Casio W-219h Review: a great, cheap, G-Shock Alternative for 2024

In recent years Casio has started pumping out cheap digital watches that, at least in terms of style, share a lot of DNA with their G-Shock premium digital watches. One of the most interesting model lines to follow this trend is the w-217h, w-218h, and w219h watches. The W-217h has long been my favorite cheap Casio, essentially an upgraded and larger version of the F-91w style. But when Casio followed it up with the W-218 and W219, rather than following the style of Casio’s small retro watches, they went looking for inspiration from their larger, much tougher G-Shock lines.Enter the W-219, a watch inspired by the G-Shock DW-6900, that is easily the most fun addition to the line up.

A $20 mini G-Shock??

First things first, even those this looks like a G-Shock, it’s not. It doesn’t have the shock resistance or water resistance of a G-shock, and the overall build quality is a step down step below what Casio offers in the G-Shock range. The W-219 also contains one of Casio’s most basic digital modules, featuring only a time/date display, a stop watch and a single alarm. If you’re looking for a watch with better specs and more features, Casio has plenty of similarly priced options that will beat this watch in those departments, but in terms of style and pure fun factor, the W-219 still makes a strong case for consideration.

Upgraded materials

Compared to previous generation digital watches like the W-217h, the W-219 Casio has a nicer feeling resin formulation with an appealing selection of modern color and strap options. I picked up this faded blue version with a negative display, but Casio also makes a version with a fabric and leather strap that resembles a field watch, as well other color options like cream or navy. The resin material used in the case and strap also feels a little more premium than what you used to get on Casio models in this price range. It has a smooth matte texture that’s just a little more supple and flexible than I expected. It’s clear step down from the resin used in Casio’s G-Shock models, but still a nice surprise.

Negative display comes at a cost

Casio sells the W-219 in either a negative or positive display option. I went with a negative display because the black background on the screen fits in seamlessly with with rest of the watch, giving it a sophisticated and premium look. The standard LCD screen with a greyish background looks much cheaper in my opinion. But negative displays are more difficult to read, and have a narrow viewing angle which means that if the angle is slightly off the screen turns completely black. It’s not impossible to read, but it can get tricky in low lighting circumstances. If you don’t want to bother with the hassle, and if you prefer legibility over style, the standard positive display is the way to go.

Thankfully the W-219h has a bright LCD backlight that helps a lot with legibility, both by making the numbers visible in the dark and lighting things up in dim lighting situations where the negative display might be difficult to read.

Rugged Design

While this watch is priced in the same league as Casio’s cheapest watches like the F-91w, the quality of the build and the resin used in the case and strap are much better than those older models. The strap is attached with springbars that have a little nub adding some stability. Even though it lacks the shock protection of a true G-Shock the rugged case style puts a lot of resin around the module and the bezel rises high above the plastic screen giving it some added protection from getting scratched. Overall this looks and feels way nicer than any watch in this price range should.

Supreme Comfort

Another area where the W-219 distinguishes itself from other Cheap Casio watches is it’s comfort on the wrist. Thanks to the soft resin material and the feather light weight of only 39 grams, the watch feels like you’re wearing nothing. Even though it’s a little thicker and bulkier than Casio’s smaller and slimmer digital watches like the W-217h or the F-91w, coming in with a thickness of 12mm, I still found myself forgetting that I had it on. Comfort is one of the biggest benefits to going with these smaller models.

Adequate Water Reistance

The W-219h has 50M of water resistance, which although higher than the 30M rating found on many other Casio’s in this price range, is still a step below the 100M rating found on many Casio watches that are around the same price such as the excellent Casio AE-1200. Still 50M means that the watch should be fine for short periods of swimming, making it an acceptable level of water resistance in a watch this cheap.

Conclusion

I own the G-Shock DW-6900 that this watch is inspired by. The W-219 is a a really fun, alternative that’s a lot easier to water due to it’s compact size. It really stands out from Casio’s other cheap digital watches that tend to have square shapes that are more reminiscent of Casio’s retro style like the F-91W. This one’s an easy recommendation for anyone who likes this style of watch.