Customer Reviews

Casio Men's DBC150-1 Databank Digital Watch

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I've had a similar Casio model for years (Databank 150), and after it finally broke down, I purchased this one. It is solid as a rock.

PROS
The features are un-rivaled by any other watch: I do standard calculations anywhere with the calculator function, and never have to flip through the phonebook while I'm looking for the numbers of various business contacts. On top of this, I'm never late for anything anymore, because of the brilliant schedule function. Not to mention this watch has all the normal features of a standard digital watch.

**BIG BONUS: The "light" button, which also puts the alarm to sleep, is HUGE and EXTREMELY easy to press! It makes it easy to light the watch up and stop the alarm, especially in dark conditions.**

CONS
Well, there are a few problems. The buttons are a little to small. I occasionally make a mistake when entering in a phone number or a calculation on the calculator.

OVERVIEW

PROS
-Calculator
-Telephone Address Book
-Scheduler
-Memo/Note Pad
-BIG Light Button
-All the other standard digital watch functions (stopwatch, alarm, etc...)
-Easy to use
-Not too big, fits nicely on wrist

CONS
-Buttons slightly too small - still can enter in data flawlessly 85% of the time.

This watch is about the cheapest high-utility watch available. I bought one of the first Databank watches in 1984 and it lasted 13 or 14 years (yes, I'm an ultrageek) then a broken key forced me to update to the DBC-150. Except that the band breaks every 1-2 years from drying out (replace with Timex TX22G3 band ~$8), I can't recommend a better watch.

-Main clock
-stopwatch to 23h59m
-countdown timer from up to 23h59m w/ autorepeat function
-4-function calculator with single memory
-150 memory memo each with 8 alphanumeric + 12 numeric per memory (a little tedious to create a memo but no more than any other watch)
-one general alarm
-alarmed scheduler (12 alphanumberic event name, trigger date/time) with memory shared with memory (e.g. if you have 50 memos, you can have 100 scheduled titled alarms)
-26 zone world-time with dual-display; can be set independent of the main clock (dual display of main clock and world-time - one look while traveling keeps you time oriented)
-illuminator total back-light (doubles as a flashlight in extreme darkness)

Beware that this watch takes a 22mm replacement band but not all 22mm bands will work - the axle cowling of the watch body allows only a band with thin axle loops which are uncommon with most replacement sport bands. Department stores tends to be sold out so if you want to buy mail-order, be sure to get a Timex TX22G3 ($8) or the DB series black-resin band from Casio (usually $15-$25).

I have had this unit's previous model, the DBC-150, for about 5 years. I am not easy on watches, this watch has been worn swimming, biking, construction work, I now build cabinetry and use the calculator all the time for quick calculations. If I'm with a customer and they give me a phone # when my laptop isn't turned on, I simply punch 2 buttons then enter in the phone # for later viewing, if I want to make multiple scedules and be reminded at a certian time, no problem. For the money, I haven't found a better watch for me. I will tell you that I don't think it looks nice enough to wear to church, I wear a less functional but nicer looking watch for that!

I've used these watches for 10+ years (the current one for at least 5 years) and have never had a problem with one other than that the watch band tends to rip after a few years and it can be hard to find one that fits it. I haven't had a problem getting the battery replaced--my current watch had the battery changed two years ago with no problems and no data lost. Entering data is easy, the numbers haven't worn off, and the backlight (and everything else) still works great. These watches are very convenient for keeping a schedule (like remembering lunch meetings or mom's birthday) and for doing quick math on the run. Great watch!

I have been using the data bank series for now over 10 years. One thing that Casion is stuck up with is the number of characters that you can enter for a Name or for an appointment. Its quite difficult to enter the names within a limit of 8 characters considering the fact that many people have the same name and most of them have more than one number. It would be convenient if they can allow for more characters. Secondly one should not buy this watch in metallic. The metal thing comes off with the use and can cause scratches. However, it is a very nice watch to have in which one can store 150 telememos. Its very light weight.

I very muck like this watch but have had to buy a new on about every year. the problem, the case is to weak of a material, the pins pulls through it over time. so you cannot wear it any more. it becomes a really good pocket watch. i have owned about 12 of these, drawer full of em. doesnt matter if you get the mettal badn or plastic. same thing happens. I think it is a on purpose flaw with the watch to get you to but agian.

From a utilitarian standpoint this is a great product. Why spend big $ on a watch that only tells time. This product give date, and time, has two alarms, has a scheduler, has a stop watch, a timer, a second time zone mode, a calculator, and 150 places to store names and phone numbers. All for less than $75. You can keep your fashion statements and glitz. Practical is the way to go. And this is practical with a capitol "C". This is the third watch of this type and brand that I have had in the last 20 some years (my previous watch is still running but a little cranky at times). So my investment is certainly very reasonable considering I use it every day, day in and day out.

I bought this watch for the first time in Chinatown NYC in 1994. Because I scratch it after a few years (3 or 4 in average), I replace it everynow and then.
I got my last one in downtown Miami for $50 last summer.

It features, 150 phones/schedules, calculator, alarm, time zones, timer, stop watch.. nice display, nice touch. And most important, it has the iluminator buttom which displays a nice blue neon light around the plastic case.

You'll learn how to use in just a minute.

I tried this watch as an alternative to the DB150's that I have used for years. I wanted the large database for phone numbers and thought the DBC150 would meet my needs although I didn't want the calculator. It didn't meet my needs because the display was too small which made the numbers very hard to read. I returned this and tried the EDB610 which has a goofy blue display that makes the info hard to read. I returned that and dropped back to the DB-36 which has less storage but at least I can read the data.
DB-150 had a great display and was easy to read. Bummer that they've been discontinued.

I have used calculator watches since I bought my first one in 1986. And I have now owned 3 of these. This is the good old standard, durable and functional and well-performing. There are "better" models that I have had which sacrifice usability for larger screen space, but they are so convoluted that you have to read a 700 page manual in order to learn how to use it. By contrast, this one is mostly straight-forward, with only a few special features needing a manual or experimentation to be learned.

My last watch was the "superior" e-Data Bank, which was effectually useless, IMHO. When the watch started giving me strange, intermittent power issues, I gladly used the excuse to buy another one of these.

One of these watches will last you a few years, until you have beaten it to heck and it finally starts to fall apart from wear and tear. The most common issue is scratching the crystal face from brushing your hand against a wall. But then, that will happen to any watch.

The one thing that will not last very long on this watch is the band. I will go through about 8 wristbands throughout the life of this watch. But the occasional band and replacing batteries once or twice a year is fine, considering this watch has a typical life for me of about 4 to 5 years.

I have had the earlier models with the tiny white light illuminating the face, but the electroluminescent ("EL") light on this is superb. It puts out so much light, in fact, that I sometimes use it as an impromptu flashlight in the dark of night. Do that a few hundred times, and there goes the battery. ;-)

I also prefer this watch because of its number of buttons. The "more advanced" (notice I keep using quotation marks when referring to the other piece of useless technology) watch will use one fewer row of buttons, so that simple operations require more button presses, and it becomes ridiculous to do simple things like calculating the mpg for the latest fill-up on my car. Heck, it didn't even have a memory function like this one does!

I do have to say that I would love to see Casio build the ultimate watch, based off of this platform. They have had MP3 player watches and still have a few versions of TV remote controls on watches, but they of course sacrifice calculator functionality to do so. Shame. I would like to see even an advanced version of this watch, with larger memory pages, allowing more text and including (more usable) e-mail addresses, for instance, which the e-Data Bank claimed to be able to do (but I still couldn't get it after months of experimenting, and the manual was ridiculous).

My first calculator watch had a Space Invaders-style game on it, as well as a tone generator, so that you could play music by pressing keys on the keypad. Thinking of this and with the advances in other electronics, I keep thinking this watch should be capable of more bells and whistles, but of all the calculator watches out there today, this is the most useful and usable.

And in case I haven't been clear on the fact, using the functions on this watch are mostly intuitive. You don't have to do funky key presses to get certain things to work. And the two-week calendar display of upcoming events is very nice. All the info you need is right there when you look at it. And so on...

Do not waste your money on any other version of this or any other watch. This is the one! :-) Enjoy!