G-Shock Model Reviews

Get a tough new watch to welcome the winter season, with Casio’s all new Urban Tough collection!

Coming together with “New Era” (a company known for its wide variety of accessories), Casio’s Urban Tough series includes a wide screen digital watch, along with a woolen G-Shock black cap (with the logo actually featuring a black metal badge)!

The watch itself is the DW-5600NEWERA. The DW series has always been known for their toughness – in fact, the very first G-Shock watch was the DW-5000, which goes to show you just how tough and popular this series is!

The DW-5600NEWERA keeps all the features that made G-Shocks popular. You have the shock resistance to protect from falls, 200m water resistance so you can go swimming and, being a fully digital watch, you’ve got an extra-strong backlight to show you the time even when it’s pitch black.

This watch is a limited edition, and has the New Era logo showcased on the band, stamped on the back of the timepiece, and even shows up on the watch face. It’s a must-have for any collectors.

Look for the watch and cap to come to our stores soon!

Until Next Time. Jimmy B.

Introducing the Casio G-Shock GA-500 series.

A new addition to Casio’s ever-growing G-Shock family, the GA-500 series is becoming the number 1 choice for those playing urban sports (such as Parkour, Street Basketball, Freerunning, etc.).

The watch comes in three colours: Black, Black and Red and White. All three watches have what’s known as a negative display (which is white numbers on a dark screen. All three are both analogue and digital, in case you prefer one over the other.

The GA-500s have an extra-wide screen, to rival the GA-110 series. The analogue markers are colour coded to match the motif of each watch, and they stand out in order to ensure they can be easily seen.

The hands do sometimes get in the way of the digital display, but Casio has long since solved that problem with the introduction of the Hand-Shift feature. As simple as it sounds, the press of a button will let you move the hands for a few seconds, so that you can see the digital time. Then, they go back to where they belong, without losing a single second of time!

And speaking of time, the GA-500s are great for athletes trying to improve their times! See, Casio added a very special feature to their GA500 series: Target Time stopwatch. Working similar to the countdown timer, the Target Time mode allows you to input a time limit. Then, once the limit has been reached, the stopwatch will sound an alarm. By using this, athletes can set new goals for themselves and keep improving.

That’s not the only change with the stopwatch though. Quite a few customers have complained that it takes too long to find the stopwatch mode. So Casio decided to add a new mode called Direct Start. Just like it sounds, the watch can go into the stopwatch mode, with a single press of a button!

Don’t forget, these are Casio watches, so each model comes with 200m water resistance, and 100m shock resistance, so you can take the watch with you, wherever you want to go!

The Casio G-Shock, GA500 is in store now!

Until Next Time – Jimmy B

A while ago, we showcased the GA-700 series. Well, Casio wasn’t happy to just coast on its success, and has come up with an upgrade for this budget model. Introducing the GA-710 series!

This series has three models. The black GA-710-1A, the black and blue GA-710-1A2 and the black and gold GA-710GB-1A. Each watch is analogue/digital, with a garish colour scheme, making it easy to spot even in the dark due to the glint they give off. That’s because the band and body of the watch is half matte, half sheen.

Both the analogue and digital parts have a very large display area. It’s easy to read no matter what you focus on. However, if you feel the hands are getting in the way of the digital screen, simply press a button and the hands will move for a small amount of time. After a while, the hands will come back, so you don’t need to do anything else.

When it comes to analogue/digital combos, there’s been one complaint from pretty much everybody that buys them: The backlight is too dull. To take care of this issue, Casio added a super illuminator, so both the analogue and digital screens can be easily read at night. To turn on the backlight, simply press the metallic button just below the display. It’s out of the way so you don’t accidentally press it.

One new feature exclusive to the GA-710s is the target time alarm in the stopwatch. What this means is, you can set a time limit for your jog (or even for doing exams), and when the watch gets to the time limit, it’ll start making noise. That’s a great way for you to practice!

The GA-710 series is coming soon to BuyWatchesOnline!

Until Next Time

Jimmy B

GA-110LN Layered Neo-Coloured Series.

For those of you who want their watches to stand out, you can’t look past the all-new GA-110LN Layered Neo-Coloured series. Using the ever-popular GA-110 series as a template, each model has the usual dark matte colours for the outer band and bezel. It’s when you look closer that you notice the big difference.

Each of these four watches has a brightly coloured band, corresponding to the bezel colour. You’ve got the Black and blue GA-110LN-1A, Blue and yellow GA-110LN-2A, Green and orange GA-110LN-3A and finally, the Grey and green GA-110LN-8A. Each watch band is made using a new process, called bi-colour molding, which is what gives the band its unique dual-colour look.

The neon-colours match the hands in the analogue display, as well as the digital numbers, so you can easily see the time.

Because these watches use a GA-110 template, you know you’re getting an extra-large screen, magnetic protection, along with 200m water resistance and 100m shock resistance.

Look for the GA-110LN series early this year. If you'd like a closer look, then please see the video below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_zXZI7u3qs

GA-700 Series

Welcome to today’s in-depth look at the all new GA-700 series! This is a budget model that comes in five options – Black, Black with Red Highlights, Red, White or Blue.

The XL casing gets an updated design - one that's sure to turn heads. With this series, Casio have combined the successful designs from a few different models and the result speaks for itself.

This is a great alternative to the GA-100 series, being quite a bit cheaper, while keeping the analogue-digital combo functions, and adding new ones that weren’t in the GA-100s. One such cool function is what’s known as the Hand-Shift feature.  If the hands get in the way of the digital window, the press of a button moves them out of the way. After a set amount of time, the hands will move back to where they’re supposed to be, without losing time sync. While this particular function isn’t new, it’s new to the budget models, and helps to always ensure visibility.

Another good feature that I noticed, the backlight is much more powerful than the GA-100 series, which means easier visibility in the dark. That’s always been one of the main complaints with combo watches, so it’s nice to see that Casio are listening.

With regards to the digital display, if you prefer a negative display, then you’ll be happy with the GA-700-1B, GA-700-4A, and 7A. If you’d rather have the normal (dark numbers on a light background) display, then you’ll be looking at the GA-700-1A and GA-700-2A.

On the analogue side of things, it’s hard not to talk about the hands. With a silver coating, the hands look as metallic as the hour markers, making them easy to see.

As with all G-Shocks, the GA-700 is shock resistant, 200m water resistant, and the resin band, along with the mineral glass, are both scratch resistant. Casio knows that a watch is a long-term investment, and treats it like one.

The GA-700 Series is on sale NOW! Until Next Time. Jimmy B

The GA-100 by itself is innovative. It’s the first Casio watch to have magnetic resistance, as well as a 1/1000-sec stopwatch. It’s paved the way for the Camouflage series, and the originals are being used by the military to this day! Now, with the cracked pattern series of watches, The GA100 Series is back in a big way! This set of 3 watches (Black, white and navy) have a series of patterns looking just like cracks showing throughout the band and body, even including the display! The cracked pattern, according to Casio, represents the toughness of the watches, because even if your watch becomes cracked, it’ll still work perfectly.

This pattern will definitely stand out from the crowd, and it can add to the longevity of the watch by masking normal wear and tear, making the watch suitable to wear for a longer period of time.

The process used to transform these watches is amazing in its own right. Instead of simply imprinting a pattern like they did with the Camouflage models, Casio’s machines add a layer of paint to the band and body, then use lasers to peel off part of the paint as it’s still fresh.

As this is based on the GA-100 Series, you’ll find the same innovative qualities that made the GA100 a force to be reckoned with. You get Magnetic resistance, 200m water resistance as well as 100m shock resistance.

If you’re a runner, you’ll love the 1/1000-sec stop watch, which comes with an exclusive feature called the Speed Indicator. If you put in the distance of a lap into the stopwatch, then when you do the run you’ll also be told how fast you were going.

I hope you enjoyed this feature, look for the GA-100CG Watches in early 2017. Until Next Time – Jimmy B.

Thirty years is a long time to stay in the spotlight. You have to stay relevant, you have to bring attention to yourself again and again (most importantly, the good kind)! So how did G-Shock manage to do this? By listening to its customers, and adding a lot of different watches, for all walks of life.

G-Shock was created by Casio, and its main concern is toughness. In fact, their first ever watch, the DW-5000, was said to be indestructible. That claim has since been proven accurate, after a series of exhaustive tests – one of which included dropping the watch from a helicopter!

Ever since, Casio listened to consumers, and brought out watches that were relevant for them. There’s “Tough Solar” watches (with panels so powerful that even artificial light is enough to charge the battery). There’s two different types of Bluetooth watches (one of which lets you control your iPad’s music library at the touch of a button, while the other one lets you set the time from your mobile phone). And that’s just scratching the surface!

At the start, people using G-Shocks might have been explorers, hikers, anybody working outdoors, but Casio slowly started to win over all sorts of crowds. How? Well, one way is partnership.

This year, Casio teamed up with a company called In4mation. The group, made up of four partners Ryan Arakaki, Todd Shimabuku, Jun Jo, and Keith Kanagusuku, has proven to be  one of the fastest trendsetters for skateboarders, surfers, and many others.

The fruits of their first collaboration is an update to the most popular Surfing watch Casio has come up with – the G-Lide GAX-100X-4A.

The watch is bright orange, with a sky-blue display, and has the In4mation logo on the band, the buckle rings, as well as engraved into the back of the watch.

Not just there for looks, the watch has a Tide Graph, which can tell you how high the tide is throughout the day (one of the reasons this watch is so popular among professional surfers).

Casio focuses on trends, as well as what its customers want, and that is one of the main reasons it has remained relevant and top selling.

Welcome, and welcome back to the best guide around, Jimmy B’s guide to Casio Watches. For the past few weeks I’ve been talking about the best G-Shocks and the best Baby-Gs. I’ve showcased what I thought were the most important features. Thanks to an emailed question from one of you though, today’s article will be more in depth than before. I’ll be comparing Casio’s flagship GA-110 series, with their Baby-G version (BA-110). What’s changed? What was kept in? Ready? Here we go!

The GA110 series is undoubtedly the flagship of Casio’s Extra-Large cases. Out of all the models, the GA-110 has the most variations. With that in mind, Casio decided to give kids, girls and women with smaller wrists a chance to enjoy this series. Thus came the BA-110 series.

The picture you’re looking at now is the GA-110GB-1A and the BA-110-1A

First thing’s first: the size. As you can see in the picture above, the style looks almost exactly the same, but the Baby-G case is a bit smaller. 8mm smaller to be exact. This helps it look less oversized on a smaller wrist.

While it’s smaller, both watches are pretty much the same thickness, which ensures the same toughness. They also match so it’s a great “his and hers” watch model (I’ll be talking a little more about this later on).

So, as you can see, when it comes to looks, both the GA-110SN and its BA-110SN counterpart look almost identical.

Now onto something else that matters: The features.

Now, right away we can see there are some major differences. While both watches are Shock Resistant, only the GA-110GB is magnetic resistant and 200m water resistant (as opposed to the 100m water resistance of the BA110).

On the other hand, the BA-110 has 5 daily alarms, as opposed to the 4 in the men’s version. The final main feature difference, is the GA110GB has a 1/1000-sec stopwatch, which gives a little bit more accuracy compared to the 1/100-sec (and also comes with a nifty speed approximator).

Externally, you can see the GA-110 is wider, and it has a larger band length than the BA-110. Finally, the BA-110 is lighter by almost 15 grams.

Now, you may be wondering what the point is in getting a BA VS a GA. Simple, sometimes you don’t need the functions missing in the female version. Not many people are desperate for a 1/1000-sec stopwatch, and some people might be more comfortable with a smaller band and case.

As an aside, while this table concentrated on the BA-110 and the GA-110, the functions and sizes are the same in any BA-110 and GA-110 variants.

So we’ve had the size comparison and feature comparison, but what about the watches themselves? While the Baby-G has struck out on its own with a BA-111, BA-112 variant, Casio still comes out with new GA-110 variants. If you’re after watches for yourself and your partner, then simply look for variants with a BA or GA.

For example, Casio have the Denim watches. Here you’ll find both the his and hers variants, and they match pretty much perfectly. While the band itself is made of resin, a first, second and even third look would make people think you’re wearing a watch with a denim case.

They also have the Tribal watches. If you’ve ever been to the Philippines, or Samoa, you’re likely to recognize the tribal patterns on these watches. While the Baby-G here has a wider range of colours, the black and white G-Shocks still complement each other perfectly

Well that’s it for today’s article. I hope it was informative and don’t hesitate to send more questions and suggestions. Until Next Time. Jimmy B.

G Shock watches gained popularity in the 80s as a rugged alternative to the standard analog watch, which was fragile and old fashioned. They quickly became popular for those that played sports and for people that lived more active lifestyles.

The most popular G Shock Series are:

• The Rangeman

Known as the Master of G, the Rangeman is a fully digital watch that comes with a thermometer, compass and all the tools you need for the great outdoors. It’s also solar powered, which means no more changing the battery

• The Mudman

Made for people who are not only active but spend a lot of time in the mud, the Mudman is popular among people in the army. Specifically protected against mud and other weather calamities, the Mudman comes in two versions (Solar powered and Battery powered) with a variety of colours for each.

• Big-Case series

The GA-100 series has been considered a trendsetter due to being one of the first big-case series of watches. It also introduced the 1/1000-sec stopwatch, which gives you your approximate speed after you finish your run.

• GA-110 Series

Also known as the Extra-Large series, this was the evolution of the GA-100s. Keeping the same features people loved (such as the above mentioned stopwatch, and a resistance to magnetic fields), the digital display is split into the top and bottom of the display, for easier reading. This case is the basis for a lot of Casio’s updates, such as the Tribal Pattern Limited Edition watch

• Gulfmaster Series

Rounding off the top models is the Casio Gulfmaster. The watch was made for divers as well as surfers. The watch can be used to calculate how high the tide can get, and it also introduced the “Hand Shift” feature, which allows you to move the arrows out of the way, if they get in the way of a digital display).

Reviewing the GW-9400-3

Now, a few editions ago, we were looking at the GW-9400-1DR, the Black Rangeman. Well, due to popular demand, and because I have noticed even more things, we will be focusing on the GW-9400-3DR (camouflage green) version. As usual I’ll run through the specific features, and at the end tell you who I think the watch would be suitable for. Ready? Let’s get started!

One thing I didn’t mention before, is that the Rangeman is part of a special lineup called the “Master of G”. These watches are actually specifically made for extreme sports. That’s why lots of people have remarked that the Rangeman is more sturdy, it was built that way.

Now, a weird thing is that this watch touts a “triple sensor” because there’s actually four sensors (maybe quadruple sensor wouldn’t fit?). The four sensors are Thermometer, Digital Compass, Altimeter, and Barometer.

That’s perfect for climbers and adventurers! You can go hiking, and if you get lost, you can always get your bearings with the compass, while keeping an eye out on the conditions with the barometer and thermometer. (so you’ll know when it’s time to seek shelter). Plus, the altimeter lets you check just how high you’ve climbed.

The sensors are actually good for the military as well. I bought this watch as a present for one of my friends in the army, and aside from loving the olive green colour (which is great for when you’re camouflaged), he was impressed by how much more accurate the sensors made his shots. The Rangeman provides temperature and barometric pressure readings, which are two of the most useful non-wind weather readings for ballistics. This, along with Sunrise/Sunset information would help him when scouting out a location, because he could record the time of day, wind direction, as well as the location of the sun. Then he’d just use the thermometer to adjust for ambient temperature. Yeah I know, it sounds complicated, but if you’re in the military, or just like to shoot for fun, this is a great model for you.

I said before that this watch is tough, well it’s also 200m water resistant. So if you like swimming you don’t have to worry about the watch. Just make sure you’ve dried it off before pressing any buttons, or the seal will fail. But look on the bright side: If you’ve forgotten to take the watch off when you’re going for a bath/shower (and let’s face it, most of us are guilty of doing that at least once), the watch will still be working perfectly once you’re done.

One of the nicest things about the Rangeman, is that you don’t need to worry about setting the time. It’s got a radio controlled feature to do that for you. Now, by radio control I don’t mean that you can use the radio or a remote to control it. What I mean is that the radio frequencies from the atomic clock in your area, automatically update the time a little after midnight every night.

For runners, one of the most frustrating things I’ve found in other Casio watches is it takes ages to get to the stop watch mode (with some watches you have to press the mode button 6 or 7 times just to get to what mode you need). Well they’ve redesigned the features so all you have to do is press the lower right button while in time mode, and you’ve got the stopwatch. And if you want to get back to the home screen, you don’t have to keep tapping the mode screen, just hold it for a few seconds and you get back to the main screen. Personally, I’m really impatient so I kind of like that feature.

Now, this wouldn’t be a true review if I didn’t mention the frustrating bits, and there are only a few. The first is actually mentioned at the top of my article. The watch is HUGE. If you have a small wrist, it’s more likely to fall off, and it would look way too big on it. Sure it’s more of an aesthetic complaint, but in this day and age, looks mean a lot more.

The other annoyance, though quite minor, is the metal keeper on the watch (the keeper, for those who don’t know, is that rubber/metal “thing” [sorry actually can’t think of a better word for it] that keeps the excess part of the watch band in place). A few people have mentioned that they end up having to adjust the keeper every time because it wouldn’t hold in place. I did find myself adjusting it a few times but it was more of an annoyance than anything else.

So, who is the watch good for? Well, as mentioned earlier it is perfect for adventurers, hikers, and anybody who’s active, as well as people serving in the military, or those that like to shoot. The compass will help you keep from getting lost, the barometer and altimeter will help you keep an eye on the weather, and if you like to run laps, it’s easy to get to the stopwatch. There are a LOT more features than what I’ve gone through, but I have to stop somewhere or you’d get bored!

So, I hope you enjoyed this review, and if you feel I missed something, or you have an idea of what model you want me to cover next, then feel free to let me know in the comments.

Until next time.

Jimmy B.