Review: Casio Smart Outdoor Watch WSD-F10 - The possibilities of smart outdoor watches that users of PRO TREK have felt -

I was blessed with the opportunity to try out Casio's smart outdoor watch WSD-F10 (and digital camera EX-FR100), which was newly released in spring 2016. This time I was told that you can write about everything you like, so I would like to review what I felt after using it for about a month.

Incidentally, I have actually started using what is called outdoor watches for the past five years. I liked climbing streams, so I was common knowledge to use a topographic map of 25,000, and I liked the good old way of staring at a compass while looking at the characteristics of the topography. Casio PRO TREK is essential wherever you go Of course, you won't die without it, but once you get used to it, you can't let it go. Not only is it safe, but it's also fun to see the accumulation of the trajectories that have been traced to the finish line, and now I can check my altimeter whenever I have free time. However, on the other hand, it's not that they're using more complex functions, so this time, I've been looking forward to seeing what smart outdoor watches can change and how much they can change when climbing mountains, so let's take a look.

What can you do?

First, we will roughly check what the watch is capable of. As you can see from its rugged appearance, the WSD-F10 is equipped with a number of features and features designed to be useful in outdoor scenes, and in that sense it is a wristwatch that can do almost the same as an outdoor watch like the PRO TREK. In fact, aside from environmental performance and solar charging, everything you can do with the PRO TREK, which I currently use, is available in the same way (table below).

Main features that can be achieved by the WSD-F10 alone

item	WSD-F10	[Reference] PRO TREK (PAW-2000T-7)
Basic clock functions	◯	◯
compass	◯	◯
Atmospheric pressure	◯	◯
Altimeter	◯	◯
Switching the watch face*	◯	×
Flash light	◯	×

Furthermore, in the sense that this watch is a wearable device equipped with Android Wear OS, when used in conjunction with a smartphone, like the Apple Watch, it allows for advanced communication functions that were not possible with conventional wristwatches. However, on the other hand, this watch cannot fully demonstrate its appeal when it is not connected to a smartphone. Also , unlike GPS-equipped sports watches such as Garmin and SUUNTO

Main features that can only be done when connected to a smartphone

item	WSD-F10	[Reference] PRO TREK (PAW-2000T-7)
Location information capture using smartphone GPS	◯	×
Sunrise Sunset Time	◯	◯
Tide Graph	◯	×
Activity graph (step count, calories burned)	◯	×
Change settings on your smartphone*	◯	×
Cooperation with the digital camera "EXILIM EX-FR100"*	◯	×
Audio operation	◯	×
Using various Android Wear compatible apps*	◯	×

Items marked with (※) in the table are functions that cannot be used or are subject to restrictions when linking to an iPhone. Considering the price (75,600 yen), it is best to consider that it is essential to use it on an Android smartphone if you fully enjoy the value of this watch.

I actually tried using it in the mountains - To be honest, how does it compare to PRO TREK? ~

Preparation for use

To use the WSD-F10, first you need to install the Android Wear app on the smartphone you want to connect to, and then pair the smartphone with the watch via Bluetooth connection.

Although I'm used to working on a few minutes, there's nothing more than a troublesome thing, such as the unpleasant feeling of waiting with excitement to follow detailed, complicated instructions and whether the pairing will work out. It's one of the things I wish it would disappear if possible, but fortunately, this time the pairing was completed easily, and all of the apps on my smartphone that can be operated on a watch were installed.

Hardware

Appearance, size, buttons, etc.

I think there are different preferences when it comes to design and coloring, but personally, the beautiful form and mechanical texture that are unique to a brand that has a proven track record in outdoor watches are quite impressive. The weight when worn is light, not to worry about its appearance. Furthermore, the main unit, which has passed the US military MIL standard, is clearly sturdy. The joint between the elastic band and the main body is also sturdy, so it won't tremble even if you pull it hard. However, the operating temperature range is 0 to 40°C, so careful use is required in hard winter mountains.

Regarding the body size, which is approximately 61.7mm long x 56.4mm long, you might think it would be "sturdy" if it were just a wristwatch. However, as you use it, you start to think that the amount of information displayed is the right size, so you won't be too concerned about it.

What's more, people who don't usually wear watches were more curious about the 15.7mm thickness (photo below). In the outdoors, I often take off my backpack and jacket while I'm at work, so I was concerned about the snags on my sleeves every time, which was a small stress that I hadn't seen before with PRO TREK. In the first place, it may not be bothersome when wearing it over sleeves, but in the summer, it is often worn directly on the skin, so although it is a matter of personal accustoms and individual differences, it cannot be enough to reduce stress.

The simplicity is that there are only three buttons on the right side of the main unit (photo below). Even if you can handle detailed operations with the touch panel LCD for an outdoor watch, it should not undermine the simple and safe operation in any situation. It's difficult to understand even if you only use buttons, and it's difficult to use even if you use touch panels. In that sense, I think the balance between simplicity and ease of use is exquisite, with a large size and design that makes it easy to press over gloves.

The "TOOL" button on the side allows you to access a variety of instruments, including altitude and atmospheric pressure. Additionally, the "APP" button allows you to freely set the apps to be launched yourself, and the apps you set with one button will be launched quickly.

Magnetic charging terminal

To charge, a dedicated magnetic cable is used to connect the watch. This cable is weak to left and right force, and can easily be removed even when charging (photo below). It's fine to leave it alone on a desk on a daily basis, but it's quite difficult to charge inside a tent or inside a backpack, so be careful.

Reliable LCD screen display

The big selling point of this device is the two-layer display of a 1.32-inch color TFT LCD (320 x 300 pixels) and a monochrome LCD, which are also used as touch panels. In addition to the regular full-color LCD display, the manufacturer's aim is to combine the ease of viewing and ease of use of apps with ease of viewing and ease of use as a wristwatch by switching display modes on a monochrome LCD screen that improves visibility and reduces power consumption.

In fact, since various apps are running outdoors, it doesn't usually feel like the monochrome display is appreciated, but once the charge was about to run out, it automatically switched to monochrome LCD mode and the time was always displayed. Reliability in these emergencies is a rating that is not found in existing smartwatches.

Choose your watch face according to your preference

Photo: Quoted from the official product page

Unlike previous outdoor watches, one of the major attractions of smart outdoor watches is that you can choose from a variety of watch faces, including design and coloring, and display content. You can choose from a total of around 20 designs, from classic analog clocks to mechanical designs like G-SHOCK, unique designs with graphs of changes in altitude and atmospheric pressure in the background, and even designs that show both your hometown and your travel destination time.

For example, I use the face of an analog clock in my daily life, and the face of a digital clock in which the altitude, barometer and pedometer are displayed in-dials when climbing, so I customize the screen to suit the situation I use. These functions were commonplace on PCs, mobile phones and smartphones. It's finally possible to use these features as a smartwatch, and I can see that convenience has been significantly improved. If you're greedy, I hope that more and more face variations will be added in the future. You can also customize the coloring and the meter displayed using the CASIO MOMENT SETTER+ smartphone app.

Software (Applications)

Various meters - Excellent access, easy to read and use

From here, we'll talk about the essential ease of use in the field. Even if you don't have any particular settings, you can check the compass, altimeter, barometer, sunrise sunset, tide graph, and activity graph in real time with just a "TOOL button." These displays are graphical and highly visible, making them more reliably easier to use than PRO TREK's monochrome LCD displays. Furthermore, this also improves ease of use, allowing you to access trend graphs and various settings simply by swiping the screen. In traditional outdoor watches, all the operations had to be done with buttons, making it seem like they'd go crazy every time, but I really like the UI, which made it surprisingly easy.

Photo: Quoted from the official product page

But there are a few things that bother me. It may be just my case, but for some reason, when measuring directions, the message "Please perform magnetization correction" is quite common. It was a hassle to have to adjust by swinging and turning my arms back and forth each time. I'm sure there have already been many things to say, but it's a shame that the heart rate measurements that Apple Watch and other GPS sports watches are not available, so I look forward to that in the future.

Activity app - Looking forward to further evolution of standard features in the future -

One of the most distinctive features of smartwatches is the Casio genuine activity app (available only on Android smartphones). You can quickly access information optimized for three activities: mountain climbing, trekking, cycling, and fishing on one screen, and it also measures the progress of your goals to your set goals. This time I've only tried mountain climbing (trekking), so I'll review it based on that, but when you start the app, you'll see an altitude difference per hour, current time, target altitude, remaining altitude up to that point (set the target altitude in advance), and measurement time.

The app's aim is interesting as a mechanism to increase motivation and maintain motivation, but personally I'm a bit disappointing that the climbing goal can only be set at elevation. The goals for trekking are not necessarily peaks, and the styles vary from person to person. I would like to see some ideas such as being able to customize goal settings and display content.

However, there is no doubt that the system that allows you to experience a sense of accomplishment that was not present in the PRO TREK era will be essential for future outdoor watches, so in addition to this evolution, it is not greedy to expect the minimum history management functions that modern fitness apps have, such as storing the history of your actions up to the goal, allowing you to look back on them later, as it is supposed to be linked to your smartphone.

CASIO MOMENT SETTER+ - It's fun to be able to understand your own activities and changes in your surroundings! ~

MOMENT SETTER+ has an interesting feature that works in conjunction with the Activity App. This is a service where the watch notifies you as soon as you meet the various conditions you set, and I discovered unexpected convenience and fun that I had never noticed before. Of course, it's not that PRO TREK couldn't do it. However, the most important thing is that this simple, clear UI allows you to notice sophisticated and complex changes in situations in a timely manner.

By launching the MOMENT SETTER+ app installed on your smartphone, you can set notification timings from various conditions such as the image above. Personally, I enjoy setting the altitude graph every time the altitude exceeds 100m to check the progress of the journey, and notifying me of the scheduled time an hour before sunrise or sunset, so that I don't miss out on a shutter chance. There are also various other settings available: distance traveled, number of steps, calories burned, and time, but if I do too much, I'll end up not having any problems, so I ended up setting a moderate number.

One disappointing thing is that this setting can only be set by notifications that belong to the same category as the activity you selected in the Activity app. I would like to set it as a notification when the pressure drops by 1hPa or more in one hour in case of a thunderstorm, but I would like to see something about it being unfortunate that this notification belongs to the "phishing" category, so it cannot be set while measuring mountain climbing. In the first place, I think it would be better to be able to use this notification itself independently of the activity app and freely.

Collaboration with the FR-100 digital camera - A new shooting experience perfect for the outdoors

Another unique feature of Casio is that it works with the EX-FR100, a separate digital camera that is ideal for outdoor use. For a detailed explanation of the EX-FR100 itself this product page , and if we could simply describe the characteristics of this camera, it would be "a shock-resistant, waterproof, dust-resistant, and low-temperature-resistant outdoor recorder that allows you to take photos as you want in any situation, by separating the camera section and the LCD controller section.

Photo: Quoted from the official product page

By linking this camera with the WSD-F10, you can now operate the shutter and other operations that normally occur on the LCD controller from the clock (only for Android smartphones). Once the clock and camera pairing is complete, the LCD screen of the watch becomes the camera viewfinder, allowing you to take photos and videos using the right button on the clock while looking at the clock.

Photo: Quoted from the official product page

What's good about this system is, first and foremost, you can have both hands free. Acrobatic photography is possible while outdoor activities. If you put it on your head, it's easy to take photos while climbing or swimming. In addition, you can take quick photos without stopping while you are on the move, making it extremely effective to photograph as a record of your actions. It's a completely new shooting experience, not just a traditional camera or a smartphone.

Of course, various mounting options for installing camera parts, such as the head, backpack, and bicycle grip, are available separately, so you can use them according to the situation. , a limited edition item that comes with a tent-Mark DESIGNS camera bag now available on the WILD-1, so if you're interested, be sure to check it out.

Battery consumption - No problem if you're on a day trip, be careful for more than one night

I tried using it not only for day trips but also for a long period of time, such as staying in a tent. I woke up around 4am, put it on fully charged, then took the train bus to the trailhead around 10am. From there, they launched the "Activity App" and "YAMAP" and began taking action. I haven't changed any notification settings, so I've received several emails and messages in areas where the radio waves were connected.

At around 3pm, when I arrived at the tent area, I checked the battery level and it was in the early 40% range. I just quit the app and left it alone and left it alone, but by the next morning it reached 28% (if I had been in timepiece mode at this time, the decrease while I was sleeping might have been reduced).

For this reason, although it is possible to use it on a day trip without worrying about charging, if you are on a mountain hike overnight, you will rarely be able to use the app for more than two consecutive days unless you charge it. It is easy to overlook because the battery is efficient with double LCDs, but it is still not possible to say that the battery lasts well when used as a typical smartwatch.

What you need to be careful about is that the battery on the smartphone will also be draining in the same way, so charging your smartphone is also essential. For this reason, when you stay overnight you will need a mobile battery with a reasonable capacity. Additionally, you will need a dedicated USB cable to charge your watch, so be sure to remember.

Although it is hard to say that it is still not satisfying, when it comes to battery life, competitors' smartwatches and GPS sports watches also have acorn-like feel. That's why stand out in terms of performance in this aspect seems to be an important point in differentiating yourself from other companies.

Summary: Perfect for those who want a smartwatch that can be used outdoors.

Compared to smartwatches such as the Apple Watch, I think it's a more interesting watch that is more specifically for the outdoors. In particular, the authentic hardware that doesn't seem to have any slight hint of the chaotic nature of smartwatches is impressive, and it can be said that it has created a new position as an outdoor smartwatch, including the visibility and ease of use of the basic functions. I always felt that the motivational system that has become commonplace in fitness apps can be applied to mountain climbing, but when I experienced it in actual mountain climbing, I definitely felt the fun of it. Just as we can no longer imagine running without tracking on our smartphones, we will soon be seeing a future that would be a waste to climb without tracking as well as the future of mountain climbing. It had enough impact to make a prediction.

However, considering that it will be used outdoors in earnest, it is true that there is a concern that it is more difficult to use than the PRO TREK, such as batteries and durability. It's no surprise that even in the developer interview, "It is intended for beginners in the outdoors and light users." In that sense, I have not yet tried to switch from PRO TREK to my usage, and I have confirmed that there is still no other option than outdoor watches to use it safely in harsh environments.

The future demand is, of course, the ideal is to improve the environmental performance, battery and app practicality and entertainment than it is now, but such a perfect smart outdoor watch is not realistic. In that case, since the positioning is different from the heavy outdoors like PRO TREK, I thought that even if the environmental resistance continues like this, the correct evolution of this watch is to pursue the fun of light outdoors to the fullest, and to further advance in the direction of widening the range.

To achieve this, I look forward to further updates to the Activity App and MOMENT SETTER+. The activity app has a mechanism that allows you to enjoy more tracking, while MOMENT SETTER+ has improved usability by enabling more flexible measurement and notification methods.

That's what SUUNTO's GPS sports watches are on the rise. Not only can you save, analyze, manage and share tracked activities, but you can also create and publish all the measurable data to original apps that customize measurements to your liking. Although it is aimed at overseas, it is a very interesting ecosystem of users (activities) and manufacturers (devices), as it is a bit difficult to use and has many problems, and although it is aimed at overseas markets, it is very interesting to see the possibility that it will spread infinitely.

Mountain climbing and hiking are also essential for light mountain climbing in the future, as its mechanism of storing and sharing activities directly connected to wearable devices. It's still not clear what will trigger it, but once you've experienced new habits and become accustomed to them, it's not easy to switch to another method right away. The behind-the-scenes meaning of the model number "WSD" is "exciting and thrilling," as Casio's challenging smart outdoor watch has fully realized the possibility of a catalyst for this, so we can highly anticipate future evolution.

for more information on the lineup, main specifications, accessories, etc. (official product page)