Timex x Pac-Man T80: Room For Squares

Welcome back to Room For Squares. Today we’re leaving the placid waters of Casio G-SHOCK ownership to consider two questions. Why would Timex make a flimsy digital watch with a Pac-Man overlay in 2019? Why can’t I get a Timex x Pac-Man T80 at any price?

The Timex T80 is a pretty simple digital watch, made in China to very modest standards. Don’t confuse this digital timepiece with a G-SHOCK of any kind. The T80 is more properly considered a successor to the 1977 “Star Wars” glowing-LED fashion watch. In other words, it’s not drop-proof, water-proof or shock-proof.

On the positive side, it’s dirt-cheap. If you take advantage of the Timex first-time-buyer 15% discount, the T80’s between fifty-something and sixty-something bucks.

Well that’s how much it was, before collectors swooped down and bought ’em all. That said, can still get a Timex T80 in any color you like as long as it’s black, and not a Pac-Man model (as above).

Want a non-Pac-Man polished-steel T80? eBay has them for $200 and up. Want a gold-tone model? You’ll have better luck buying a Casio GD-9. But the absolute apex of this instant-sellout kinda-collectible is the Timex x Pac-Man T80 collaboration. Those nostalgic watches are going for serious coin.

There are three models on Timex’ website, all long since sold out. You can get on the list for a restock; I did so months ago and haven’t heard a word. The very few which have come up for resale have fetched around five hundred bucks, and they sell almost immediately.

Put it another way: I can get you a Rolex Kermit or Hulk or a Patek Philippe Nautilus faster than I can get you a Timex T-80 Pac-Man. All of those are in the resale market, albeit for inflated prices. The Pac-Man is just . . . a ghost.

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