Originally founded in 1975, Armitron is an American watch brand that was born during the heyday of quartz LED watches, and the company has recently undergone a major update as it prepares for its upcoming 50th anniversary. While Armitron still produces LED watches that carry on the legacy of its earliest models, the brand’s modern catalog now includes a wide assortment of different offerings that range from smartwatches to skeletonized mechanical timepieces. A decent number of watches in Armitron’s current catalog have designs that are clearly inspired by the works of other famous manufacturers, and while most of these homage-adjacent models emulate the appearances of luxury watches that cost exponentially more than Armitron’s budget-friendly offerings, the brand’s Ridgemont and Metro models share a fundamental design with a cult-favorite Casio that features a hybrid analog/digital display.
While Armitron classifies the Ridgemont and Metro as two distinct models, the watches themselves are largely identical, and the differences between them are primarily limited to their dials and bracelets. The Armitron Metro models are characterized by transparent dials paired with mesh-style bracelets, and the ref. 20/5601BKGPBK featured here embraces a black and gold colorway with a gold-tone case, a smoked transparent dial, and a black-finished mesh bracelet. Meanwhile, the Armitron Ridgemont lineup is a bit more diverse, and while all of the Ridgemont models are paired with folded-link bracelets, the dials and case finishing can differ between the various references. Some Ridgemont watches have transparent dials like the Metro series, although the ref. 20/5453CHGP featured here offers a fairly traditional overall appearance with a gold-tone case, champagne-colored dial, and a matching gold-finished bracelet.
Armitron’s Ridgemont and Metro watches both offer an overall design that is similar to the Casio AQ-230, which is a vintage-inspired model that recalls the appearance of the early analog/digital hybrid watches that the Japanese manufacturer produced during the 1980s. While the gold-tone version of the Armitron Ridgemont featured here is incredibly similar to what can be found in Casio’s catalog (specifically the ref. AQ-230GA-9D), the Armitron Metro takes things in a slightly more contemporary direction with its smoked transparent dial and blacked-out mesh bracelet. With that in mind, unlike the various Casio AQ-230 models, which feature plated resin cases paired with metal bracelets, the Armitron Ridgemont and Metro watches are constructed entirely from stainless steel, and they feature flat mineral glass crystals protecting their displays for additional scratch resistance.
In terms of their dimensions, the Armitron Ridgemont and Metro both measure 33mm in diameter by 11mm thick (or 11.4mm if you factor in the additional height of their crystals that slightly protrude above the rim of their bezels), while their lugs are set 20mm apart and extend to create a fairly compact lug-to-lug profile of 42mm. Snap-on stainless steel casebacks close up the reverse side of the watches, while water resistance comes in at 50 meters, and located along the sides of their cases are three buttons for operating the digital display and a push/pull-style crown that is used to adjust the analog hands. The use of stainless steel for their cases provides Armitron’s Ridgemont and Metro models with a more premium overall feel compared to the plated resin cases that are most frequently found on inexpensive gold-tone watches, and despite being fitted with different styles of bracelets, both models have a total weight of approximately 87 grams.
Unlike Casio’s AQ-230 watches that are powered by a single analog/digital hybrid module, the Armitron Ridgemont and Metro watches contain two separate movements, with one dedicated to each of their displays. The LCD display is governed by a digital quartz movement that is produced by one of Armitron’s vendors in China, and it offers the usual suite of functions that include a stopwatch, alarm, pre-programmed calendar, and backlight. Meanwhile, the analog display is powered by the quartz Miyota Cal. 2035, which is one of the Japanese movement manufacturer’s standard three-handed designs that offers an accuracy rating of +/-20 seconds per month. Since Armitron’s Ridgemont and Metro models feature two separate movements, their pair of displays can easily be set independently to display different timezones. However, this also means that they require two different batteries, and while the digital LCD movement runs on a CR2016, the analog Miyota 2035 takes a SR626SW power cell.
The dials fitted to the Armitron Ridgemont and Metro watches offer the same overall layout with an oblong digital screen set under a large analog display. While the transparent dial fitted to the Metro features an entirely printed design with yellow markings set against its smokey surface, the dial fitted to the gold-tone Ridgemont showcases a subtle vertically brushed finish with a single applied baton-shaped marker at the 12 o’clock location. Both Metro and Ridgemont models feature standard black-on-gray LCD screens, and on the two versions featured here, both watches are fitted with a trio of gold-finished hands that match their gold-tone stainless steel cases. The brushed dial fitted to the Armitron Ridgemont provides the watch with a classic retro-themed appearance, while the smoked transparent dial of the Metro offers a distinctly more modern aesthetic that reveals the analog Miyota 2035 movement that sits directly below its surface.
The gold-tone bracelet fitted to the Armitron Ridgemont features a multi-link design that is constructed from folded pieces of stainless steel, and it quickly flares out to 23.5mm to meet the outer edges of the lugs before tapering down to 18mm on the underside of the wrist. Meanwhile, the Armitron Metro’s bracelet features a finely woven Milanese-style mesh design that maintains a constant 20mm width throughout the entirety of its construction, and it is given a black PVD finish to match the dark smokey hue of the Metro’s dial. Despite their different construction and finishing, both bracelets are fitted with the same style of clasp, which features a hook-and-latch design with a sliding adjustment section that can be positioned along the length of the bracelet to either expand or contract its circumference. The mesh bracelet fitted to the Armitron Metro offers a slightly more substantial feel compared to the folded-link bracelet of the Ridgemont, although neither is particularly luxurious or refined, and this is immediately apparent when looking at their simple unsigned clasps.
Armitron firmly occupies an affordable segment of the market, and even the brand’s most expensive mechanical models cost less than a couple hundred dollars. Within Armitron’s current lineup, the Ridgemont and Metro are positioned as mid-tier offerings, with the Armitron Ridgemont priced at $75 USD, while the Metro costs negligibly more at $80 USD. The natural competitors to these Armitron models are Casio’s various AQ-230 watches, which are slightly less expensive and offer a more elegant movement solution that integrates their analog and digital displays into a single module. However, the acrylic crystals and resin cases that Casio uses on its entry-level models inherently make them feel like bottom-dollar offerings, and the additional premium that accompanies Armitron’s Ridgemont and Metro watches gets you a solid stainless steel case with a mineral glass crystal. All things considered, we are still talking about watches that cost less than a pair of new sneakers, and the Ridgemont and Metro offer ample levels of retro-inspired fun at a categorically accessible price. For more information on Armitron watches, please visit the brand’s website.
