[Edifice Review] EFS-S550BL-1AV — Functional bezel and sport car style

Sometimes disturbing thoughts cover me … But what if the clock [in the classical sense of the word] is soon no longer needed and replaced by all sorts of modern smart devices, where the value of the hands and their movement is significantly eroded [due to digital capabilities]? But then it lets go a little: no one has yet solved the problem of the long-term operation of such watches, and the turn-on lamp lamp will still live, if not forever, then for a very long time. Take the same vinyl records that are now at the peak of popularity [although most recently they made stands for flowerpots]. People love to go back to basics, and Casio always has watches for different eras. Today we will consider the fresh model EFS-S550BL-1AV, which is very “tube”, but with many modern elements.

The Casio Edifice EFS-S550 Series is an excellent fit for your calling. The dynamics of the sports car directly break out, which is generally not surprising, because the watch was developed in close collaboration with representatives of the Scuderia Toro Rosso team [which is actively involved in Formula I].

I admit, I’m not very versed in the “formula”, and all the more so, I don’t quite understand the practical application of watches, even the most advanced ones, precisely during competitions. Control race time or speed? Doing this online using special applications on your phone / tablet is much more convenient [correct if it is not].

But the stylistic component is very clear for me: there are a lot of additional dials to simulate the car dashboard, large side buttons with a hint of a professional stopwatch [and this is by default about speed], large sizes to confirm internal power, a fabric strap is a symbol of a victorious flag. Perhaps my wild fantasy sees something that is not there, but I definitely like these pictures.

Well, it’s worthwhile to figure out how the presence of sports side buttons corresponds to reality. The EFS-S550BL-1AV still has a stopwatch. You can observe its progress with the help of two windows: seconds at the 6 o’clock position, minutes at 9 o’clock. This “sight” looks rather boring – you don’t have any milliseconds for dynamics, just a standard second hand move [only in a separate window]. You can watch the minutes only the first 30 minutes, then everything is already – not that case. So at the output we get a stopwatch with a measuring capacity of 30 minutes, which is not very accurate, given the absence of milliseconds.

From the point of view of beauty, the stopwatch managed to fill the internal space of the watch, which is why the series received such a necessary automobile surroundings. I also liked the current trend in the design of additional windows at the 3 and 9 o’clock positions – the absence of rounded barriers and the placement of the scale on the main display panel, which makes the style very minimalistic.

Let’s go back to the bezel. It is massive, pretty, with information indices and a colorful inscription “COUNTDOWN”, which harmoniously combines with other design elements on the dial. The first thing I started to rotate it and, lo and behold, it really rotates with the help of characteristic clicks, and does it only in one direction. This is how the primitive timer function works. Why primitive? Because you do not receive any signal alerts, but simply fix with the bezel the necessary time interval for monitoring.

It works as follows: for example, you need to wait 15 minutes – rotate the bezel so that the value 15 is just opposite the minute hand – that’s all, as soon as the minute hand moves to the position of a bright triangle on the bezel, you will understand that the timer ends at 15 minutes. With 15 minutes, the example is not very good, but 40 minutes is really easier to determine than to do “by eye”. In any case, this does not cancel the fact of primitiveness, but it does not cancel the fact of a functional bezel.

“Specifications of EFS-S550”]

• Case / bezel material: Stainless steel
• One-touch 3-fold Clasp
• Stainless Steel Band
• Sapphire Glass with non-reflective coating
• Anti-reverse Bezel
• Black ion plated bezel
• 100-meter water resistance

• Solar powered
• 1-second stopwatch
  Measuring capacity: 29’59
  Measuring modes: Elapsed time, split time, 1st-2nd place times
• Date display
• Regular timekeeping
  Analog: 3 hands (hour, minute, second),
  3 dials (24-hour, stopwatch minutes, stopwatch seconds)
• Accuracy: ±20 seconds per month
• Operating time from full charge until hands stop: Approx. 5 months Size of case : 50×47×12mm
• Total weight : 153g

With the functions, everything is clear, they are already good. Yes, not the most powerful and not the most practical. Their presence is still pleasing. I would like to remind you of two “chips” that pull a series from the budget pit and take it to a new level: solar power, sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating. This is really the top one: we forget about changing the batteries for decades [they have been living with them for 10 years] and enjoy the excellent dial without small scratches [this is the norm for sapphire crystal].

I also liked the very high-quality fabric strap. It is he who gives the watch the speed of a sports car, modernity and even convenience. The strap is “sewn” into the case, so you can only remove it by removing the mounting studs.

Conclusions

The EFS-S550BL-1AV turned out to be mega beautiful. Automotive styling, a trio of side buttons and a fabric strap always make chronograph designs very attractive. The functional part is weak, but the watch is definitely not about functions. The EFS-S550 series is more about reliability and the beauty of analog watches, which is certainly what it is.

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Firstly published, but we carefully translated into English.