Timex Ironman Review

I've been wanting to try out a digital watch that isn't by Casio for a while, of course the watch had to be under 50 smackers, easily availble, and from a name with some brand provenance, as the kids say. 

I eventually got a digital Timex expedition, but it didn't click with me so I gave it away. I eventually found a colorway of the Ironman that I liked at a big box store, I also got bacon. I wanted to go with Ironman is because if it's good enough for Bill Clinton, then surely it's fine for me. Sure I may not have the power, prestige, education, or name recognition, and yes I inhale each and every single time, but it's fun to have more or less the same watch that someone who had to deal with the likes of Fidel and Gaddafi owned as well. Of course B.C.'s Ironman is a little different, but it's been like 29 years. ( All of the villains of my childhood are dead, those boogeymen dragged out of holes, hung like common horse thieves. The march of time goes on unconcerned with presidents or dictators.) 

The Ironman does a lot of things right! Super easy to set up (instructions right on the screen) one can hide unneeded functions, repeatable countdown timer, auto snooze alarm (3 of them!), other odd things that a Rolex can't do. I really like the the lap timer function, the easiest lap timer I've ever used. I don't use it for running, but to time "stages" of whatever it is I'm doing. The watch also has a great night mode, and if you press the light button then mess around with setting an alarm or something the light stays on! Super legible display! The watch isn't as big as most of my G Shocks, but there is a good wrist presence for the minimal weight. The case and sorta integrated band curve down nicely for a really comfy fit. The band is okay, but the real highlight is the keeper which has a protuberance that slides into the end of the band to keep it from flapping around. The alarm is loud and slightly obnoxious.

The downsides aren't deal breakers for me. The watch feels a bit cheap and I already managed to give it a good scrape on the start split button. To turn the hourly chime on and off you have to go through a few screens. The of the downsides are subjective, like that "downturned" display screen window, makes the watch seem so serious! The edges tend to be pretty rounded and the plastic looks cheap. The whole watch seems very normcore to me, the closest looking G Shock I own, the venerable DW6900, looks like a cyberpunk artifact in comparison. After wearing Casio watches for for song long the different sounding beeps and alarms tones are... weird. 

The Ironman works just fine, I paid like 37 bucks for mine, which is not a bad price, but for a little more I could get a G Shock. I'm sure that the Timex is a great exercise watch, and a good "beater"/everyday watch, if you don't wear a suit. I'm sure it'll survive my use, and what mostly I don't dig about it is mostly aesthetic. I like a watch I can wear without fear of some rough treatment, so the Ironman fits that description. Pretty good, but I probably won't get one in a diffrent color. Although the recent release of an old school style one is very tempting. I do like this one enough to keep it on rotation, specially when I want to feel incognito, now I just gotta get some khakis and a Cubs hat and I will be unrecognizable. 

Timex Ironman Review

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4/5
  • lots of features
  • bill clinton wore one
  • super comfy
  • looks cheap
  • bill clinton wore one
  • not as cool looking as other watches
Reply
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...if you press the light button then mess around with setting an alarm or something the light stays on!

This is one of those things you'd expect to be standard everywhere, but isn't. Having the lights go out when you're trying to do something is so annoying, and the fix doesn't seem to be that tricky. Any button press while light is on basically restarts the countdown to lights off. 

The amorphous organic shape should look more premium than a geometric Casio, but I think you're right that the decidedly non-premium plastic was chosen to save weight or pennies or something but makes it look low-rent.

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PoorMansRolex

...if you press the light button then mess around with setting an alarm or something the light stays on!

This is one of those things you'd expect to be standard everywhere, but isn't. Having the lights go out when you're trying to do something is so annoying, and the fix doesn't seem to be that tricky. Any button press while light is on basically restarts the countdown to lights off. 

The amorphous organic shape should look more premium than a geometric Casio, but I think you're right that the decidedly non-premium plastic was chosen to save weight or pennies or something but makes it look low-rent.

I got that weird Citizen that's got that kind of shape, but it's sharp and thus pretty rad! Of course that's a more expensive watch. 

The light thing blew my mind. You can kinda do it with some casios but it's like putting in a cheat code on 16 bit Era video game, and even then one thats just marginally better.

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Likes: "bill clinton wore one" 
Don't Like: "bill clinton wore one" 
peak journalism 👌

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I'm buying my son in law one for Christmas for his running as his casio is about to die!

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Guvnor64

I'm buying my son in law one for Christmas for his running as his casio is about to die!

I'd probably like this watch way more if it was a gift, good choice! 

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lens.of.ben

Likes: "bill clinton wore one" 
Don't Like: "bill clinton wore one" 
peak journalism 👌

Idk if someone wants to be associated with that kind of character