Hands on Review: Casio Enticer MDV-10 “Baby Duro”
In this hands-on-review section, I am introducing the newly launched Casio Enticer MDV-10 (Baby Duro), a compact-sized evolution of the MDV-107 diving watch.
Before proceeding further, let us go through the lineage of the new Casio Baby Duro (or Junior Duro).
Casio MDV 106
In 2011, Casio introduced a new model MDV 106, a recreational water-sports watch with a water resistance of 200 meters. When it was launched, the Casio Duro was priced less than $100. This much-loved affordable diving instrument has been nicknamed Duro Marlin since its dial carries an illustration of one of the speediest fishes in the oceans.
The Casio Duro MDV 106 aka Marlin has a stainless steel case with a Japanese quartz movement beating inside. It indicates time with three centre-hands layout and the date through a window at 3 o’ clock.
Other features include unidirectional diving bezel with aluminium insert, steel screw-in case-back, mineral glass, screw-lock crown, and resin wristband. Casio produced several variants of the Casio Duro Marlin 200m Diver.
Casio MDV 107
In 2022, Casio launched MDV 107, an evolution of the Duro diver. It shares most of the features of its predecessor. Surprisingly, in this new reference, Casio has opted to eschew the emblematic Marlin symbol on the dial. Water-resistant to 200m, this model offers two straps choices: resin band and stainless steel bracelet with one-touch 3-fold clasp.
Casio Enticer MDV-10 Review
The new Enticer MDV-10 takes inspiration from the legacy of the Casio Duro Marlin, but with concentrated dimensions and reduced water-resistance rating.
For this review, I bought a MDV-10-1A2V model from the Casio online store. First of all, I want to remind you that MDV-10 does not have the minimum water-resistance rating required for a diver’s timepiece.
It is worth mentioning that Casio Duro watches comply with ISO 2281 for water-resistant watches instead of ISO 6425 divers’ watches standard.
Water-resistant to 200 meters, MDV 106 and MDV 107 may be used for skin diving, recreational water-sports and marine activities. In comparison with the above models, MDV-10 is only 50 meter water-resistant, a huge disappointment for those who expected a compact diver from Casio.
Aesthetically, MDV-10 recreates all the design attributes of the MDV 107 model. The unidirectional rotating diving bezel is there for measuring elapsed time. It is topped with a mono-tone or bi-color aluminium insert featuring 0-60 scale and a triangle marker with a luminescent pip. The coin edged bezel is easy to operate.
The model featured here has a beautiful Pepsi (blue and red) bezel-insert evoking a widely accepted style introduced by the highly sought-after Rolex GMT watch of the 1950s.
In comparison with MDV 106 and MDV 107 models, the Casio Enticer MDV-10 is compact, measuring 38.5 mm in diameter including the crown, 42mm lug to lug and 10.4mm thickness.
Both 106 and 107 models have 46.3mm diameter, 49.5mm lug to lug length, 22mm lug/strap width, and 12.1mm thickness.
The aesthetics style of the MDV-10 Pepsi bezel watch evokes the style of iconic Rolex GMT Master reference 6542, which is also known as Pussy Galore.
This solid stainless steel watch is fitted with a mineral glass on the dial side. The date and time-setting crown at 3 o’clock is not screw-in type. This timepiece houses a quartz movement, powered by a battery (SR626SW) with a life of approximately 3 years.
The smoothly finished black dial features the inscription WATER RESIST 50M above 6 o’clock marker. It is interesting to note that MDV 106 has the words WR 200M along with a Marlin illustration. In MDV 107, Casio eschewed the Marlin logo but retained the text, indicating the water-resistance of the watch.
MDV-10 comes with the same hand-set design of its big brothers. It has a big arrow-head hour-hand, a baton-shaped minute-hand and a long spear-shaped centre-seconds hand. In the Pepsi bezel model, the colour of the seconds hand is red.
The version with black bezel has a red seconds hand whereas the batman (bi-colour black & blue) variant comes with a blue one. In MDV-10, all the hands and hour markers are enhanced with Neobrite luminescent application. As shown below, the watch offers a good green luminous display in the darkness.
The hour-markers also follow the same theme of 106 and 107 models, but with a small difference that is visible only during a close inspection. In MDV-10, Casio removed the marker at 3 o’clock and placed the date window more closely to the outer dial ring.
With the date at 3 o’clock and centrally placed hands indicating the hours, minutes and seconds, MDV-10 can be used as a daily beater. Moreover, its dimensions and styling are equally suited for all genders with slender wrists.
MDV-10 comes with a snap on case-back (MDV 106 and 107 have screw-in case-backs) in stainless steel engraved with model details and other relevant specifications.
The model featured in this review has a black synthetic resin band, which is durable and flexible. It is fitted with a regular pin buckle in steel.
The lug/strap width is 16mm. In addition, Casio is offering versions with a stainless steel bracelet or fabric wristband.
The MDV-10 model weighs a mere 58 g with a resin strap and 85 g with a stainless steel bracelet. It is to be noted that the weight of 106/107 is 92 g with a resin strap and 144 g with a stainless steel bracelet.
The current retail price of MDV-10 is near about $100. It is a little bit high as the popular MDV 106 Marlin costs only $75 in the USA. Moreover, the indicative price of MDV 107 is approximately $95.
In my opinion, MDV-10 is unusually small and less masculine. What we need is a bona fide compact diver with a case diameter of 40mm or slightly higher. The water-resistance rating should be 100m or higher, better if certified according to ISO 6425.
Casio Enticer MDV-10: Pros and cons
Pros: Lightweight, compact and comfortable to wear. Suited for both genders with thin wrists. Good lume. Well defined aesthetic style.
Cons: Very small in size and lacks masculinity. Water-resistance rating (50m) is a big drawback.
Other Versions
MDV-10-1A1V: Black dial, black bezel-insert, black resin band
MDV-10D-1A1V: Black dial, black bezel-insert, stainless steel bracelet
MDV-10D-1A3V: Black dial, Pepsi bezel-insert, stainless steel bracelet
MDV-10D-1A2V: Black dial, Batman (black & blue) bezel-insert, stainless steel bracelet
MDV-10C-1A2VEF: Black dial, Batman (black & blue) bezel-insert, dual-tone fabric wristband
