Customer Reviews

Casio Men's GW9200-1 G-Shock Riseman Alti-Therm Solar Atomic Watch

5 star:		(64)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

By bringing together the toughness of a G-Shock and the core features of a Pathfinder/ProTrek, the Riseman is doubtlessly the best G-Shock on the market.

The Riseman is a technological tank: wrapped in a solid, eye-pleasing, and elaborate shield with brushed steel inserts is a high precision measurement instrument that gives very reliable readings of barometric pressure, altitude, temperature as well as reasonably accurate weather patterns. Fascinatingly, the watch gets its energy from the sun (or other minor sources of light, such as a bulb) and is the first watch in the world to synchronize time via radio waves from 6 different atomic clocks around the world (depending on your location). Other handy features: 24+ world times, 24hr stopwatch, 24hr countdown and 5 alarms.

The use of screen space in the main timekeeping mode is exceptional as it includes, besides the time, day & date, a 2-hourly reading of atmospheric pressure within the "red eye". This gives you an immediate idea of where the weather is going and adds a totally new spin on owning a watch that measures atmospheric pressure. The time is also displayed in all modes (except the altim.)

I found the Riseman extremely comfortable to wear throughout the day even in hot/humid weather thanks to the design of the band and despite its important size it is rarely invasive. The overall feel of the watch in your hands, and on your wrist, conveys the high quality of the materials used to achieve toughness as well as its unique look.

With its Gotham City inspired design, its cutting-edge features and its "battle proven" armor, the G-Shock GW9200 Riseman is definitely destined to become a milestone and a classic Master of G.

My brother is in the Marine Corps and when I saw his old watch I realized he needed something tough. His old watch had fallen apart due to physical beatings (the face was cracked) exposed to the elements (at the time he was stationed in Arizona)and the band was cracking.

I did research and came across the G-Shock. I read reviews for different models all over the internet and saw a lot of military personnel (both active and retired) give this watch rave reviews. It had the perfect amount of features (not too much, not too little) and wasn't flashy and followed his dress code for when he wears his Dress Blues and is lighter than it looks.

My brother got it for Xmas 08 and he has no complaints whatsoever. This watch has been subjected to the same abuse as the other (even more now that he is stationed in Afghanistan)and still looks new. The other guys on his base even liked it and went out and bought their own.

My brother says I found the perfect watch and I highly recommend it to others in the military.

I need to start off by saying my watch of choice are usually analog. I own a Tissot, a Citizen, a Swiss Army. I wanted a watch that was worry free and accurate. What I needed were:
1. solar recharge
2. atomic syncronizing
3. multi band
4. Able to read weather (this thing actually predicts the weather..cool!)
5. DURABLE

I needed an every day watch and this was perfect. I was really surprised when I took it out of the box and it was completely setup and ready to go. No need to go through lengthy setups with timezones and calanders. Not only that, but I'll NEVER have to do this to this watch. I also should note that it even syncs itself nightly. The manual suggests leaving it on a window facing south. However, Im able to just leave it anywhere in my house and it recieves.

This was also a test to see if a solar capable watch would work for me since I work in a "closed" area in a barely lit computer lab 9 hours a day and I rarely am in the light. So far, its been going like a champ after a month or so of daily use with the auto backlight on. It seems to get all the recharge it needs on the weekends when Im out. So solar test passed.

Im also not fond of big watches, and I was rather concerned this watch would look and feel big. Well, its extremely comfortable. The band is niceley adjustable and the watch is VERY light weight for a watch loaded with so many functions. Its very durable, I've already banged it quite a few times working around the house and on my car but this thing is indestructable. As for size, it is a bit clunky but thats the character of the watch. It in no way looks abnormal on me and I have very small wrists (computer geek here)

I have been wearing this watch and monitoring its performance for the past 4 weeks and can say that it is definitely worth it, especially if you're an outdoors enthisiast or just interested in gadgets.

Time keeping is exceptional, having maintained the time to the the exact second for the last three weeks. This may not seem like much to some, however where I live out here in the Caribbean, we don't receive time calibration signals. That being said, I have monitored the theremometer, altermeter and barometer functions against readings from my local MET office.

The guys were surprised at the level of accuracy on all three functions and while this watch was not intended to replace dedicated equipment for exploring the outdoors, its certainly useful and can provide a decent backup should your primary equipment fail.I've noticed that wearing the watch gives a differential of +3 degrees Celcius so I've calibrated the thermometer to 3 degrees less to compensate for the difference and is spot on in comparison to my house thermometer. In this way you don't need to take the watch off for 30 minutes to allow it to adjust, in order to read the ambient temperature accurately.

I've used many of the battery demanding functions throught the day and never had issues of the battery running low, bearing in mind that this is an atomic solar watch. Through my daily activities the watch does get some exposure to the sun allowing the battery to be charged up again but definitely no complaints in the power consumption departemnt.

Comfort wise, it fits nicely on the wrist without being overly bulky with a nice wrist presence and slim enough profile. The band design is comfortable and allows for good circulation of air and quick drying of moisture which helps keep your wrist cool and dry.

Weight wise, its a very light watch but build wise it seems to be quite durable and capable of taking a beating.

Overall, this is a good solid and accurate watch for daily wear and I'm sure that you too will be pleased should you decide to purchase one yourself.

This is an outstanding watch. The only down side is that the altitude sensor works off barometric pressure and is therefore subject to inaccuracy as the weather changes. I knew this going in though, so it wasn't unexpected. You can enter altitude corrections, but unless you're carrying a barometer with you, who knows what the actual pressure is. Temperature is also inaccurate due to body temp when the watch is worn.
I was in Liepzig,Germany with this watch and it successfully negotiated an update with the radio signal present there. It's great when traveling and crossing multiple time zones.

Fantastic watch...solar+atomic+perpetual calendar mean set it and forget it. I use the world time (I travel frequently) and countdown timer constantly. Temp works well if not on the wrist (I use the wrist strap to attach the watch to my backpack for 20 minutes before using, which generates a reasonable reading). Altimeter is fairly accurate-I have not used the barometer much. About the only feature I would like to see is a setting which would allow the afterlgo to stay on slightly longer-it's adequate for telling time at a glance but doesn't really allow you to adjust settings etc in low light conditions. G-Shock should insure super reliability, but I haven't had the watch long enough to comment.

The GW9200, along with the GWM5600 series watches are probably the best G-Shocks out there.
You have the STANDARDS:
-World Time
-Stopwatch
-24Hr Countdown Timer (versus 60 minutes on others)
-5 Alarms
-Tough Solar
-Atomic time Calibration (6 bands)
-Full Auto illumination
In addition, you get a Twin Sensor Pressure-based Altimeter/Barometer and a Thermometer.

The style is very sleek and looks great-smart layout of time and other information. The "Red Eye" along with the red Altimeter button brings contrast to the black/gray bezel and the metal (coated?) "G" light-button stands out. The weight is very light and with the double-buckle resin straps, sits comfortably on my wrist. The sensor doesn't get in the way if worn on the left or right hand.

As for accuracy of the sensors: Altimeter is very wonky, and I don't use it much. The Barometer is so-so, which can help you determine if weather is improving/declining/stays the same (I don't have another barometer to compare it to). The Thermometer will pick up the heat from your body, so it is recommended to remove for about 20 minutes before getting a reading. I notice that the reading tends to be 4 degrees C warmer if worn on my wrist versus the temperature in the controlled environment where I work, so I adjusted the calibration to negate that. It's about +/- one degree during normal activities; warmer if I'm working out.

The BEST thing (IMHO) about this module is that the current time shows across all modes (except the last REC mode- recording ascent/descent).

The WORST thing (IMHO) is the Atomic receiver. It is unable to receive the Atomic signal when positioned right beside my GWM5600, AWG101 and GW6900, which receives it nightly. I get it when manually done outside at night. I thought I had a defect and was about to return it because of all the error messages after each attempt. I finally got a successful time calibration on the third night- the trick is to find a spot with a constant signal strength of L3. A little disappointing really, since I could have gotten the Tough Solar, non-Atomic all gray version for a little cheaper.

[UPDATE] 07/27/2010
{After the initial manual time calibration, my watch had no problems syncing overnight alongside my other Solar Atomic G-Shocks. With this issue resolved, there are no longer any shortcomings on this watch!}

But beside the shortcomings, the GW9200 has become my favorite G-Shock watch. I highly recommend it!

I bought this watch for my boyfriend that is an Air Force pilot. He LOVES it. Says it's the best gift he's ever received. It does everything. He likes that it automatically changes time zones while he's flying. And the display light is great for night flights.

Great features watch, especially the 5 alarms because I have meetings everyday, and with the alarm reminder is very helpful. All the measurement on the watch are pretty accurate. There is only one thing i didn't like about the watch is that the sound of the alarm is low compare to other G-Shocks.

The watch is the perfect watch for anyone who needs to know the temperature outside.

Pros: It also has 2 other features such as the barometer and altitude meter. These 2 features are great for someone who wants to know the weather pattern and also the altitude they are at. Also its solar powered and has a power saving mode, so it really never needs to be in 100% sunlight all the time. The best thing I like about this watch is the atomic time, it syncs up each night with the world clock, and has a +/- 15 sec accuracy in secs after being synced.


Cons: The fine print in the book does say do not use this watch if your trying to do professional / extreme sports such as sky diving. The only quirk about this watch is the fact that you cannot reset to the main screen with a simple push of a button, you need to rotate through all 7 modes to reach the main screen.

Overall: Other then the 7 watch mode reset, and the inability to accurate state the altitude during skydiving the watch is excellent. I would recommend anyone who gets G-Shock this watch =).