Casio

Casio Women's Watch LWQ120DA-1AV

• Case Diameter - 33 MM

Product Description

Stainless Steel Case and Bracelet Date Window at the 4 o'clock position Luminous Hands Water Resistant to 50 Meters Accuracy at Normal Temperature: +/-20 Seconds/Month Without Atomic Signal Calibration Timekeeping: Hours, Minutes, Seconds, Date Calendar: Full Auto-Calendar Preprogrammed to the Year 2099 Home Time Zone can be set from one of 4 US Time Zones Time Calibration Signal Reception: Auto Receive up to 6 Times a Day; Manual Receive; Receive Result Mode Receivable Time Calibration Signal: Fort Collins, Colorado Power Saving Function Solar Powered Approximate Battery Operating Time: 5 Months with Full Charge under Normal Conditions Stainless Steel Bracelet Features a Double Push Button Release Fold Over Clasp 33mm Case Width (Approximately 1 5/16") 10mm Case Thickness (Approximately 3/8")

Product Details

• ASIN: B0010KDPL0
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #30,693 in Watches (See Top 100 in Watches)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars No-nonsense and practically the only solar/atomic in a womens' size, August 6, 2009

By 

Julian Perpetua - See all my reviews

This review is from: Casio Women's Watch LWQ120DA-1AV (Watch)

For some reason, watch manufacturers don't seem to like to offer "gadgety" watches for women, or perhaps they don't want to have to squeeze things into small cases. So to find a solar / atomic womens' watch at all is something to notice. I wanted a solar (or other non-replacement battery powered) watch with a perpetual calendar, an analog display with a second hand (annoying how they are becoming so rare!), and ideally, atomic capability. And it had to look fairly nice, not look like plastic, and be suitable for a variety of situations and outfits. This watch combines all those things.

The face has clearly marked increments, four shiny numerals, and is a sort of deep brownish eggplant color. You can sort of see 6 "pie slices" under the dial which seems to be the divisions of the solar cell. It doesn't detract from the appearance. I've uploaded a customer photo, but it actually looks more attractive in person. There are also versions in steel/white face and gold tone. The band is not the most attractive ever, but it isn't too busy, either, and it has a pleasant combination of brushed and polished surfaces. The links are short enough and flexible enough to fit small wrists, and practically all of the links are removable. I have a tiny wrist of just a little more than 5 inches, and I was able to resize this to my satisfaction, whereas many metal-band watches won't even bend that far. The clasp is a fold-over deployment clasp with two buttons.

The main issue with this watch would be size and weight. It's not outrageous; it's perhaps a bit smaller than what one might expect with a women's automatic (the mechanical kind) in terms of case size and thickness. I'm a barely 5 ft petite, and it looks fine on me. It did take a few days to get used to the weight, though, which I can't find listed. I'd estimate that it weighs something like 2 or more dollars in quarters.

Before you buy: Be aware that the radio reception may be harder to get than you realize, so find a seller with a reasonable return policy. If your windows face the wrong way or recessed in some way, it could take some work to get reception. Definitely something to test out before you decide to keep the watch. I live in Chicago, and I can't get reception in my apartment except at one point halfway up my window, so I've had to stick a hook to the side of the window frame where I hang my watch each night. You can find out by setting the watch to "ready" (receiving) state and moving it around slowly until you see the second hand swing to "work" position. The watch makes several attempts each night to sync, and these times cannot be changed. So if you have no reception indoors at night, you may have to sync manually outdoors - and that does not work very well if you are trying to walk at the same time because the watch must remain more or less stationary. So make sure you work out a satisfactory calibration spot/schedule that you can live with when you first receive your watch.

The hands do start moving when you open up the box, but that is not syncing; that is simply the watch coming out of "sleep" state. Once it does calibrate, though, it really is fantastic to know that you have the correct time down to the second and won't miss the train because your watch was slow. Great fun to watch it ticking in sync with internet clocks. As far as I know, once the watch is calibrated, the calendar will be automatic (perpetual), i.e. no more having to manually advance the date in months like February or leap years. Personally, I find non-perpetual calendars on watches kind of pointless if I have to actually remember the date to reset it in the first place.

Also, you may have to manually align the hands when you first get the watch to calibrate. Mine was one minute behind at first. The manual was fairly clear on how to fix that. This is not a watch you can operate without at least glancing through the manual. Read that manual and don't lose it!

Although this wasn't a dealbreaker for me, I was a little disappointed that this watch didn't offer more of the functions that men's watches do given the size of the thing. This model can only be set to North American time zones and does not receive European or Japanese signals - frustrating since I spend a decent amount of time in Asia. You can't specify your own GMT differential. There is no backlight, although the two main hands are glow-in-the-dark. Water resistance is a respectable but not impressive 50M. Casio does make a ladies' atomic with reception in Asia and more functions and time zones, backlight, day-date, stopwatch, and ana-digi display(LWA120LA), but it runs on regular battery instead, and ultimately, I didn't want to deal with changing batteries.

All in all, this is a highly practical watch at a practical price. It's not my dream watch yet and borders on clunky, but it has most of the things I want in a watch and is about as close as I could get to "man-watch" functions in a ladies' size case. I had been wanting to buy the Citizen ladies' Perpetual Calendar Eco-Drive because it was a more comfortable size, but I would have had to pay twice the amount and give up on radio control.

Finally: some sellers offer the original manufacturer's warranty, some may not. If it matters to you, check or ask.

EDIT 1/9/2012: Be careful about dropping this thing: I dropped it, the back came off, and even though I was able to snap it back, the calendar is now messed up. Will update on Casio's customer service if I can find time to send it in for repair.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice watch, just keep some things in mind., December 13, 2008

By 

C. Gardner (Michigan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Casio Women's Watch LWQ120DA-1AV (Watch)

Due to the rarity of solar atomic watches for women, it's difficult to give anything but 5 stars to one when you actually find it. The watch is nicely built and started to set itself the second I pulled it out of the box. It's very reassuring to know that the time and date will always be exact.

I have a similar watch myself (this one is a gift), and at first I was skeptical as to its accuracy and durability. I pulled this ladies watch out and held it next to mine as it made its update to match the time. The second hands moved exactly in synchronization. The time and date are exact to the second. I was also hesitant about durability. I am unable to confirm for this particular watch, but as I stated before, I do own the men's equivalent of this brand. I have dropped it numerous times and accidentally banged it against walls. I've even dropped it in snow once in the year I've owned it. It still works perfectly down to the second.

One thing to realize about atomic solar watches is that they are not small in size. The necessary components for both styles of these watches make them pretty big. The face is nearly one and a half inches across and just under a half an inch deep (as it says in the specifications). It is not so big that I recommend avoiding it, but if you are looking for a small dainty watch, this should not be your choice.

My only other real complaint about the watch is that the images on Amazon illustrate the face as a deep black. In fact, the face is a deep, dark purple with an oily sheen. The watch is wrapped beneath a Christmas tree now, but I will try to get a photo posted soon to reflect this.

Still, as I said before, the lack of choices in this type of product make it a great find. I recommend this watch for ladies who want to forget about watch batteries and keep the correct time and date throughout the year.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I love it, June 1, 2009

By 

Deb Hornbacher (Pagosa Springs, CO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Casio Women's Watch LWQ120DA-1AV (Watch)

Great watch! Was looking for something that wasn't going to stop working in 5 months, easy to read, and not difficult to maintain. As an RN I wanted something easy to see, in all types of lighting. The dark background and light numbers and larger numbers make this really enjoyable to have. It stands up to the constant hand washing and I never have to worry about my battery running out and finding someplace that will change it. Only thing I wish it had was some way of having back light for use in a dark room-but at this point that hasn't been enough of an issue to not encourage others to purchase it. I'm small, 5ft and I do not find it too large for my wrist or even too heavy. Excellent watch and worth the money.