Is the Casio GW-9400-1CR the Best GShock? Yes!

Watch Model: Casio Men’s GW-9400-1CR Master of G Watch
Movement: Quartz movement with analog display
Case Diameter (mm): 41
Case Thickness (mm): 13
Warranty: 2-Year Warranty

GW-9400-1CR

GW-9400-1CR Watch Face

Introducing G Shock RANGEMAN, the latest addition to the Master of G series of tough and rugged timepieces that are designed and engineered to stand up to the most grueling conditions imaginable. G Shock RANGEMAN employs a Shock Resistant Triple Sensor, which makes it capable of keeping altitude, barometric pressure, temperature and direction readings at your fingertips.
All of this plus sunrise/sunset data, one-touch time recording, one-touch elapsed time measurement, world-renowned G-Shock toughness and durability, and much more makes RANGEMAN the perfect choice for rangers, rescue crews, and anyone else whose profession or activities demand unfailing reliability. Black resin band digital watch with black face, red accents on the dial and the side button.

Casio

With the launch of its first watch in November 1974, Casio entered the wristwatch market at a time when the watch industry had just discovered digital technology. As a company with cutting-edge electronic technology developed for pocket calculators, Casio entered this field confident that it could develop timepieces that would lead the market.

Today, Casio is focusing its efforts on solar-powered radio-controlled watches: the built-in solar battery eliminates the nuisance of replacing batteries, atomic timekeeping means the users never have to reset the time. Recently, Casio launched a series of Bluetooth watches that sync to the users cell phone to automatically update the time. Casio is always moving time forward.

Sensors

The G Shock Rangeman represents the next evolutionary step for G Shock. Apparently this Triple sensor model will be making the twin sensor Riseman redundant. Being that all necessary specs are already avail. I will not go over those features as with other reviews of mine. However, I will instead focus on a real world assessment of the watch. Actually, the word watch is a bit of an understatement. This is more of a wrist top computer with a focus on the outdoor enthusiast or any individual who’s job requires them to be in the field much of the time.

GW-9400-1CR

GW-9400-1CR Lume shot

 

The Master of G/Rangeman G-Shock is said to stand for the “Triple 10” concept, which means a combo of 10-meter free fall resistance, 10-year battery life, and 200-meter water resistance. At 53.5 mm X 18 mm thick or (2.10 X 0.7 inches) it is quite big on any wrist size but it wears very well and is very comfortable at only 0.20 lb (93g).

Design

It has been suggested by some that this is a beast of a watch. Not so. It really is not much larger than the Riseman when on the wrist. Certainly smaller than the King. Very comfortable albeit noticeably heavier. However it’s girth feels more like quality than anything else. Anyone with some experience with G Shock will find the set up intuitive. In fact I didn’t use the manual for initial set up. The buttons are knurled metal with just enough tension when depressing and easy to use when wearing gloves. The stopwatch is a treat. Simply press the bottom R button at anytime and it’s go time! The stop watch takes no set up, no start. One press and it’s off. So, for workouts it’s perfect (or when the need to start an event at an exact time is necessary). The module is a real step up from my beloved Riseman: it responds nearly immediately when activating compass, altimeter etc. One thing I love is the sunrise/sunset feature allowing you to check a specific date for this info in whatever time zone you so choose.

 

Now the icing on the cake. I’ll explain the triple sensor and compass feature in greater detail since they are such an important part of the Rangeman.

GW-9400-1CR

GW-9400-1CR Button shot

Altimeter

Accurate, but affected by weather. I have a friend that’s Special forces airborne, he has always told me altimeters need to be adjusted to a known altitude before you use them. It’s no different for the watch. That said it has been accurate enough if my gps was toast, I could navigate a topo with it. It’s usually within 40-50 ft max so far without further calibration. I have a garmin 60csx and the altimeter usually matches within that range.

Barometer

The barometer graph works well when you are stationary, or very gradually change altitude. Live 300′ higher than my shop, so there’s always a jump in the graph from home to work and work to home. The baro/alarm works great, again without major altitude changes. If you are hiking it works, I had it go off, looked around and thought it was acting up. Nope, two hours later it started to rain, then the alarm went off again, the barometer shot back up. That indicates high winds in a storm, and boy did it storm. Ps. Atomic will not sync with barometer alarm on.
Altimeter

Thermometer

Ok first the thermometer in the watch is used for sensor operation, not really to take a temp reading. If your wearing the watch it reads skin temp. Not a big deal, I can tell if it’s hot or not. That being said I had to calibrate my temp, I left the watch alone for an hour on a counter with an accurate thermometer next to it. Then adjusted temp to match. Once that was done I calibrated the altimeter to my actual elevation using topographical info for my exact position. The barometer itself after those two adjustment were close to the local weather reading.

GW-9400-1CR

luminox comparison

Compass

It’s a digital compass what more do you need. Metal and electronics mess with it, but mechanical compasses have the same affliction. Again, properly calibrated, with a good topo, I can navigate with this watch if I had to. Would i head out with just the watch, no! But I’m not stupid. I usually take an extra compass, and spare batteries for the gps as well as quality topo maps for the area I’m in. But if everything else quit, I could find my way with the G Shock Rangeman.

 

Conclusion

For a reasonable price, you get a great watch that can withstand all of the things implied by an active life. This is the type of watch that I definitely recommend to anyone seeking for the best. Also considering that it is rated with some of the best reviews among all G-Shocks this can be an indicator of how pleasing this watch was for everyone who bought it. Check it out! You will not be disappointed. When you are ready to purchase, head over to Amazon and check out the new Low Price for the Casio GW-9400-1CR Master of G