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Transcript

0:00 · Yes, this is a watch model from the 1980s, but it’s had Bluetooth added to it, enabling fitness tracking, the time of sunrise or sunset, RGB backlight, and even games.

0:13 · The time and now has Pomodoro or interval mode, and you can set the alarm to a song. This is a product that’s made me really happy. You don’t need an app to change most settings, and for those that you do, you don’t need an account.

0:25 · Using it has been a glimmer of hope that smart tech can still work for us, not against. Big tech is making me sad. The pursuit of profit over planet is prevalent, but not everyone is trying to speedrun e-waste. Some exploring how to upgrade old tech and add modern uses.

0:44 · When I saw the Olli watch module, I reached out to the founder, Gregor. He kindly sent me one to keep in exchange for sharing my honest opinion with you.

0:51 · As no money has changed hands, I will need to run a sponsor segment later to pay my bills. For something seemingly so simple, I have a lot of questions. Like, how’s the accuracy compared to a fitness tracker? How long does the battery now last? What limits does it have compared to a full smart watch? How hard is it to complete the mod? And what don’t I like about it?

1:16 · There it is, the Olli watch module, ready for a brain transplant into my retro Casio watch. Probably should scan that QR code. Scanable.

1:27 · What’s going on? I’m on video.

1:30 · [clears throat] Takes 10 minutes.

1:33 · Easy. If you’ve ever changed a battery on one of these old watches, then you’ve already done half the steps for this mod. Now the watch still uses the same battery, so I’ll hold on to that, but from the original circuit board, I do need to pinch these battery terminals. And these are clipped in from the front.

2:04 · As you can see, they are very small little clips. If you have some flathead tweezers, I would opt for those as my needle-nose ones were quite fiddly to put enough pressure to clip that metal tab back through the circuit board to the other side, but eventually, I got it off and this is what we need to recycle and transplant into the new circuit board.

2:26 · [music] [music] And that is the last screw.

2:38 · It just sang to me. “Press and hold the alarm button to turn on Bluetooth radio.” Hmm?

2:44 · Lap is blinking on the watch face. Yes.

2:50 · Like, since when was a watch cute?

3:01 · That’s 13 or 14? I lost count of how many features are now on this thing. I’ll have to test them out.

3:08 · So, my initial impressions have been great, but I had like three main annoyances and I sent them in a Instagram DM to Gregor and he was like, “Oh, yeah, fixed all of those in the next update.” Like, it’s rolling out in the next week and it’s already out now and I’ve been testing it and I’m like, “Oh, that’s a first.”

3:24 · Number one was that I love the hourly chime, keeps me in sync with the day, but I don’t like it at nighttime when I’m trying to sleep. Now, there’s a slider to set the window that you want the hourly chime. Number two, I don’t like it when I’m tossing and turning in bed, I can accidentally cross my step goal, triggering the celebratory sound at 2:00 a.m. Now, there’s a do not disturb mode between sunset and sunrise for those alerts. And number three, I simply don’t like the bumping the alarm button toggles between a m and p m and 24-hour mode.

3:53 · Once again, already in the update, allow me to lock the one I want in the app. There are many other features and fixes that were prompted by community feedback, but the cool thing is that there’s still more that can come. Because we’ve installed a circuit board with a Cortex M4 processor with an M0 plus efficiency core and Bluetooth low energy, not only can we send data from the watch, we can update the data on it. For example, the accelerometer with advanced gesture sensing can now be used to flip to shush the alarm.

4:21 · The loud audio buzzer can produce new melodies.

4:28 · And the RGB LED backlight can be set to not only your favorite color with the app, but also used as a blinking flashlight. So by now, you’re probably thinking about a Bluetooth, motion sensors, like what are the main features this watch can now do?

4:42 · Take a deep breath.

4:44 · Ready?

4:46 · Rapid fire.

4:47 · Clock with calendar now automatically syncs time and date with app. The two letters to signal the day can also be changed in the app for different languages. And of course, clock time and date can also be set manually on the watch without the app. The alarm can be enabled depending on day. There are different chime sounds. And not only can snooze times be adjusted, but motion can snooze.

5:08 · Stopwatch runs to 100ths of a second with logging recorded in the app. World time, the time zone is set in the app or on the watch. The timer face has 10 programmable presets that you can cycle through as well as an interval mode, which is a Pomodoro timer. Sunrise signified by the R, sunset signified by the S, is set by the location in the app. The step counter face lets you set a goal. The number in the top corner is the percentage of goal minus a decimal place. So 1 equals 10%, 4 equals 40%.

5:33 · At 100% a celebratory alert is triggered which can now thankfully be suppressed by a do not disturb mode between sunset and sunrise. The only watch module also has two separate step tracking modes. So I’ve been wearing it along with my fitness tracker all week doing different tests. We’ll go through our results later to see how the accuracy is. For heart rate, my fitness band has an automatic heart rate sensor, whereas the only watch has what’s called a pulse emitter method. You find your pulse, press start, count 20 beats by default, then press stop.

6:05 · The watch will then do the math to calculate your beats per minute. It doesn’t have an optical sensor because it would drain the crap out of its teeny watch battery. The temperature face will give you Celsius or Fahrenheit with hourly logging, but it’s a mixture between body and ambient temperature, so I don’t find this measurement useful. The tally counter face also has logging, and if you count just one, it’ll save a time step event in the app to remember when something happened in the day. Flashlight has three modes, on, blink, or RGB rave party. Then there are three games.

6:33 · Yes, ping, a ball and paddle game, which I’m not very great at. Blackjack, it tells you what cards you got dealt, and it surprisingly works on the screen. And then a classic five card draw poker was recently added in the new update. All faces can be toggled on or off in the app, so you can remove the games if you wish, and the order can also be rearranged. You can also star a favorite, which is jumped to by holding the light button for a few seconds. Mine is step counter, and you can also make that light turn on by hold, toggle on or off, set time, or turn on with motion.

7:06 · However, I’ve had lots of false triggers with motion, so I disabled it to save battery. And for a bit of fun, you can customize the name that is displayed when activating Bluetooth.

7:15 · This feature also shows how Casio didn’t make every segment of the display individually controllable, as some letters look different depending on position, and some letters like M and W just don’t work. It’s also pleasant to read Gregor state as a principle. I think people should choose to buy a product for the features it has today, not for what it might offer in the future. That being said, I will go over potential future features like notifications for calendar events later in the video. This mod also works with a variety of Casio models, so effectively any watch with a movement module 593.

7:48 · The app also supports iOS and Android, but there is a gotcha. There are fake Casio watches out there. Someone posted they bought an orange F-91W from Amazon and it was fake, so it didn’t work with the module. Now, knowing that even the colored units could be fake, I bought a brand new white If you want the original black or silver, you can buy a pre-modded watch directly from the Ali Watch website.

8:10 · Now, there is a chance that this watch doesn’t have enough features for what you need. So, before the end of this video, we’ll go through a list of cool smartwatches that I like, as well as the current state of big tech smartwatches, cuz a lot of them are big waste of money. But, what’s really cool is that because this watch has been around so long, the like OG from the ’80s, there are so many awesome like customizations you can do to it. Dopamine Industries on Instagram has to be my favorite. They will create for you a completely custom face plate, and they’ve now started selling their custom orders with the Ali Watch module pre-installed.

8:40 · Now, I have a UV printer, and you’ve seen me use it in past vids, but when I pulled apart my Casio, I realized the front resin glass is glued on. And I confirmed with them in a comment on Instagram that they get custom new glass cuts for their custom UV printing. So, instead, I’ve opted to do a simple screen tint. I bought some cellophane options from my local craft store, but they’re all too dark. Ordered some flashlight gels, and they also were too dark.

9:06 · So, I folded and paid a dumb amount for a very small piece of lightly tinted film pre-cut for the watch that tints the screen. If I hadn’t already wasted so much money, I would have bought a blue or black negative display, which you can just swap in with the original, which is really cool unique look. And removing the screen from the main module is actually related to that more complex mod I mentioned earlier.

9:29 · See, in the Ali Watch kit, you get an NFC tag, NTAG213 specifically, which after separating the screen’s components of the watch, you can stick it behind the display. Now, it only works on the non-chrome plated Casio models, allowing you to program actions when you tap your watch against an NFC reading device. And of course, the easiest modification I’ve done, custom strap. I bought this leather one, really comfortable against my skin opposed to having plastic that gets extra sweaty. But if you like plastic straps, turns out you can 3D print one. Not only that, you can also 3D print new case bodies.

9:59 · The Mocho by Makio Studio is a very unique 3D printed mod case which they recently further modded with an Ollie watch module. And at the premium end, the EVT 01 has a CNC machined metal housing. I found this file that I like and 3D printed it in glow-in-the-dark filament as a test because I don’t have any of the NATO straps that it needs. Whilst it loses water resistance, I really like the designer used a glass screen protector for smartwatches as the glass on the 3D prints.

10:27 · I’m totally storing that idea of using a glass screen protector with 3D prints for future projects. Speaking of future projects, you can use today’s sponsor PCBWay.com. You can have parts 3D printed from metal, CNC’d from carbon fiber. There’s just so many options.

10:43 · Simply upload your file, select a material, color, and quality for an instant quote to be manufactured and sent to you. On top of a custom PCB, you can have parts CNC’d as well as other advanced manufacturing methods. Big thank you to PCBWay for sponsoring today’s video. In 2022, I studied sustainability at university and one of the phrases that has stuck with me since was embodied energy.

11:02 · Say, when something is made, the energy that’s used to take the materials from the earth, to create the product itself, to transport it to you, including the packaging, and then you unbox it, then you start using it, all of that energy is embodied in the product. And then, there’s the afterlife. So, it’s important to try and use the product, the materials that exist in it for as long as possible.

11:29 · This is a first-generation Google Pixel Watch. Doesn’t look like it because I put it in a 3D printed housing to turn it into an MP3 player. It’s a whole video, check that out. But this at release was $400 retail for the cellular model. Google states guaranteed software updates for 3 years. That was until October 2025. If we look at the Google developer page for watch updates, on October 2025, we saw the original Pixel Watch get the same watch OS version 5. You ignore the one.

11:59 · Every other watch, 2, 3, 4, all received watch OS version 6. So apparently $400 won’t even get you 3 years of full software version updates. 400 / 3 is 133 per year, giving us $11.10 US dollars per month. The way I see smart tech like this is that you’re paying up front for like hardware rental until the date that the manufacturer decides that you should no longer be able to use it. That doesn’t sit right with me.

12:30 · And don’t think I’m just going for Google. Apple, they sold a $17,000 US dollar real gold generation 1 Apple Watch. Not only does Apple refuse to replace the battery on them because they decided it’s past its service life, but you also can’t set the time on its or with a current gen iPhone. In faint text on their website, it notes it’s possible to set up an older Apple Watch using different iPhone models with earlier operating systems. So with that standard being set by big tech, what did the Ollie Watch do?

12:59 · Well, it took an ’80s watch that could be set without a phone app. You install the module, and now you can set the time without a phone app. Wait, what? Yeah, you can still just set the time on the watch without an app.

13:15 · You can also view the steps without an app. You can set the alarm without an app. You can set a timer without the app. And here’s the revolutionary thing, when you install the app, you can adjust every advanced setting without ever logging into an account. An account is only needed to sync your steps because it’s got to sync somewhere. I’m just so exhausted with it. Like these big tech companies are making billions in profits.

13:40 · They are nowhere near losing money, but you buy a watch and they’re just like nah. Don’t want you to be able to tell the time on that thing anymore. We’re just going to push a button on our end and just yeah. Not give you the update.

13:58 · [clears throat] It’s insane.

14:03 · The moment we’ve all been waiting for. How accurate is the step counter? I’ve been rocking two watches like a weirdo all week so I can give you the answer.

14:11 · So I’ve got the Ollie Watch module and the Xiaomi Mi Band 9. Now after 30 days of activity data is stored on the Ollie Watch, activity and health data history with charts is shown in the Ollie Watch app only if you’re logged into an Ollie Watch account and or you can sync to the Google Health Connect or Apple Health services on your phone. There is a low sensitivity mode shown by an L for day-to-day usage and a high sensitivity mode shown by a H for walks or runs.

14:34 · Mode can be changed in the app or on the watch, but how accurate is it? Well, day one high sensitivity and I walked my dog Bruce. We had 3,097 steps higher. Day two, low sensitivity, no walk, about the same. Good. Day three, low sensitivity all day, but I also went for a walk which you’re not meant to do and that gave us 1,200 steps lower. Now interestingly, the walk lap was 2,200 steps meaning the Ollie Watch was about 50% less. Remember that. Day four, I used the modes as intended.

15:05 · I had high for walk and low for just day-to-day and we’re about 1,300 steps higher. So with high sensitivity consistently higher and low sensitivity consistently lower and I’m walking my dog, maybe the lead’s making a difference. Like which watch do we believe is correct? Well, you know I’ve got you. I walked around my house counting steps. After 200 steps, the Ollie watch on high sensitivity and the Mi Band on walking mode, they’re about the same. So, I decided to walk 8,000 steps, stopping now and then to check each watch.

15:35 · And bam, the Ollie watch is the orange line. It just like takes off.

15:41 · The Mi Band, pretty close to the actual step count. So, I walked again. This time 600 steps, and the Mi Band was so on line to the real life steps you can’t even see it. The Ollie watch, however, increased correct twice. There seems to be a bug. The high sensitivity mode randomly doubles the step count that it’s meant to record. So, I thought, “What about low sensitivity?” So, I did 200 steps with the Mi Band, and now it’s 50% lower. It’s really taking that low high personally.

16:07 · So, I set it up on 600 steps, and the Ollie consistently was half of the actual step count that it was meant to be. I thought it was interesting. So, I wonder if maybe it’s I’m taking readings at the 100 step marks, maybe that’s having an issue. So, I repeated another 600 steps, and this time stopping at random intervals. And once again, on low sensitivity, it’s about 50% of the actual step counts, which is quite interesting.

16:30 · Cuz you remember, the day that I had it on low sensitivity and went for a walk, the steps the Mi Band logged in that walk, it was 50% less on the Ollie watch log for the day’s total. So, for low sensitivity, it seems to be working accurately for day-to-day use. But in the high sensitivity for walking, it’s just randomly doubling steps when you’re intentionally walking.

16:53 · So, I let Gregor know my findings, and he said that he has had no one report this issue to him, which probably makes sense because no one’s probably crazy enough to walk around for an entire week wearing two watches, and then like cut laps in their house just counting their steps. I went crazy counting to 1,000 and 600 and 600. I used like a counter on my phone, bro.

17:13 · It was insane. But in the end, he said he’s going to look into it, and hopefully he can address it in the next update. And there is a future update planned to merge the two step tracking modes together so it can just like acknowledge when you are walking, switch into high sensitivity, and then when you’re like sitting around or just doing general walking around, then be low. And this list of features doesn’t stop here because there’s plans to open source kind of like an app store so that the nerd community can create new features for the watch, which is so dope.

17:40 · And on the blog post with the recent update, Gregor noted he just missed getting the five alarm mode in, which would be so sick because I have my like wake up, morning break, lunch time, afternoon break, and end work. Five alarms I set each day. So if I can just rock that on this watch, that’s five as many that it had back in the ’80s. Well, five now.

18:00 · That’d be sick. And for the next update, as the blog post says, app connected services are under exploration. So notifications, music controls, weather, push notifications, example if this then that, and calendar reminders. Which I’m most excited for calendar reminders as every time I pull out my phone is a chance to get distracted by it, and a seven segment display on my wrist is the lowest distraction possible. Battery life with the current feature set is estimated at 10 months with daily use and default settings, then up to three years on power saving mode, but then can be reduced heavily if you use say the LED light often.

18:31 · Also, I have to like tip my hat to this app design because on the faces page, you just tap the name or title of the face and you get like perfectly great like help instructions.

18:44 · Because there’s only three buttons on this thing. So to learn like how to navigate each specific feature, this is really good and helpful. Now you may be wondering, what else is out there that’s similar in features or ethics and principles? Well, Casio actually sells a brand new plain and simple step counter Bluetooth watch. I don’t know if it can function without the app, also has a lot less features, and most likely won’t get new features through the open source app store the Ollie watch plans to have. The U N A watch. This is really cool. It’s a fitness tracker with modular components.

19:16 · Screws together and charges by USB-C and plans to have upgradeable components like Framework is to PCs but watches.

19:23 · Unfortunately, they had to do a recall of the first batch over battery safety so they have had delays in production which is expected for a Kickstarter startup product. With an expected retail of $350, it’s a lot more expensive but they have caught my eye as they also will sell a dev tool so you can make your own apps and firmware and do just whatever you want with what you paid for. On that topic, nerds rejoice, Pebble is back this time with a touchscreen e-paper display. The thin circle model has no heart rate sensor but that thicker rectangle one does and yes, that back is screwed together.

19:53 · And being 100% open source, it could be the last smartwatch with existing technology that you ever need to buy. But on that note, the app store is just like user-made apps predominantly. It’s nowhere near as like feature-rich as an Apple or Google smartwatch app store is.

20:12 · But it is great to see that the back isn’t glued on and it kind of helps prove the case that we don’t need to be gluing tech together for water resistance. Just remember, Apple AirTags are not glued together and you can easily pop the back off and change the battery. They use an O-ring just like watches have for many years. Just like the Casio F-91W has for many years which the Olli Watch module is installed into and screwed into. My Mi Band which has a proprietary shop connection also glued together in a non-user repairable manner so mostly useful until the battery or app support dies.

20:43 · So why I’m mentioning it? Well, in my opinion, it’s the best value for money for features on the market for any fitness tracking band out there. It’s under 100 Australian dollars so it’s less of a roundhouse kick to the face than a Pro or Ultra model when they eventually either break or just stop working due to software restriction. Just like I factory reset my Pixel Watch 1, if it loses app support, it’s useless. The watch can’t do anything unless it’s connected to a phone.

21:10 · And if support for connecting to the phone is removed one day, like Apple has, then it won’t be able to tell me the time. As for Olimex pricing, the DIY kit is $55 US. Shipping to Australia is $15, bringing it just under 100 Aussie bucks for just the module kit. There’s also the pre-modded complete in black for 100 US or silver for 110 US. Pricing for stuff like this is hard to gauge. Like it’s a very small batch tech company. So, it’s not big tech that’s offsetting the cost by like advertisers putting ads for their third-party apps to load onto it.

21:43 · They’re not selling your data to offset the cost. It’s just you’re paying for what it is. And just like the original watch that’s now 46 years old, it can still set the time without an app. But now it has extra stuff it can also do without the app. And the same cannot be said for much, much more expensive smartwatches that people buy without a second thought that will just die. Thank you, Gregor, for sending the Olimex module and giving me hope that tech companies can make sustainable products that last.

22:16 · That’s it. Thank you for watching. If you liked today’s video, thumbs it if you loved it, sub it, and I’ll catch you in the next custom tech project or cool piece of tech I find.

22:25 · Bye.