A budget-friendly Casio digital watch has delivered a surprisingly strong performance in a step-counting test against the premium Apple Watch Ultra 4, recording almost the same number of steps despite the enormous difference in price.
The Casio F-B100W, which costs around $65, offers basic smart features without the complexity or expense of a high-end fitness smartwatch. Its performance in this test suggests that people who primarily want to monitor their daily activity may not need to spend hundreds of dollars on a wearable.
A Retro Watch With Practical Smart Features
The Casio F-B100W combines the familiar styling of the brand’s classic digital watches with a handful of modern capabilities. Compared with the inexpensive F-91W, it features a slightly larger design, an extra button, dual time-zone functionality and Bluetooth connectivity.
Its smart features include a phone-finding function and a step counter, making it a straightforward option for people who want to become more active without investing in a feature-packed fitness tracker.
The accompanying app displays step-counting data in charts covering weekly, monthly and yearly periods, allowing users to monitor activity trends over time.
The watch’s simplicity is part of its appeal. It offers enough functionality to be useful while retaining the retro appearance that has helped classic digital watches remain popular.
Testing the Casio Against Apple’s Premium Smartwatch
To assess the Casio’s accuracy, TechRadar’s Matt Evans compared it with the Apple Watch Ultra 4, a premium smartwatch priced at approximately $799.
The test was not entirely straightforward. The Casio records daily steps continuously and does not allow the user to isolate the steps taken during a specific workout. Before the run began, Evans had already accumulated 269 steps while preparing, putting on his shoes and gathering his belongings.
After completing the run, he immediately checked both devices and captured screenshots of their respective apps. Because the Apple Watch stopped tracking the workout once it was marked as complete, he wanted to ensure that additional steps did not distort the Casio’s final result.
The numbers were remarkably close.
The Results: Just 38 Steps Apart
The Casio F-B100W initially recorded 4,910 steps. After subtracting the 269 steps accumulated before the run, its adjusted total was 4,641.
The Apple Watch Ultra 4 recorded 4,679 steps, leaving a difference of only 38 steps between the two devices.
That is a narrow gap, particularly considering their very different prices and the fact that each watch relies on its own sensors and step-counting estimates.
While a single test cannot establish that both devices will deliver equally accurate results in every situation, the outcome was encouraging for the budget Casio.
Is the Casio F-B100W Worth Buying?
For people who mainly want to count their steps, the test strengthens the case for the Casio F-B100W. It offers an affordable way to monitor everyday movement while providing a distinctive retro design and useful extras such as phone-finding functionality.
However, it cannot replace the broader fitness capabilities of the Apple Watch Ultra 4. The Casio lacks the extensive health and workout metrics available on Apple’s premium device, and its feature set is intentionally limited.
The comparison was specifically designed to evaluate the Casio’s step-counting performance, rather than determine which watch is better overall.
On that measure, the F-B100W performed impressively. Anyone who values basic activity tracking over advanced fitness data may find that this inexpensive digital watch delivers everything they need.
Casio F-B100W: Prices Mentioned
- Amazon: approximately $77.59
- First Class Watches: approximately $79 for the black model
- First Class Watches: approximately €76 for selected black and blue versions
Prices may vary by retailer, location and availability.