Casio MT-G Atomic Solar G-Shock Stainless Steel Model# MTG-900DA-8V Wristwatch (circa 2003.) [I recently purchased this watch and am still amazed at what it can do – read about its features and capabilities in the following Atomic Solar Watch section.]
(MSRP = $200.00)

Early last century the “Railroad” watch was developed with precise timekeeping as a goal. The multi-jeweled mechanical movements with temperature and 5 position adjustments insured that the watch was an accurate timekeeper to within several seconds in a span of 24 hours. But, that “precision” in timekeeping is ancient compared to the Atomic and solar powered watches of today. Some can be measured to a millionth of a second!

• Eco-Drive Watch.

Early in the 2000s the Eco-Drive watches were revolutionary in the watch manufacturing industry because they promised to have the ability to use light from any available source to generate electrical power which means that the watch has a free and seemingly limitless supply of energy. The Citizen Eco-Drive watch has a technically advanced power generating and storage system. A solar conversion panel and energy cell are the power provider for these quartz watches. Citizen explains their solar panel in the Eco-Drive watches as using, "...microns thin disc of amorphus Silicon under the dial to convert light energy into electrical energy through the photovoltaic process. The electrical energy is then stored in a special energy storage cell."  The company also explains how the energy is stored within a Eco-Drive watch. "A special Eco-Drive energy storage cell is used. It is of such quality that the regular charge/discharge cycle affects it to such a small degree that it doesn't need to be replaced like an ordinary battery...as an added benefit to the environment, the energy cell contains none of the caustic chemicals used in ordinary batteries."  

• Atomic Solar Watch.

In 2003 Casio released its MT-G Atomic Solar G-Shock Stainless Steel Model# MTG-900DA-8V wristwatch [and of course I was the first kid on my block to own one] which features an array of capabilities that could not have been dreamed of when the “Railroad” watches of yesteryear were in their prime. This new digital Casio watch never needs battery replacement and automatically sets the time for you, even for Daylight Savings Time. The built-in antenna receives signals, automatically four times per day, from the official U.S. Atomic Clock in Fort Collins, Colorado.

It is not only sporty and efficient with an elegant touch of class (my personal opinion) it has advanced features such as:

• Shock Resistant
• 200 meter Water Resistant
• Timekeeping: Hour, minutes, seconds, a.m.(A)/p.m.(P), month, day, day of the week; 12/24 hour formats; Full Auto-calendar pre-programmed from the year 2000 to 2099; Other: Home city code (can be assigned one of 34 city codes); Daylight Saving Time/Standard Time.
• Time Calibration Signal Reception: Auto Receive (four times per day, at 2:00 AM, 3:00 AM, 4:00 AM, and 5:00 AM); Manual Receive; Last Signal screen.
• Receivable Time Calibration Signals: Fort Collins, Colorado (Call Sign: WWVB, Frequency: 60kHz.)
• World Time: 30 cities (29 time zones); Other: Standard Time/Daylight Saving Time, Home Time (hour, minutes, a.m.(A)/p.m(P), and Standard Time/Daylight Saving Time.
• Time Recorder: Memory for 30 records, each containing hour, minutes, seconds, a.m.(A)/p.m.(P), and Standard Time/Daylight Saving Time.
• Alarm: Four one-time alarms, one snooze alarm; Hourly Time Signal
• Stopwatch: 1/100 of a second; Measuring modes: Elapsed time, split time, two finishes.
• Other: Solar-powered (no battery replacement required); Backlight (electro-luminescent panel); Auto Light Switch (Full Auto EL light operates only in the dark); Battery power indicator; Power Saving function, Mineral glass; Stainless Steel, One-touch 3-fold buckles; Push button release.

• Wrist Camera Watch.

The Casio WQV10D-2 Color Wrist Camera Watch
(MSRP = $329.99)

The technical advances of the 2000s continue to pour out of the factories. How about a wrist camera watch! Casio recently introduced several new wrist camera watches that can transfer images to a PC in full color. Here is what Casio has to say about two of their new wrist camera watches, “The new WQV3D-8BNDL (metal band) and the WQV3-1BNDL (resin band). A new 25,344-pixel color CMOS sensor makes it possible to capture up to 80 full digital images that can be transferred to a computer, displayed in full color, or e-mailed to friends or family on the web.  The Casio Wrist Camera Watches packing a CMOS monochrome image sensor into a super compact and lightweight configuration. Its ability to snap monochrome digital images any place and anytime, made the Wrist Camera watch a popular hit the world over. Since then, there has been a demand for a new version capable of recording images in color.  A built-in 16-grayscale monochrome LCD panel acts as both the viewfinder and an on-the-spot playback monitor. Enough memory capacity is provided to store up to 80 images and infrared data communication. These Wrist Camera watches also feature 5 alarms which can be set up to display a specific digital image when each alarm time is reached. Images can be transferred to a computer and viewed by using the Wrist Camera internal software which enables the image to be viewed in 16.77 million colors on your PC. A library of images can be stored onto your desktop, transferred back to a Wrist Camera, or e-mailed to friends.”   

• Barometer, Thermometer and Altimeter Watch.

The Casio PAT70B-3AV Pathfinder
(MSRP = $250.00)

Here is a watch that can not only keep accurate time but it has a built in barometer, thermometer and altimeter. 

Barometer
The Barometer takes barometric pressure readings every 2 hours and stores up to 10 sets of readings with the altitude and temperature in memory.

Thermometer
The Thermometer checks the temperature once every 5 minutes.

Altimeter
The Altimeter takes altitude readings every 2 minutes, displays them and stores them in memory.

Auto Light Switch
With the Auto Light Switch on, simply tilting your wrist 40 Degrees toward you from the horizontal position illuminates the EL backlight for about 2 seconds for easy viewing of the display in low-light conditions.

• Global Positioning System (GPS) Watch.

The Timex Ironman Triathlon Model 54021
(MSRP = $225.00)

GPS watches utilize GPS technology that can receive signals from many  GPS satellites to calculate and display the latitude, longitude and altitude of your current position. Here is a new watch from Timex that utilizes the GPS technology to calculate the speed and distance traveled.

• A workout companion you should never be without--featuring contemporary Ironman* Triathlon(R) styling
• GPS transceiver calculates speed and distance data and transmits to watch with synchronized Digital FM Signal for display.
• GPS transceiver includes strap to wear unit on the upper arm and belt clip GPS system automatically synchronizes time of day with GMT ensuring accuracy
• 100 lap memory recall
• Average speed or pace, maximum speed or best pace, and accumulated distance, continuous odometer, metric or English units, target distance alarms, target speed alarms
• Other features include dual time zones, daily and weekend alarm, INDIGLO night-light, NIGHT-MODE feature and water resistance to 50 meters
• Blue with black accents
• Blue FAST WRAP strap
• Unique features
  This model has a 100-lap memory and is styled slightly different from the 50-lap. It features Target Speed and Distance Alarms to allow you to individualize your performance. An alarm will notify you when you reach preset upper and lower limits for either speed or distance.

Other recent developments include thermal powered, data link USB, internet messenger, radio controlled and many more technologies. 

I am in the process of researching the latest and greatest in watch making technology and I’ll be updating this page with more information very soon…and frequently...