Casio's $30 A168 Gets Nikon-Style Redesign, Now Costs Nearly 7x More

A new custom watch from PPP Cameras, dubbed the N168, is now listed online, and it's built around the familiar Casio A168WE. Please note that this is not an official Casio release. It’s a third-party rework that goes all in on a Nikon camera-inspired style.

The underlying watch hasn’t changed. It still uses the standard A168 digital module with alarm, stopwatch, and backlight. There’s no indication of any functional upgrades, so the focus here is clearly on style and design rather than bonus features.

The display has a yellow tint, which is a clear reference to Nikon’s color. The strap uses black canvas with yellow stitching, very similar to camera straps. The case shape stays close to the original. Branding like "Illuminator" is still visible, which makes it clear this isn’t a full redesign.

There are three versions shown: Chrome, Black, and Titanium. All look like slight variations of the same idea rather than different watches.

However, pricing is the main aspect here. The chrome and titanium versions are listed at £150 ($200), whereas the black version goes up to £170 ($226). That’s several times higher than a regular A168WA-1, for instance (curr. $30 on Amazon), which usually sits in the low-end range of $20-$30.

Plus, as of writing, the black variant is sold out on the PPP Cameras website.

This is a pretty common pattern. The A168 often gets reworked or customized because it’s simple, low-cost and widely available. Most of those mods are usually affordable. This one - not so much.

Hence, the value comes down to design. You’re paying for the theme, not new features. For some Nikon enthusiasts, this design overhaul might hit a sweet spot. For others, it’s still the same A168 underneath, just at a much higher price.

The N168 represents an interesting case study in the custom watch market, where third-party modifiers take affordable base models and transform them into premium-priced collectibles. While the functional core remains unchanged, the Nikon-inspired aesthetic targets a specific enthusiast demographic willing to pay a substantial premium for thematic design elements.

This pricing strategy mirrors what we’ve seen with other camera brand collaborations in the watch world, though most official partnerships typically offer more substantial feature upgrades or exclusive movements to justify their higher price points. Here, the value proposition rests entirely on the visual execution and the appeal of Nikon’s brand identity to photography enthusiasts.

The sold-out status of the black variant suggests there’s genuine demand for this type of niche customization, even at prices that represent a 600% markup over the standard model. Whether this represents a sustainable market trend or a one-off success for PPP Cameras remains to be seen, but it’s clear that the intersection of camera culture and watch collecting continues to produce interesting, if sometimes expensive, results.