Watch

Introducing The AVI-8 X Capcom 1942 Flyboy Automatic LE Watches

July 24, 2023 By ausretrogamer

Pew pew pew, watch out for the new AVI-8 x Capcom 1942 Flyboys!

For anyone that has been following us for a while, you’ll know that we also love watches, especially the ones that reference classic arcade games!

Trawling through one of our fave watch sites, AVI-8, we noticed their latest watch, the AVI-8 X Capcom 1942 Flyboy Automatic Limited Edition (300 per colour variant) will be available this coming Friday, July 28 (US time). So mark your calendars or better yet, sign up to get notified as soon as these watches go live. We bet they won’t last long!

How awesome are these watches?! The fact that they are mechanical (instead of digital) and have a military aviation styling, they fit the 1942 arcade game aesthetic perfectly! Oh yeah, they are both automatics (self-winding), so no need to worry about batteries on these Flyboys. The nostalgia that these two timepieces induce is off the charts.

To say we are jonesing for the AVI-8 X Capcom 1942 Flyboy Automatic Limited Edition watches (we’d love both!), would be a gross understatement! C’mon July 28!

image source: AVI-8 Timepieces

Xeric NASA Voyager Automatic Watch – Review

February 20, 2023 By ausretrogamer

As a homage to the rich history & the farthest human-made object in space, the Xeric NASA Voyager Automatic 100ATM Diver, is a limited edition timepiece that reminds us of the value of exploration.

Ever since I could remember I’ve been fascinated by space and space travel. All I wanted to be was a NASA astronaut, but alas, that never eventuated.

My love of the cosmos hasn’t diminished over the years, if anything, it has gotten stronger, with streaming services making a myriad of astronomy based documentaries available on demand – which I consume with wild abandonment.

That unrestrained impulsiveness and enthusiasm for all things space related has now permeated other stuff I like, wristwatches! When I first gazed at the Xeric NASA Voyager Automatic watch on Kickstarter, I didn’t need much convincing to put in my pledge and snag one of only 1977 watches that pay homage to the rich history and the farthest human-made object in space, NASA’s Voyager 1 and 2, launched almost 46 years ago (in 1977). As Xeric offered (and still offers) nine variations of the NASA Voyager, all named after celestial bodies, my only problem was which one to choose?!

The lume is out of this solar system!

I must admit, I would have loved every singe variation of the watch, but alas, my lotto numbers never came up! I chose the ‘Ganymede’ NASA Voyager watch purely based on the fact that it represented the biggest moon in our solar system and that the metallic look reminded me of the Voyager vessel, complete with the awesome orange accents on the second, hour and minute hand – if you look closely, it does strike a resemblance to NASA’s interstellar traveler. Oh yeah, the NASA ‘worm’ logo on the dial and amazing lume (Super LumiNova) just top off a very robust diver’s watch. But wait, there is more! The caseback features an inlaid replica of “the Golden Record” cover which is found on the outside of the Voyager spacecraft, intended to communicate a story of our world to any intelligent life it could encounter in its journey – the detail is next level cool.

The watch is powered by the self-winding Seiko NH38 automatic movement. As you wear it, the rotor winds the mainspring, creating stored mechanical energy that powers the watch. The movement is housed in a robust stainless steel case complete with a tactile 120-click rotating bezel fit for divers. The watch may look hefty, but it honestly sit quite nice and comfortable on my 7″ wrist. Since this is a divers watch, it has a 1,000 metre depth rating, with an integrated helium escape valve built into the side casing, preventing a pressure differential that can occur during deep dives.

Caseback shot! The inlaid replica of “the Golden Record”, just like the one Voyager is carrying!

Wearing this watch is such a pleasure, thanks to the custom two-tone ribbed silicone strap – it just feels really good on the wrist without a sweat in sight. If you are clumsy, then rest assured that the 4mm thick sapphire glass (with anti-reflective coating) can withstand every day knocks.

The Xeric NASA Voyager Automatic is a special watch, not only due to its limited release (1977 pcs) but the fact that its unique design fuses and celebrates two things many of us love, space and watches. If you have the means and would like something different and something special, then I highly recommend you check out the Xeric NASA Voyager Automatic watch range.

Citizen Promaster Titanium BJ7115-85 Limited Edition ‘Brave Blossoms’ – Review

January 30, 2023 By ausretrogamer

This watch review first appeared on Zeitaku 贅沢 on January 25, 2023.

The limited edition diver’s watch by Citizen that celebrates the Japanese national rugby team and their national flower, the Sakura (cherry blossom)

Likes:

The complete package – love the striking look!
Super Titanium build makes this watch very comfortable to wear.

Dislikes:

The push pins and sleeves Citizen uses on their bracelets make it difficult to alter the length as they are easy to lose.
Tri-fold push-type clasp feels a tad flimsy, but I am nitpicking.

I have a few vices that can consume my time, and indeed my finances. One of those vices is watches. Yeah, I shouldn’t call watches a vice, but when you have more in your collection than there are days in the week, then yeah, they become a vice. I am sucker for limited edition watches, and I’m an even bigger sucker for good looking functional timepieces. Luckily for me, the Citizen Promaster Limited Edition ‘Brave Blossoms’ (Model BJ7115-85E) ticks both boxes & then some.

Celebrating Japan’s national rugby team, affectionately known as the Brave Blossoms, and the colours of the Sakura, Japan’s national flower (the cherry blossom), this Citizen watch oozes appeal from its impressive super titanium case and bracelet to its sapphire crystal glass, antimagnetic build and very useful GMT complication. The solar quartz movement powered by Citizen’s amazing Eco-Drive is coupled with the B877 caliber, which on full charge provides 6 months of continuous operation, even if left in the dark – another feather in this impressive watch’s hat.

If you are one to take your watch for a swim, then you won’t have to worry getting this Promaster wet, as it is rated at 20bar (200 metres water resistance) and has a screw-down crown for maximum water resistance. The gorgeous bezel rotates anti-clockwise with a satisfying 120 clicks.

The overall look of this JDM (Japanese Domestic Market) only Citizen is simply stunning. The super titanium makes the watch light on the wrist, and the 43mm wide case size with a thickness of 13.8mm is perfect for 6.75″ to 7″ wrists! The burned-out charcoal colour looks amazing when coupled with the rose gold bezel trim, screw-down crown and the outline on the lumed markers and hands. The colouring on the outer rim on the dial represents the colours of the Japanese national flower (the cherry blossom), which against the black face, is an absolute beautiful contrast. The cyclops over the date at 3 is under the sapphire crystal, which means there is no bulge protruding above it, thus making it easier to clean the crystal. The caseback is just as gorgeous, with the engraving of the Japanese rugby team’s cherry blossom symbol.

I still can’t believe this watch bypassed me when it was released in 2019. Being a limited edition means that you’d be hard pressed to find a new one at a stockist, so your best bet would be to hit the second-hand market online – but be prepared to pay over its original retail price. The Citizen Promaster BJ7115-85E is truly a lovely built watch which would give watches 10 times its price a run for their money. This watch is so good, that if you look closely, Breitling’s new Superocean Automatic range of watches have an uncanny resemblance to it.

If you have the means or are in need of a titanium watch, then I highly recommend you check this one out.

Special thanks to The Gnomonist for kindly supplying this Citizen watch for the review.

The Eerie Timex X Stranger Things Watch Co-Lab

June 28, 2022 By ausretrogamer

With the popularity reaching fever pitch for the latest season of Stranger Things (season 4), it was inevitable that major brands would jump on the partnership bandwagon.

The timing (pun intended) of the Timex X Stranger Things watch collaboration is perfect, just in time for the second part of season 4 kicking off this Friday, July 1 on Netflix.

It seems that Timex have captured the aesthetic of the show quite well with the 80s digital (and analogue on the Camper version) look and most importantly, a nod to the show with hidden features and alarm sounds that play the iconic Stranger Things melody – this perfectly completes the hair-raising sci-fi-horror-drama immersion.

We love the Timex X Stranger Things T80 digital watch with its stainless steel bracelet and overall silver tone. Oh yeah, it has the spine-chilling graphics on the watch face and a hidden Stranger Things logo when you activate the INDIGLO® backlight!

source: Timex x Stranger Things

Seiko 5 Sports STREET FIGHTER V Limited Edition Watches

September 22, 2020 By ausretrogamer

Yeah, you read that title right, one of the world’s great watch makers, SEIKO is releasing a number of limited edition watches under their Seiko 5 Sports range based on iconic Street Fighter V characters – Ryu, Ken, Chun-Li, Guile, Blanka and Zangief.

source: SEIKO Watch Global

So which Seiko Street Fighter watch will you choose*?

*we want them all!!!

source: Seiko Watch Corp.

May The 4th Be With You – Happy Star Wars Day

May 4, 2020 By ausretrogamer

It’s STAR WARS DAY peeps! May the 4th be with you!

As huge Star Wars fans, we can’t go past celebrating this day. Since Star Wars Day almost coincides with our birthday, it makes it that little bit extra special.

We are celebrating this day with our new cool and very special gift, a Star Wars – Han Solo Limited Edition Invicta watch. We love everything about this awesome watch, from Han encased in carbonite sharing the watch-face with his beloved Millennium Falcon, his heavy blaster on the second hand, to the leather strap depicting his attire, and of course, the Millennium Falcon side plate and the see-through automatic watch movement. Do you have any special Star Wars items celebrating this occasion?

From all of us at ausretrogamer, have yourselves a great Star Wars Day, and May The 4th Be With You!

The Amazing Homemade Pong Watch

May 5, 2015 By Ms. ausretrogamer

This amazing Pong watch is truly homemade. The creator, John Maushammer, even made the casing and fabricated the board – watch the video to see the project in progress.

Maushammer says: ‘I succeeded in compressing all the electronics for this watch in to a 10mm-thick case. The 96×64 OLED display runs continuously – unlike older LED watches, there is no need to press a button to see the time. Battery life is 25 hours, so recharging is done every night.‘

Video source: maushammer on YouTube

And to top it off – Maushammer has made a second version which plays Asteroids controlled with a tilt sensor: ‘Usually, the computer plays automatically & it keeps time. But, it also has a tilt-sensor so you can aim the ship by moving your wrist around.’

Video source: maushammer on YouTube

Before you ask, sadly it doesn’t look like either of these watches are available to buy – but we can hope. It’s lucky there are plenty of other retrogaming watches to keep us occupied in the meantime!

Image source: Pinterest

Image source: ausretrogamer

Source: maushammer on YouTube via Geekologie and Gizmodo

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Ms. ausretrogamer
Editor and Researcher at ausretrogamer – The Australian Retro Gamer E-Zine. Lover of science fiction, fashion, books, movies and TV. Player of games, old and new.

Follow Ms. ausretrogamer on Twitter

Review: Retro Arcade Watch

May 12, 2014 By ausretrogamer

Forget about wearable tech wristwatches like Sony’s Smartwatch or Samsung’s Galaxy Gear. If you want a cool retro timepiece on your wrist, then look no further than ThinkGeek’s Retro Arcade Watch.

Once we received the Retro Arcade Watch, we knew a review was in order to let you know what we thought of the watch and most importantly, if it is worth shelling out your hard earned cash. Read on.

Design & Function
The Retro Arcade wristwatch is chunky. Don’t let the chunkiness dissuade you though – it sits comfortably on the wrist with no nagging bits poking and prodding your arm or hand. This is no flimsy timepiece. Made from stainless steel, the case is made to withstand normal day to day punishment. The case (arcade cabinet) is adorned with Galactic Defense decals and also has a joystick and fire-button to add to the arcade machine realism. For pure awesomeness, when the fire-button is pressed, it lights up the hour indicators and marquee in red and also makes pew pew firing sound effects. To power all this awesomeness, the watch requires a CR2032 and SR626 button cell batteries, which are included.

ThinkGeek didn’t skimp on the band either, they partnered the cool case with a black leather band with white contrast stitching. The end result being a unique timepiece that is a throwback to the golden age of arcade gaming.

Display
In keeping with the arcade theme, the analog-style time is displayed with a combination of dials – space rocks for the hours and minutes, and a spaceship for the seconds hand. Did I hear you say Asteroids? Well, you said that, we didn’t. As mentioned previously, when the fire-button is pressed, the hour indicator dots are lit up in red, so if you find yourself in a dark alley and you need to know what time it is, just press the fire-button.

Coolness
It’s an arcade machine on your wrist that can tell the time and has awesome lighting and pew pew sound effects. How much cooler can it get? Well, if you could play Asteroids or Galaga on it, then I guess it would have been on the super side of cool. However, for under 50 smackers ($49.95USD) you get a watch that can tell the time and provide a coolness factor for free.

Verdict
If you are an Omega or Tag Heuer kind of watch wearer, then the Retro Arcade Wristwatch may not be for you. If you like to show-off your inner geekiness, then you cannot go wrong with this watch on your wrist. At the least, you will send tongues wagging!

Game Time: Watches

June 6, 2013 By ausretrogamer

For those of us born in the 1970’s, we have fond memories of Gunpei Yokoi’s wondrous Game & Watch series – from the various handhelds to the wrist watches that had mini versions of Nintendo games. The games on these watches were a pared down version of their console or handheld counterparts, but hey, who cared, they looked cool on your wrist.

Fast forward to the present, and these watches still attract attention. Their nostalgic value is not measured in currency, but in smiles from onlookers. The conversations that these watches generate are a sure fire way to meet interesting people, from retro gamers to the curious diner sitting at the next table.

If the Game & Watch wrist watches are too child like for you, then perhaps the Fossil ‘Atari Asteroids’ limited edition is more up your alley. These watches had a limited run (5000 to be exact) and are therefore getting harder to source. Unfortunately, the ‘Asteroids’ game is not playable on these watches, it merely serves as a demo for this contemporary time piece.

If you are into watches of the video gaming kind, then these time pieces are a cool way to tell the time and provide some gaming relief (excluding the Asteroids watch!) if you are stuck on the road without your handheld or smartphone.