Our favourite Casio G-Shock watches of 2024

Tom Austin

There’s just no stopping Casio’s success with the G-Shock. The brand is now a pop-culture icon and has managed to blend the need for timepieces that are impossibly rugged and near indestructible with the ever-changing world of fashion. Watches, for the most part, these days, are somewhat redundant as tools, as we all have access to knowing the time wherever we are, but G-Shocks have somehow tapped into a niche where it’s about both doing the job it sets out to do, but also becoming an expression of style and taste. 2024 is no different, with young celebrities like Central Cee or Billie Eilish continuing to embrace G-Shocks as they have for decades gone by, the brand is continuing to be etched into the minds and hearts of new watch fans everywhere. It’s just as well, then, that this year Casio has released multiple G-Shocks to whet our appetites, so here’s the pick of our favourites of 2024.

Casio CRW-00101ER Ring Watch

Ok, so technically, it’s not a G-Shock, but we just had to add this to this list as a celebration of Casio’s playful designs, and well, its appearance is kind of based on a G-Shock anyway, so we’ll let it off. We’ve all heard about the stories of people ordering furniture online, only for it to arrive and it’s actually for a doll’s house. This is giving off a similar vibe, only in a watch. Measuring at a fraction of the size of a normal G-Shock, this watch is, of course, meant to be worn on the finger rather than the wrist, comes in stainless steel, and, yes, has a fully functioning Casio digital watch module and screen, and even features an LED light.

Released to celebrate Casio’s 50 years in watchmaking, the ring watch is more than just a piece of timekeeping jewellery. Casio wanted to show off their cutting-edge advancements in precision metal moulding on a smaller scale and also how they have managed to miniaturise a fully functioning digital module down to 1/10th of the scale of the full-size version. It’s quite an impressive feat of engineering, with the watch having some degree of water resistance, a toughened mineral crystal, and an alarm and date display, providing you have good enough eyes to read it, of course. Availability is a little scarce at the moment, with more being released in the new year. Price: US$129

G-Shock Two-Tone Utility Collection

Summer 2024 saw a new collection of G-Shocks arrive that were slightly more versatile than initially thought. The Two-Tone Utility collection was released, comprising five watches in a rugged, blocked colourway of black and beige or olive. At first glance, you’d be forgiven for thinking these were military-issue watches for the special forces out in the desert, and quite frankly, that indeed would be their natural habitat. However, Casio had other plans; these watches were specifically released for a subset of fashionistas, the “Gorpcore” – a particular fashion trend related to wearing outdoor, utility-like clothing in urban environments. Sounds a little out there? Don’t worry, it did to me too when I first heard about it. Nevertheless, this is a very cool set of watches suitable for anyone, whether you’re a Marine or the closest thing you come to shooting are some Instagram reels.

The five watches in the collection came in the form of the DW6900TU-1A5, the GA110TU-1A5, the GX56TU-1A5 and two different versions of the GA100TU-1A3. All of the watches feature black resin cases, paired with either beige or olive green straps, with subtle flashes of bright colour on the dial. Naturally, all of the watches feature the excellent shock-resistant design all modern G-Shocks are known for, along with a bursting list of digital features, including world-time functionality, solar power, stopwatches, alarms and LED backlights. Price: US$110 (GA710TU-1A3), US$110 (GA100TU-1A3), US$110 (DW6900TU-1A5), US$130 (GA110TU), US$150 (GX56TU-1A5)

G-Shock GA-2100MNG

The first GA-2100 on this list (ok, make that two) was undoubtedly Casio’s hit of the year. The Manga Theme Series, released in July, is a pair of comic book-styled CasiOaks, with a rather bold look indeed. Starting off as two standard GA-2100s, the collection was inspired by Japan’s famous manga comic art style. Available in either blue or white, the entire watch, including the dial, bezel, and strap, featured a printed screentone effect, used by manga artists to apply texture, shading and depth to the characters to make them jump out of the page. No detail is spared on these, with even the text on the octagonal bezel being customised and the contours of the strap shaded with the screentone technique. Finally, each watch is finished with a unique caseback featuring the word “Don!” the Japanese equivalent of “BAM!” Price: US$195, though they’re long sold out

G-Shock GM-2100D

Casio is a hit machine when it comes to creating genre-defining pieces through the decades. The ’80s had the 5600, the ’90s had the 6900, and today, the 2100 (or the CasiOak as it has come to be known) has pretty much made it to legendary status already. Well aware of its fit-matching ability, Casio offers the GM-2100 range in an endless combination of colours and styles, and in 2024, they brought the first selection of metal-covered versions to the table. Featuring a bezel and Y-link bracket clad in stainless steel, the GM-2110D brought a much more grown-up look to the CasiOak, while retaining all the functionality and shockproof-ness as the other models thanks to its carbon core design. The watch launched with five dial options, all with a sunburst effect to finish off that metallic vibe nicely, matched with metallic hands and hour markers. Price: A$649 (~US$400), available from the T+T Shop

G-Shock Fratello x IFL Moonlander

2024 marked 55 years since the 1969 Apollo Moon landing, and Casio decided it was a great time to collaborate with our colleagues over at Fratello, along with customiser IFL Watches, to produce something special. We’re suckers for a great collab here at Time+Tide, and this limited-edition piece caught our eye for the most part thanks to that amazing, hand-painted dial. Each dial lovingly depicts the lunar surface, along with a starry cosmos background, finished off with an impeccably detailed miniature version of the Eagle lunar lander from the famous Apollo missions.

The watch itself is a Casio G-Shock 2100BB-1AER, this time dubbed the “Moonlander”, featuring a carbon core with an ion-plated stainless steel outer case. Each case has all of the text customised, too, filled with a specific blue to match the design of the dial. This particular model comes complete with a flat resin strap to keep things simple and comfortable. Of course, each watch comes complete with all the features of the 2100 series, and ironically, G-Shocks have found their way onto the wrist of many an astronaut in the past, so it’s a fitting tribute to one of the most important events of all time. Sadly, none of these watches are available anymore, and only 111 exist, so if you wish upon a star, you might get lucky one day. Price: €980 (~US$1,100)

G-Shock GWM-B5000SS-2

Another 50th anniversary celebration watch from Casio, and this time, it comes in the form of a tribute to the OG, the very first G-Shock, the legendary DW5000-C. Produced as part of the 50th anniversary “Sky & Sea” Casiotron-styled collection, this model comes in stainless steel, all while retaining that all-important shock-protecting technology. Consisting of brushed and polished surfaces, the case and bracelet have been respectfully reproduced to capture the spirit of the original watch. The contrasting blue bezel features the same “G-Shock Protection” monikers, while an inner fluted bezel in gold harks back to the first Casiotron, which this collection is based upon, both of which offer a flash of colour to liven things up. While it’s more of a jewellery kind of G-Shock, if that can even be a thing, the limited edition B5000SS boasts all the features of a modern G-shock. Bluetooth, radio control, solar power and multiple timing and alarm functions make up this toolbox of a watch, along with 200 meters of water resistance and, of course, that all-important indestructibility. Price: A$1,299 (~US$810), available from the T+T Shop

G-Shock MRG-B2100B-1ADR

Just one more 2100 on this list. Sort of. This time, it just had to be added for  being completely bonkers in its design. MR-G is Casio’s luxury line. Essentially, it’s a G-Shock, reimagined as the ultimate in luxury, design and craftsmanship in a very G-Shock kind of way. Think of it almost like how Lexus is to Toyota, and you’ll get the idea, making this the Lexus LFA of G-Shocks. At a glance, it looks like a run-of-the-mill CasiOak, but look closer, and this gets a whole lot more special.

The internals feature G-Shock’s carbon-core structure, however the watch and the bracelet are made from DAT55G, a scratch-resistant titanium alloy that is three times harder than normal titanium, especially with the DLC coating. It’s carefully hand-assembled, featuring a cool dial inspired by Japanese kigumo woodworking. The bezel structure alone is made from 27 intricately finished titanium components and fitted with a top bezel made from Cobarion, which is four times harder than normal titanium and is usually used for high-level biomedical applications. Price: US$5,450