Skmei 2320

I’m getting old and as part of that process, I’m starting to lose touch with what's cool with the youth. These days, in my Dad Era, my wife fills me in on the new slang the kids are using and I shake my head in disbelief. When it came time for me to strap the Skmei 2320 to my wrist, the first thing I thought was “This thing is cool” and snapped a pic. I sent it to my sister who is 10 years my junior, and she responded “No”.

Maybe it’s a generational thing. I don't care, I still think this watch is cool. The curved display, clear plastic case and large legible display all screamed 80’s sci-fi and 90’s nostalgia to me. I felt the watch would be equally as at home on the Nostromo (yes, I know Alien was filmed in the 70’s) as it would in the video game Cyberpunk with its insanely bright light and blocky aesthetic. 

The watch has all the functions that you would come to expect from a digital watch - alarm, stopwatch, dual time zone, countdown timer, and cycles through them with a sequence of pleasant beeps. The buttons are metal and quite light to activate, but not to the point of accidentally pressing something. The case is made of hard ABS plastic, not your usual G-Shock style resin. It will be interesting to see how this one wears over time. The case height peaks at 13.8mm, has a lug of 41.1mm, and a width of 44mm. The stainless steel caseback is engraved with the water resistance (5ATM), model number, and battery code.

From lug to lug the case has an arcing curve, but the rest of the case is all sharp angles and edges - it’s an interesting case in my opinion. It sort of reminds me of “greebles” - small additions added to the exterior of a model to give more detail and depth.

I purchased this watch because I thought it would wear well on a single pass strap, but the supplied silicone strap is surprisingly comfortable, non-sticky, and dust repellent. The time is displayed in an extra large format, with the rest of the information presented in a logical and legible manner. Weekday and date are at the top of the screen, and function indicator and running seconds are at the bottom.There is no apparent bleed or fade in the LCD, and it is highly legible. The light provides insanely powerful neon green illumination and fills the transparent case as well as the screen, creating a cool effect. 

I paid a total of $10.47 for this watch and while it isn't twice the watch of the Skmei 1999 in terms of functionality or durability, I still think that the original design and nuclear glow light is enough to justify the price difference. I think I’ll hold on to this one - I’m going to have to get a bin for all the “Cheap Heat” watches that end up being keepers.