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Rare Vintage Casio Friendly Memo Data Bank DBJ-24 Digital Sports Watch JDM 1980s - Image 1
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Rare Vintage Casio Friendly Memo Data Bank DBJ-24 Digital Sports Watch JDM 1980s

DIRECT PRICE SAVE 10%
EBAY PRICE$475.00
DIRECT -10%$427.50

DESCRIPTION

Up for sale is an extremely rare vintage Casio Friendly Memo Data Bank men’s digital sports watch, reference DBJ-24, powered by Module 1537 and produced for the Japan Domestic Market (JDM) during the 1980s. This highly sought-after model is part of Casio’s playful and innovative Data Bank lineup and features the much rarer cat character variant, rather than the more commonly seen human character version. This example is in full working condition, and all confirmed features and functions operate properly. One of the most charming and unique aspects of this model is its animated cat display, which continuously cycles through different expressions and emotions in an animation loop as the watch is worn—an uncommon and delightful feature that gives this piece real personality and strong collector appeal. This watch is presented in an exceptionally rare white and pink colorway, which is seldom seen even among DBJ-24 examples and is especially desirable for an already scarce model. The watch shows signs of use and age, consistent with a genuine vintage piece. Photos best describe its physical condition. The watch head, case, and internal components are original. The original resin strap has deteriorated from age and is no longer present; the watch is currently fitted with an aftermarket black resin/rubber strap. This is an exceptionally rare variant and colorway, and examples like this are almost never offered for sale. Even among seasoned Casio collectors, the Friendly Memo DBJ-24 with the cat character display is considered a standout piece. Key Details: • Brand: Casio • Model: Friendly Memo Data Bank • Reference: DBJ-24 • Module: 1537 • Type: Digital Sports Watch • Market: Japan Domestic Market (JDM) • Era: 1980s • Condition: Fully functional; shows signs of use and age • Originality: Watch head and internal components original • Strap: Aftermarket black resin/rubber strap (original strap deteriorated from age) • Notable Features: Rare cat character variant with animated emotion expressions; extremely rare white and pink colorway A fantastic opportunity to acquire one of Casio’s most creative and collectible 1980s digital designs in a highly uncommon color variant. Ships carefully. Feel free to message me with any questions.
BRAND:
Casio
UNIT CONDITION:
Pre-owned - Good
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► ARCHIVE FILE: CASIO — BRAND HISTORY

Casio began not with watches but with calculation. Tadao Kashio founded Kashio Seisakujo in Tokyo in 1946, and with his three brothers developed the 14-A in 1957, the world's first compact all-electric relay calculator, incorporating the business as Casio Computer Co. that same year. The move into watchmaking came in November 1974 with the Casiotron, a digital watch whose claim to fame was an automatic calendar that knew how many days each month had, a small feat of logic that announced how an electronics firm would approach timekeeping.

Casio's landmark is the G-Shock. Engineer Kikuo Ibe, after breaking a treasured watch given to him by his father, set out to build one that could not break, chasing a triple-10 target: survive a 10-meter drop, resist water to 10 bar, and run 10 years on a battery. After roughly 200 prototypes, the insight that a module floating within a hollow structure could absorb shock, inspired by watching a rubber ball bounce, produced the DW-5000C in April 1983. Its square case and protective philosophy still define the line today.

Around it grew a catalog of quietly important watches. The F-91W of 1989, a featherweight resin digital with alarm, stopwatch, and a battery that runs for years, became one of the best-selling watches ever made and remains in production essentially unchanged. The Databank series from 1984 put a phone directory on the wrist, calculator watches like the CA-50 turned up in Hollywood films, and the A158 and A168 on steel bracelets carried the same plain-spoken design language to dressier wrists.

Vintage Casio collecting rewards attention to module numbers, the small code on the case back that identifies the electronics inside. Early screw-back G-Shocks such as the DW-5000C and DW-5600C command real money, original Casiotrons are genuinely scarce, and clean examples of 1980s models with intact resin and bright displays get harder to find every year, since polymer cases age in a way steel does not. It is one of the few corners of collecting where the landmark pieces remain affordable.

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