the watch the negates the need for regular battery changes. And as you can imagine, batteries can’t really be recycled, so they contribute to waste. So without even really trying, Casio makes a lot of green watches as a side effect of having cool solar powered movements.
Less chemical rich batteries in our environment is certainly a good thing, but so are cool watches. For me, the reason this Casio Pathfinder watch stands out is because of the color. It isn’t just a green watch, it is a cool green watch. Three shades of green, metal, plastic, and a cool technical look make this Casio watch about as close as an adult can come to playing with a fun toy. Well I suppose any adult can play with toys, but are you gonna do it in public, sans the guise of spending time with kids? In my opinion this colorful creation looks like a prop out of a sci-fi universe that many of us grew up in. Not only does the watch have a neat style, but it does all sorts of cool things (just like in the movie!). Wearing it and using it pretty much make me forget that legions of Pathfinder watches before this did the same thing.
Amazing what a visual redo can do to one’s perception. The light weight Pathfinder watch never looked so fresh. All of its many features right at your finger tips, and the added point that people will notice this item on your wrist much more. When wearing the watch I pretty much think about Star Wars, specially Endor. What better scene than a forest battle for a green colored watch? Tell me that this gadget wouldn’t have worked well on the wrists of the Endor Forest Rangers (aka, Endor Rebel Troopers). See the included images and video. This watch would have fit in well, given of course that it existed 30 years ago… Yes, nerdy/geeky it is, but a lot of ‘watch love’ is about emotion. And if wearing a watch and thinking about a movie series I enjoy makes me happy about wearing the watch – everyone is happy.
Size and features of the PAG110C-3 are pretty much standard mid-range Pathfinder specs. Given the “niche” appeal of the green color, Casio didn’t want to go out and throw in all the bells & whistles into this watch. As such, there are a few features you might want that are missing in this model, that you will have to finder in other Casio Pathfinder models. One example is being able to sync the watch with the atomic clock nearby via radio signals. The higher-end Pathfinder watches have this. Also, most of the newer Pathfinder models have some “plus” feature. Such as all the standard functions plus a tide chart for example. The Go Green watch has no lack of features, but won’t beep happily when it is Earth Day or anything. It has the time, perpetual calendar, world time, alarms, stopwatch, countdown timer, compass, barometer, thermometer, and solar power generation with battery charge indicator. The backlight has a the auto illumination function as well, which is always cool (you can set the watch to have the backlight activate when you tilt your wrist toward you). So as you can see, each Pathfinder watch is pretty full featured as it is.
The metal bezel around the dial looks good, and Casio chose a green tinted LCD screen. The solar panel ring sits around the dial. The pushers are all easy to spot and push around the case, and the watch is comfortable to wear on the wrist. The resin strap has two metal plates on it which look nice. Strap is standard resin in green. Putting on the strap is a little tricky given the friction that occurs when the excess strap goes through the loops, but it is not a bit deal. I’ve mentioned the styling a few times. It isn’t radically different than on most Pathfinder watches, but the light color really brings out the detail more. So you can see all the little areas the Casio designers wanted you to notice.
If you like the color of the watch, enjoy the features, or are a Casio fan, the Pathfinder PAG110C-3 is a decent addition to your collection. Especially if you find yourself without a proper watch to wear on St. Patrick’s day. While not strictly a limited edition, I feel that the watch will have a limited production given that it is as special watch. So don’t wait too long to get one. Price is $250 for the watch, and it is exclusively available on Amazon.com.
