Tokyoflash B Version Watch by Twelve 5-9

I just spent over an hour perusing the Inside Japan section on the Tokyo Flash site. This was time when I should have been writing this review, but I got so distracted by the witty write-ups of Tokyo life which were accompanied by photos taken with the authors’ cell phone cameras.

It makes sense that the country which gave us capsule hotels, Harajuku girls, futuristic motorcycle cars and “the best cell phones in the world” would also have some of the most outrageous and unique watches. Anymore it is a known fact that when people want a flashy, gadgety and “different” LED watch, they need look no further than Tokyo Flash.

Today I am going to take a look at the B Version by Twelve 5-9. This is one of many LED watches offered on the Tokyoflash site which do more than just tell time, they also garner second looks. One of the most common comments the wearer will hear is “how do you tell time on that crazy thing?” It’s really quite simple, and I’ll get to that in a moment…

Available in red, blue or green LEDs with black wristbands with contrasting red, blue or green stitching, I was sent the green version.

The B Version comes in a puffy pleather presentation box, wrapped around a white pillow.

As previously mentioned, the watchband has contrasting stitching in the same color that its LEDs will glow when indicating the time. When the button on the right is pressed, the LEDs will swirl around the circular window and travel across the bar windows, settling on their correct time positions.

The watch’s case is a 1.73′ long x 1.21″ tall x 0.49″ thick block of stainless steel which has three windows through which the various LEDs will show.

The back of the watch shows that it contains a CR2032 Lithium Battery. The B Version is not marked as being water resistant, so it might be prudent to remove it when washing hands or in a storm.

The watch is sized to look good on male or female wrists.

Setting the B Version is done by pressing the “A” button on the right of the case and then pressing and holding the “B” button on the left.

The circular window houses the hour LED display, which is placed in the usual corresponding position on all analog clocks. Markers are placed at the twelve, six and nine positions; this picture
shows “twelve”.

The longer top bar represents minutes. An LED will light at the proper placement to signify the numbers one through nine. So that the wearer doesn’t get lost, there are markers at the two, five and nine positions; this picture shows “four” minutes.

The shorter, lower LED window displays the minutes in groups of ten. When the time is anywhere before ten after, no lights will glow in this section. As there are then five groups of ten left to represent, namely the 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50 minute marks, these spots are represented by an LED in the proper placement, with a marker at the 30 position to help the wearer keep them straight; this picture shows that it is “twenty minutes after”.

So in the immortal words of Flavor Flav – “You know what time it is?!”

Well, it’s 12:24.

Now, it’s 9:53, got it? Good.

The B Version by Twelve 5-9, like all of the others available from Tokyoflash, is perfect for the person that likes their watch to do more than just tell time. The B Version is fashionable fun, and it is one of the easier LED watches to decipher for those that want the lights and the crazy style, but don’t necessarily want to carry around a cheat-sheet so they can tell the time.

The B Version retails for 8900 Yen, which is approximately $76 USD.