So I decided to finally figure out whether that Timex Easy Reader Indiglo I keep seeing ads for is actually worth the hype. Grabbed mine off the shelf along with three other watches – my old Casio digital, a cheap Walmart analog piece, and this fancy solar-powered Citizen my brother gave me last Christmas.
The Nighttime Test
First thing I did was wait till midnight and shut all the lights. That Casio? Lit right up bright green like always. The Walmart watch just sat there useless in the dark. The Citizen has this tiny dim glow – better than nothing I guess. But the Timex? Pressed that side button and BAM – whole damn dial lit up blue like a mini flashlight. Almost blinded myself honestly. Round one goes to Timex.
Daily Beating
Wore each watch for a full work week doing my regular stuff:
- Working on the car with grease everywhere
- Washing dishes at the sink
- That time I dropped the Citizen on concrete
The Casio’s plastic held up fine like always. Walmart watch fogged up on day two. Citizen got a nasty scratch but kept ticking. Timex though? That little thing took grease splatters, hot water, couple accidental smacks against the door frame. Wiped it clean with my shirt and looked brand new. Crazy durable for something this cheap.
The Numbers Game
Had my kid do a speed test with me. Held each watch at arm’s length and timed how fast she could read it:
- Fancy Citizen: 3.7 seconds (tiny fancy numbers)
- Casio: 1.2 seconds (digital wins here)
- Walmart watch: 5 seconds (so blurry!)
- Timex: 1.8 seconds (big bold numbers like grandma’s clock)
Surprised me how quick that Easy Reader was to read. And way better than the Citizen for my tired eyes.
Final Showdown
Looked at all the important stuff side by side:
- Price: Timex ($45) destroyed that overpriced Citizen ($250)
- Visibility: Timex’s indiglo blew everything else away
- Durability: Casio tied with Timex here, but the Walmart piece might as well be made of paper
- Comfort: All okay except the Citizen’s heavy weight pulling my sleeve down all day
Kept coming back to the Timex. Is it perfect? Hell no. That loud ticking drives me nuts on quiet nights. But for under fifty bucks? Lasts years, survives abuse, tells time clearer than anything in daylight or dark. Honestly thought the expensive watch would win but nope – my money’s on that little Timex every day now. Case closed.
