The World Just Keeps Getting Better

I lost my watch. I wanted to replace it with the exact same model, because I’ve memorized the the pushbutton sequences and I don’t deal well with change. So I went down to the Wal-Mart where I’d bought this watch, oh, probably about six years ago, but Wal-Mart, which deals with change better than I do, had “upgraded” to a more fashionable selection.

So how do you shop for a Casio watch without knowing the model number? And how does your answer change if I tell you that Casio makes over 1000 models?

Answer: You spend about a minute and a half on Google and discover a site called dealtime.com, which knows about every one of those models (and of course about a gazillion other watches from about a gazillion other makers too). Dealtime asks you a bunch of questions about the watch: Digital or analog? Casual or dressy? Square face or circular face? It brings up a page with pictures of the 32 models that fit your criteria. There in the middle of the page is your watch.

You click on the watch, and dealtime brings up a list of five websites where you can buy this model, in a neat little chart showing prices and customer ratings of the sellers. At the top of the list is etronics.com, offering your watch for $14.99. Two days later, you have your watch.

All that technology to sell me a fifteen dollar watch! Oh, God, I love the web.