A158WEA-2 Casio's 1989 classic digital gets a cool blue frame

What is new about the Casio A158WEA-2?

The A158 has been in Casio's range since 1989, and it is one of the slim, rectangular digitals that defines the Vintage line. In February 2026 Casio added two new references: the A158WEA-2, with a blue frame around the display, and the plainer A158WEA-7, with a silver frame. Notebookcheck reported on 4 February 2026 that the pair had launched for pre-order in Japan, and on 6 February that both were on sale at Casio's UK online store.

The "WEA" suffix matters. These versions come on a stainless steel bracelet with an adjustable clasp, which Casio says fits wrists from 150 to 205 mm. Casio also brought back the older A158WEA-1 and A158WEA-9 around the same time, but those references date from 2011. The blue A158WEA-2 is the genuinely new colourway, and its frame gives the familiar face a slightly cooler, more 1980s calculator look than the silver or black versions.

Notebookcheck reports a UK price of £34.90 for each new model at Casio's own store, and that is the RRP used here. Notebookcheck describes the pair as two of the cheapest watches currently on sale in the UK market.

How big is it, and how will it wear?

Casio lists the case at 36.8 mm long, 33.2 mm wide and 8.5 mm thick, and the whole watch weighs 45 g. Those are small numbers by modern standards. On a wrist, the A158 sits flat and narrow, closer in footprint to a 1980s dress watch than to a modern digital.

Straphabit, writing as an owner of the A158, says it is "so thin that it almost disappears on the wrist" and calls the bracelet comfortable for a metal band. That is the main appeal: you can wear it under any cuff and forget it is there. Larger wrists may find it looks small, but that is true of the whole Vintage series.

What movement does it use, and how accurate is it?

It is a quartz digital module. Casio quotes accuracy of plus or minus 30 seconds a month and a battery life of about seven years on a CR2016 cell. The display shows the hour, minute, seconds, date and day, with a 12 or 24 hour format and an automatic calendar that assumes 28 days for February, so you will need to correct the date once every four years.

Functions are simple: a stopwatch timing to one hundredth of a second with split and first and second place times, a daily alarm and an hourly time signal. A green LED lights the display. Casio does not publish a module number on the product page.

How well is it built?

This is a budget watch and the materials say so. Casio lists a resin case and bezel, resin glass and a stainless steel bracelet. The case is finished in a silver tone to match the band, so from a distance it reads as all metal, but it will scuff and mark more easily than steel.

Water resistance is listed only as "water resistant", with no depth figure. Treat it as an everyday watch for rain and hand washing, not a pool watch. Straphabit, an owner of the earlier A158, notes that the backlight only stays on while the button is held, and that removing the bracelet needs a spring bar tool because the lugs are not drilled.

Is it good value against its rivals?

At £34.90, there is little to argue with. The closest step up inside Casio's own range is the Vintage A130WE, which Notebookcheck reported at £59.90 on the Casio UK store. It has a more distinctive retro-futuristic face but is bigger and costs almost twice as much.

Further up, the all-steel Vintage A1000A-7 adds a stainless steel case and multi-row bracelet; Notebookcheck reported it at £114.90 when it arrived in the UK in July 2025. If you want metal rather than resin, that is the upgrade, but the A158WEA-2 does the same basic job for less than a third of the price.

What is the catch?

The catch is that you are buying an old design in a resin case. There is no depth rating for water, the glass is resin rather than mineral or sapphire, and the backlight is basic. If you want a watch to swim in, or one that will look new for a decade, this is not it.

If you want a light, slim, reliable retro digital with a splash of colour and an adjustable steel bracelet, it is hard to beat for the money.

• Reference: A158WEA-2
• Case: resin, 36.8 x 33.2 x 8.5 mm, 45 g
• Movement: quartz, plus or minus 30 seconds a month, about seven years per battery
• Water resistance: water resistant, no depth stated
• RRP: £34.90 (Casio UK store, as reported by Notebookcheck)

“A 1989 design, a new blue frame, and one of the cheapest steel-bracelet watches in the UK.”

What do owners say?

Themes from public owner feedback, paraphrased. We never copy Amazon reviews or ratings.

• Owners of the earlier A158: so thin and light it almost disappears on the wrist

  Straphabit (opens in a new tab)

• Owners of the earlier A158: the backlight only stays on while the button is held

  Straphabit (opens in a new tab)

• Owners of the earlier A158: bracelet is easy to size and comfortable for a metal band

  Straphabit (opens in a new tab)