I am currently entering my last two weeks of being an undergraduate student at Carnegie Mellon University. Knowing that the time between graduation and work is the last uninhibited vacation for a long while, I am planning a Eurotrip to Greece and Italy with a friend from highschool. Among the travel plans, i needed to get a watch (i do not want to lose my pocket watch in europe). Knowing all I need is a cheap digital watch with an alarm, my father purchases and sends me a watch that he found. He sends me the Casio F91. Now I am sure the people who know that model by name are numbered, so here is a pretty picture.
After opening the package these were the thoughts that went through my mind:
"wow, i havent seen this watch model in years"
"i remember the band snapping off"
"its sort of the 'my first real watch' watch for young children"
In short, I remembered having this exact watch when younger. When putting it on, I felt how light and inexpensive it was. Then, i went to navigate the three buttons on the unit. In less than a minute, I had exhausted every function of the unit. This is said in respect, not insult to the device. The fact that a system I have not experienced in well over a decade comes back so naturally is an achievement of the designers. Granted the watch only has three buttons - but I have seen many systems that take simplicity of form for granted in an ever confusing hierarchy of actions. The ease of use of the watch is an impressive feat for any designer, especially considering this watch was probably designed well before interaction methods and usability had the buzz worhtyness they do today.
So in the end, this is just a tip of the hat to the designers and engineers of the Casio F91 digital watch. A beginner watch no doubt, its interface shows simplicity and function very well.
