Casio Celebrates 20 Years of the Edifice Collection with New Honda Racing Watch
Japan's Casio is best known by watch enthusiasts, of course, for its mega-popular G-Shock collection, but the G-Shock is not the only high-tech, sports-focused watch model it offers. Casio marks the 20th anniversary of its Edifice collection this year with the new limited-edition Ref. ECB10HR-1A. The new watch, like many other watches in the series, is a sturdy steel chronograph, but this particular model was also designed and produced in partnership with Honda Racing. Honda is well known for its link to racing — in America, for its incredibly competitive IndyCar team; internationally, for building the power unit for the Scuderia AlphaTauri Formula 1 team.
The watch uses the previously released Edifice ECB-10 design, but differs in its use of a black-and-red colorway and some racing-focused accents. The large 51 x 48.5 x 12.5-mm, sharp-edged steel case features integrated pushers, large crown guards, and a fixed, octagonal 60-minute bezel broken up by four screws — a design meant to give the watch “an image of a professional racing car maintenance tool” and add to the “mechanical feel” of the timepiece. Moving to the carbon fiber dial—which adds to the watch’s racing spirit, reminding the wearer of a checkered racing flag — we find a curved, outer minute ring, applied steel hour markers, and an assortment of dial features unique to the ECB-10. These include both a digital and analog time display, a digital stopwatch, five alarms, a double LED light for nighttime display, and a countdown timer, among a number of other features. The watch is also capable of Bluetooth connectivity to a smartphone via the CASIO WATCH+ app, which allows for the time to change based on location, as well as allowing the users' calendars to link to the watch to notify them when their next task is approaching.
The ECB10HR-1A is the third watch produced in a partnership between the two Japanese brands, with the previous two models launched in 2018 and 2019 in an effort to showcase the brands’ “common pursuit of high-tech capabilities.” To commemorate the partnership, the watch is branded both on the dial and on the caseback, the latter with an engraved Honda Racing logo. The watch also features nods to 20 years of the Edifice collection, with gold accents, an additional caseback engraving, and a red-accented "20" on the bezel.
The ECB10HR-1A will be available directly through Casio and at dealers nationwide at the start of May, priced ar $330 (though the watch is currently listed through Casio for $180). While the watch is currently designated as a limited edition, Casio hasn’t revealed how many models will be produced as part of its run. To learn more, you can visit the Edifice website, here.
