Countdown Timer Mod for the Casio A178W
Ғылым және технология
Yes, it's true. After successfully modifying the Casio W800H and W96H watches to activate the Countdown Timer Mode (as seen in this video... • Modifying the Casio W8... ) I decided to try the same modification on a Casio A178W. And it worked!
Incidentally, here is my In Depth Review of this watch before I did the modification... • Casio A178W In Depth R...
A few things to keep in mind: There are no official instructions from Casio about how to do this. The Countdown Timer function is disabled at the factory when a small bit of solder is used as a jumper to close a circuit on the watch's internal electronics. If you know which blob of solder to remove, then you can activate the Countdown Timer mode on this watch. But I consider this to be "uncharted territory" because it's an unauthorized and undocumented modification. And, while a lot of folks seem to be talking about how to modify the W800H, I found very little guidance on how to do this to the A178W. But, now, you can use this video as a guide.
These watches are easily available and, at the time of this recording, you could find them for about $20, although the gold tone version of the A178W is selling for around $40-$50. I find that I don't become too nervous about trying a modification like this on an inexpensive watch. The stakes are low because the worst thing I can do is break a watch which didn't cost very much anyway. The good news is that, after some trial and error (which I talk about in this video) it all worked the way I wanted it to in the end! But if you want to try this on your own watch I must offer the standard caution that you are doing this AT YOUR OWN RISK. I hope my instructions are clear enough to help you do this if you really want to, but I cannot guarantee that I have taught you well enough.
The watch in this video uses module 3234, but I did this previously on module 3239 and module 3240.
And, one more thing. After the watch has undergone this procedure, you can set the Countdown Timer to either a one-time-only mode or an auto-repeat mode. It's a simple selection. When you set the timer duration and the numbers are still blinking, tap the backlight button to toggle between one-time-only and auto-repeat. The only trouble is that the LCD screen gives you no indication about which mode is selected. You'll just have to figure that out for yourself. AND.. I promise I'll make a video very soon to demonstrate this.
Пікірлер: 45
Not sure if you'll see this but thanks for this video! Recently picked up this watch as a nice daily wear, and was surprised when it didn't have a timer function. I thought that it was so simple, other newer Casio watches must have one. And through searching, I stumbled upon this. Not only was my hunch right, but this module has it too and was just arbitrarily locked out of the mode! Couple minutes later, now it has the one function I wanted added. Thanks a million!
Yup!! It worked for me. Don't know why Casio doesn't have all their watches with countdown timer. Great Every day watch.. thanks again
Thank you for the very informative video, i just did it today using my soldering iron. Its very cool to have this function because i use it most of the time 👍👍👍
Just did the mod by myself. I have several tips: 1. There is no need to remove the battery. Removing the metal encasing is enough to get into the module. 2. Use a fine tip soldering iron, the pcb may be damaged by the scrapping. 3. Yo desoldered the bridge number "0", but the other 4 also has uses. Soldering the first bridge it gives you access to 5 alarms, and the second disables Dual Time. I have no idea what the other two bridges are for.
Thank you so much! Your video gave me the confidence to try it out on my W800 and it worked like a charm. The lack of count down is the only 'miss' this watch had for my general use.
The speaker on the back requires the 2 contacts, one being the spring on the left side there that touches the speaker itself. The other is that leaf spring on the lower right that makes a common connection. The battery holder is bent and was hitting the metal on the back and the speaker at the same time shorting it out.
Absolutely incredible. I can't believe the countdown timer isn't already available and I would have it without the spring to keep it silent. Thanks so much!
Greg, you are the master, thank you so so much. I've wanted to do this mod for so long and was thinking if the A178 that I already have could be even better. Best regards
Thanks Greg, I now learned a few more things to try if something is amiss with the rebuild. I wear my Optivisor magnifying tool when working on my watches with very bright LED LIGHT to help with tiny parts. Keep making your videos please.
So, Ian Rees has a blog covering what the different solder points do. You can enable or disable the dual time feature. I find this interesting as I absolutely HATE dual time. I'd rather just set the correct local time. Thanks for the Video! Helped a lot.
Phantastic !
Thank you so much! I was about to buy a soldering iron for this. Pocket knife did the trick ;)
THANKS SO MUCH. You did all the hard work and we ripped all the benefits. New on your channel. Definitely Liked & Subscribed. Question: Is that how you activate the Timer on all Casio watches? God bless.
Great video. Unfortunately, when I opened up my A178W, the circuit board was quite different. Actually, the entire internals were different -- the spring was in the top left corner and the battery, its back sticker and hold-down mechanism were different. There were several small solder points on my board, but none in the location or orientation yours showed. So, I had to close everything up and just keep my watch un-modded. At least it still works! I should note that the "test screen" you showed does not show "3233" on mine, but "2500" instead. I should also note that I bought this watch 12 years ago from Amazon for $17. I'm one happy customer!
@GoodTimekeeper
Жыл бұрын
It’s not surprising if Casio updated the module but, otherwise, sells this as the same watch you bought 12 years ago. That would explain all the differences you discovered.
Thank you very much! really nice! I´ll try on mine .Any way to increase the alarm sounds or chimes...? thank´s
I own this watch. Hope i will do it some day.
Wow i would love to see if this would work on one of your g shock 910's.. Imagine a countdown timer with the time memo function aaahh what a dream
Watching you scratching electronic circuit board 😳😱😠 was terrifying.
Hi Greg please help mine is stuck on 0:00 and I do not know what to do
I wish there was a way to make the beep louder for this particular model. I think it has the weakest beep of all the vintage Casio's.
Why the reason to disable count down in this model by Casio company?! Thank you very much that's was so useful .u are great
Do you know if it is possible to do the 5 alarms mod like the W800?
How many of these watches are there that are capable of this mod?
@yorusuyasoul69420
2 жыл бұрын
Like a ton
@GoodTimekeeper
2 жыл бұрын
The instruction booklet for this watch also covers the module from the F200W watch. So I would think that watch could also be modified. However, I can’t find anything online where someone specifically says they modified the F200W. So I don’t know whether to experiment with that one.
@christopherjohnson4276
2 жыл бұрын
Thanks for the info here. I do not understand why Casio would limit the funtionality of any of their watches, especially the countdown timer which is incredibly helpful 🤔. Great video! 👍 ❤ ⌚
WOW... Do you now if this is possible on a Casio F105w???
Will this technique work on F91 W ? ❤ Good video.
Hi Greg! Does the module of the W-800h fit inside of the A178w? It would be an awesome mod, because I always loved the look of the A178 and the module look of the W-800.
@bbishop2009
3 ай бұрын
I was able to fit the module from an f201 into the a178 case. Saved me from the dreaded solder balls of doom.😂
@InspiredByActualEvents
3 ай бұрын
@@bbishop2009 That's a great idea. Was it an easy swap? Or did you have to alter any pieces?
A good thing to do if your gonna take the watch apart. A tiny bit of silicone grease on the O-Ring helps it last longer. Not that it really matters that much it is a super cheap watch.
@sped6954
2 жыл бұрын
Using a film of lightweight grease also adds the benefit of the seal not wandering around as you replace the cover and tighten the screws.
the battery is MADE IN INDONESIA?
Cool bruh
Hi Greg! Greetings from Serbia. My Casio A178W was bought in 2009. Module number is 2519. It has completely different PCB and it has two solder balls (a kind of electrical jumpers). I am not sure that it is possible to mod my module to have countdown timer function.
I gotta go get another one and try it, I want a count down timer for no reason other than it’s cool
@davidbreitwieser3591
2 жыл бұрын
2 days later, I have a watch with a countdown timer, first time ever pulling a watch apart and I had too do it about 10 times trial and error but I got it!
My A178W has a different PCB and different battery holder. I could not do the trick. The foking spring fell down and I was fortunate that it stayed on my leg and didn't fall down to the floor.
@arturogarcia4722
4 ай бұрын
btw. my A178W was bought 15 years ago.
Neat mod! I’ll be working on mine. BTW do you know any Casio that has 3 countdown timers? I need it for my job.
@GoodTimekeeper
2 жыл бұрын
I use a GRB-100 at work. It has five alarms and they can show as countdowns in the LCD window.
My wet dream: Current time (mod) in every mode in every Casio (with appropiate lay-out display).
Greg buddy you should mod these watches and sell it