In the wide, wide world of digital watches, how can you make a design that stands out? Particularly when the basic design is reminiscent of the ever-present Casio F-91? Well, you have to make it do something that we’ve not seen before, and the Timestop D-20 rolled a critical success in that regard.
Timestop D-20: what it is
To look at the Timestop D-20, you at first thing it’s like any other digital watch you’ve seen. You’ve got a decently-sized screen set into a square case, with two pushers on each side of the case. Pretty straightforward. In fact, two of those pushers are going to be familiar – “light” and “mode” on the left side. But the ones on the other side, for “roll” and “select”? Those are something new.
This is where the digital interpretation of click-clack math rocks (aka dice) comes into being. That’s also why you’ve got those polyhedron symbols across the top of the display. In short, you can roll dice (kick off a random number generator) for 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 20, or 100-sided dice. You can roll a single one, or you can roll up to 12 of a given die. Additionally, for those game systems that deal with advantage (or disadvantage), you can roll a D20 with that. The video below gets more into how this all works.
What else it has going on
There is one other thing I want to point out with the Timestop D-20 that is not immediately apparent, and it has to do with the pushers. We’re used to digital watches giving us mushy pushers, with nothing but a beep to let us know we’ve pressed something.
On this watch, they’ve actually gone and used mechanical pushers. Sure, it’s probably making a contact just like other digital watches, but with the addition of a clicky spring action. You’ll get a satisfying tactile response when you use the watch, and undoubtedly it’ll make for a fun fidget toy as well.
Wrapping things up
Frankly, the Timestop D-20 is just plain fun. If I was playing in a regular game, I’d probably want to have a set of regular dice with me. However, with this, you can be ready for a game whenever. Or not even for a game – sometimes you want to make a random decision, and that’s another thing that the watch can help you out with.
The limited edition (Session Zero) version of the Timestop D-20, with the stainless steel case, is available now for $159. Only 1,000 of these are being made. Following after those, the Session One models will be unlimited, and plan to start shipping in January 2025. The version with the orange resin case and strap will be $119, while the black resin case (and matched strap) will be $99. These look to be a lot of fun, and are available directly from timestoptech.com
Timestop D-20 Functions
- Time, Day, Date with Perpetual Calendar and 12/24 hour mode
- Quickroll Mode: Select and roll virtual single 4 to 20-sided die
- Combat Mode: Select and roll up up to 12 virtual 4 to 100-sided die, including Advantage or Disadvantage for D20
- Backlight Modes: Normal, Night Mode (illumination on every button press), Power Save (no indicator flash on roll)
Timestop D-20 Tech Specs
- Case: Stainless Steel or fiber-reinforced resin
- Crystal: Hardened Mineral Glass
- Water Resistance: 30m
- Band: Nylon, Polyester Fabric
- Fits Wrists: 5.5 – 8 in
- Clip: Stainless Steel
- Module: Timestop WP1
- Display: Wideview STN LCD
- Backlight: Diffused Dual Amber LED
- Buttons: Mechanical Switches
- Expected Battery Life: 3 yr
- Battery: CR2025
- Case Width: 37 mm
- Thickness: 10 mm
- Lug-to-Lug: 41 mm
- Lug Width: 20 mm
- Weight: 48 g
