April will mark the 40th anniversary of Casio releasing one of the most recognisable and enduring brands in digital watches: the G-Shock. And because everything old is new and cool again, to commemorate the occasion, the company will be releasing an updated version of the original DW-5000C G-Shock model with some welcome modern upgrades.
The idea for the G-Shock watch was born in 1981 when a Casio engineer wanted to create a timepiece that could not only survive the drop that broke his father’s pocket watch but a drop from a height of 9.75 m. It also needed to be water-resistant up to depths of 328 feet (10 bar) and be able to run for 10 years before needing a battery swap.
That was a tall order in the early eighties, but the original G-Shock model managed to deliver on all those performance specs thanks to some innovative over-engineering. The quartz crystal and the electronics inside the watch were encased in 10 layers of protection including rubber, stainless steel, and a floating foam cradle that helped absorb the shock of a drop. Even the watch’s buttons and LCD screen were connected to the internal electronics using flexible cables with extra slack so components could move around when bumped instead of getting yanked out of connectors and requiring repairs.
The new Casio GW5000U-1 isn’t an exact clone of the original DW-5000C — vintage digital watch collectors wouldn’t be happy if it was — but it looks close enough to satisfy retro nostalgia. Functionally, it’s more or less the same as the original, with a segmented LCD display showing the time and date, plus other functionality including a stopwatch, a timer, world time, five daily alarms, and an LED backlight.
Upgrades on the new GW5000U-1 include an antenna that can receive signals from six radio stations that broadcast around the world allowing the watch to set the current time itself and maintain accurate timekeeping. A rechargeable battery charges from light, with solar panels integrated into the watch’s face. On a full charge, it will run for about 10 months without being exposed to light, or up to 22 months if stored in darkness and the power-saving mode enabled. The new model’s water resistance has also been boosted to 666 feet.
The Casio GW5000U-1 is currently listed for $US300 ($416) on the company’s website, but it doesn’t appear to be available for actual purchase just yet. It’s doubtful it’s sold out already, but like last year’s Omega x Swatch Speedmaster MoonSwatch, which is still hard to find almost a year later, there’s a good chance retro collectors are going to be eager to snatch these up.