I bought this watch for my mother last year.  She has macular degeneration and is legally blind.  She cannot live without this talking watch as I experienced this year when it no longer talked.  I wasn't able to get the cover off to change the batteries and I brought it to a watch store and he wasn't able to get the back cover off either.  That is my only complaint about this watch.  Avalon said to send it back to them with 8.50 for S&H and they would fix it.  The cost of materials would be extra.  It takes two batteries one for regular time and one for "talking" time.  When the watch stopped talking I bought a new watch right away and will send this one back to the factory so my mother can have a back-up watch.  It's important for people with low vision to feel independant knowing what time it is without having to ask other people.  This was a very good investment in keeping my mother independant.  My only wish is that the battery would last longer than 1 year and that I could change out the battery myself.