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A tribute to a (almost) perfect G-Shock - the G-7900MS all-black

112K views 125 replies 65 participants last post by  singkarak105 
#1 ·
I've been buying, selling and keeping circa 50-60 G-Shocks in the last seven years, which brought me to the point where I get pretty picky, but also do know exactly what I want.

When it comes down to the most rugged Casio Series, my preferences are pretty much well defined, since I deal with G-Shocks long enough. I do know what the watch should look like or not, which functions it should have or rather not and what the watch should be able to do or not.

Generally speaking it looks like this:

- mainly a dark colour, with few or no coloured applications, especially no red, orange ect.
- all digital
- no square (rectangular) case
- prefered bulky
- no atomic, no Solar (explanation later)
- CR20xx Lithium Battery
- good EL-Backlight with at least 3 seconds duration, No LED illumination
- at minimum, a 24h countdown timer
- at minimum, a 24h stopwatch
- loud, audible alarm
- easy to push buttons
- 5th. dedicated light button

The G-7900 got all those attributes. Many of you already know the module of the G-7900 (3194) from the G-9000 Mudman (module 3031), which is basically the same, only without a moon - and tidegraph. For those of you who are not so familiar with the technical specs of G-Shocks, but might think about to purchase a G-7900, here is a short list of the featured highlights:

- 2x 1000h stopwatch
- 24h countdown timer
- auto el-Backlight switchable for either 3 or 5 seconds duration and automatic shutdown after 6 hours
- 5 alarms (with one snooze alarm) freely programmable for the whole year (target alarm)
- time, day of the week, month and date at a glance
- worldtime with 48 cities around the globe
- high capacity CR2025 Lithium Battery (170mah)
- backlight flasher for visual alarm
- extremely good to operate buttons
- moon and tide graph
- 200 meters wr (20bar)
- long lasting alarm (20 seconds)
- low temperature LCD (-20° celsius)

The G-7900MS avoids any coloured accents. It has a black, matte finished case and a 28mm wide, very comfortable to wear nylon strap. The appearance of this watch can be pretty well described as "uber-stealthy", but without the trade-off of lesser legibility known from negative displays. Unfortunately, Casio was not so stealthy thinking when it comes to the buckle, which is (absurdly) shining polished. Not, that I needed desperately a black PVD buckle, but at least a matt or brushed one would have been nice. Oh well, luckily there are enough brick and mortar stores around and in them you'll find lots of sandpaper

Alright, a few pictures first:










(Mods, please feel free to erase this, if inappropriate)


(Mods, please feel free to erase this, if inappropriate)

As already mentioned, the watch avoids all coloured applications and shiny parts (except for the buckle). The writing on the case and the "G" on the light button are painted in a very subdued white, actually it's a rather bright grey. The important thing is, that on one hand the letters never distract from the stealth look, but on the other hand are visible enough, to let the more inexperienced user know the functions of the buttons. The whole upper part of the LCD inlet (which surrounds the moon and tidegraph, both stopwatches and the day of the week) is also made of a non-shiny, dark grey material, which is best described as titanium-grey. It matches the subdued look of the watch very well.

The G(W)-7900 series is one of the bigger watches in the current G-Shock line. With dimensions of W=50mm, H=52.5mm T=18mm, the watch can be considered as a hefty and bulky piece of plastic. Nevertheless, the wearing comfort is excellent and the strap wraps around the wrist very well, which is greatly supported by the two "wings" beneath the strap:



Those two plastic pieces are not to be underestimated. They are the reason, that also people with rather small sized wrists can wear the watch without problems and convenient. As usual with a plastic watch, weight is rather a non-issue. The watch shows 67 grams on my kitchen scales, so it's not exactly made for training your muscles.

The 28mm wide nylon strap enhances greatly the bulky character of the G-7900MS. As already mentioned, the wearing comfort is excellent, but that opinion might differs from others, such as people who might sweat a lot or live in/near tropical parts of the world. In this case I would also suggest to swap the nylon strap for the normal black resin strap which is attached to all "non-MS" models. Here a few pictures of the nylon strap and a comparison to the resin strap. Don't wonder about the O-ring, I attached it to the strap because the retainer tends to slip off:









I mentioned above that an ideal watch for me shouldn't have neither atomic timekeeping nor solar. I have several reasons for that:

To put it simple, atomic is at best for me a „nice to have" feature that one can have, but in my opinion is far from essential. Given the great level of precision modern day quartz watches do offer, the aberration of such a watch is seldom more than 6-8 seconds (+) per month . If the watch is worn on a regular basis, its even less to non-existent, keeping the temperature stable due to body heat. I honestly also never understood, the hassle some people go trough, desperately trying to sync their atomics, when a manual, perfect sync can be done in few seconds, given the amount of high precise time sources (cells, internet, rc alarm clocks, ect) we all see and have around us every day. Although not really important, but something to think about is, that any additional electronic device is always a possible source for failure. The old saying "keep it simple, keep it stupid" carries a lot of wisdom…

When it is about solar, I have several good (for me anyway) reasons to avoid it.

First, I had two solar powered watches stone cold dead, without a reason and without any hint. One was a Casio Protrek PRG-80YT, the other was a Citizen Eco Drive Chronograph, which I don't remember the model. It's not that those watches had seen not enough light or something, they just died, the Protrek got into "Recovery Mode" but - you guess it - never recovered, lol. As you can probably imagine, such incidents do not exactly help to gain trust in a certain technology.

Don't get me wrong, right now I have six solar G-Shocks and four of them are also atomic. They sit on a window sill to be charged all the time and the all work fine. But honestly, none of them get much wrist time anymore, whenever I wear one from time to time, it isn't usually longer than a day, because it just doesn't feels right - it's a mind thing I guess.

A watch that houses a CR2025 Lithium battery (or even bigger), drives solar somewhat down the ad absurdum road. There are enough proven cases, (lots of them here in this forum) that CR20xx batteries last for many years, even for decades (!!!). The often heard and read argument of the non-existing battery change with solar watches, became for me so lame, that it fails to put even a tired smile on my face.

Probably the biggest argument against solar watches is in my opinion, the often inferior module, compared to their non-solar counterparts. Functions are often cropped, and that is a fact. It is pretty common in the G-Shock line and as of now, I'm not aware of one single solar model that is superior in functionality to a non-solar model. Not that the GW-7900 is a bad watch - not at all - but compare it to the G-7900 and you have an excellent example of what I just described.

In the end each and everybody has to make the solar vs. non-solar decision for himself, depending what features and functions are high on the priority list. I've made my decision quite some time ago (live is much easier if you know what you want, respectively what you don't want) and couldn't be happier with it.

Utterly positive and well worth to get an extra mentioning are the huge and very easy to push buttons of the G(W)-7900 series. In my opinion, there is no model, which can hold up in this discipline, some other series - like the G-7710 for instance - come close but can't match 100%. Big and handy enough to be pushed even with thick winter gloves, it's made sure the watch is always fully operable (extremely important for soldiers, also in summer). No bothersome fumbling or even the use of fingernails is necessary - Casio have done this as good as it gets. Usually not so worth to get extra mentioned, but still worth somewhat, is the protection of the module and the mineral due to the massive amount of plastic around them. The glass is recessed by almost four millimeters, measured on the highest peak of the bezel, which gives an enormous additional protection:



The Thread title is „A tribute to a (almost) perfect G-Shock" and so I will also explain the things, which could have been done better: Actually it is in my opinion four points which keep that watch from being perfect - without „almost".

- current time visible in all modes (only visible in the countdown timer mode)
- negative (reversed) EL-Backlight for even better night readability and enhanced stealth
- countdown timer settable to the second (can only be set by minute)
- vibration alarm

To be fair, those four points are rather seldom to find in the G-Shock line and I'm not aware of any model that have all four points united.

Conclusion: Even with the (minor) four negative points, the G-7900 represents in my opinion the best G-Shock, Casio brought to market to date (sorry to all fans of the D(G)W-6600, D(G)W6900 and D(G)W-5600 series, but that is how I see it) and because it is most likely, that THE perfect G-Shock will never be made, the all-black G-7900MS and her sister - the olive green G-7900-3V - will stay my undisputed #1 for a long, indefinite time. To close this review, a few more pictures from the two beauties:







cheers
 
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#27 ·
@ tact,

thank you very much :)

@ Sean,

you're right it doesn't make much sense - if any at all. Thats why I keep telling people they shouldn't concern about the battery life and not be afraid to use the functions as much as they like and need (I do use the countdown timer and backlight all the time, backlight sometimes up to 20x per day, respectively night). After all a multi-functional watch is a tool to be used and not to live a sad life as Snow White.


cheers
 
#28 ·
Great review! I'd also like to add, even if you have huge wrists those little plastic wings help a lot, the watch doesn't climb up over your wrist and stays centered with them. Love those on my Jason! I'm also not a fan of atomic or solar, and I think your Rescue band is the only one I've ever seen besides my Jason with a squared-off metal buckle. Thanks for writing this.
 
#30 ·
@ mhammer8,

Thank you Sir :)

@ kurzjak,

Well, the G-7800 is not a watch I've ever felt in love with, like I wrote I don't like rectangulars much and it also doesn't wear as comfortable as others (but still pretty good). Member "Sedi" is a huge fan of this series, so I leave it up to him, writing a nice tribute to the G-7800 series. However, since that watch always reminds me so much of the movie Aliens (one of my top 10 all-time-faves) I had to get one, even if the colonial marines wore Seikos back then. So at least I can give you a wristshot, I just took for you ;-)



cheers
 
#32 · (Edited)
Entertaining and informative review, holger. I do appreciate your point of view, although I don't completely agree with you on atomic and solar. If we as human beings never pushed the envelope, we wouldn't make progress. It is true that simpler is often more reliable. Modules designed back in the 80's aren't much different than many of the more basic non-atomic, non-solar ones today. The G-8000 is an amazing step forward though, I must admit. I have a DW-5600E that I'm really impressed by. Even though it has forward-only scrolling of digits, it's still productive to use. I've got a lot of respect for the G-7900. I wish Casio would revise their battery life estimates. I do believe they significantly underestimate it, assuming frequent use of alarms and backlight.

Atomic can be problematic, depending upon your location and atmospheric conditions. I had some issues in the beginning, because I wasn't getting the watch orientation quite right (I didn't have an optimal bedroom window, facing the broadcast direction). Manual sync would seldom work. But then, I found that automatic frequently worked well. I don't need it done every night, considering it a waste of energy. I'd rather Casio put in an option to synchronize once per week. So, I turn sync on/off every two weeks. It works great, and I don't have to bother with manually synchronizing.

As for solar, I've had great luck with Citizen Eco-Drive watches. I haven't owned my two solar Casio watches long enough to comment... will have to check back in about 10 years. ;-) But I think it's a good technology to have. Battery conservation will continue to get better. Atomic sync requires quite a bit of power, and so do the functions of ABC watches, so I see a real benefit having solar with them. Still, for a simpler module like the one in the G-7900, no reason to have solar and just keep it basic, less cost. :)
 
#33 ·
Thank you for you comments, xevious :)

As for solar, I've had great luck with Citizen Eco-Drive watches. I haven't owned my two solar Casio watches long enough to comment... will have to check back in about 10 years. ;-) But I think it's a good technology to have. Battery conservation will continue to get better. Atomic sync requires quite a bit of power, and so do the functions of ABC watches, so I see a real benefit having solar with them. Still, for a simpler module like the one in the G-7900, no reason to have solar and just keep it basic, less cost. :)
I don't think that a radio controlled watch needs that much power. Maybe the older modules which synced four or five times per night, but not the newer ones which sync only once if the were successful.

ABC watches require lots of power, and in my opinion is solar the wrong way to go with, just because of that. If you look at the Casio Pro-Trek/pathfinder series closely and compare them with another ABC brand (Suunto, Tech4o, Timex, Highgear) just to name a few, you will find Casio watches always being in the end of line - function wise. On one hand this has to do with several technical goodies, which Casio is rather not willing (I don't presume they haven't got the abilities) to incorporate in their watches. On the other hand, several functions simply can't be achieved, because of the lack of power, the small CTL1616 rechargeable battery can't provide in short time. Just remember that almost any ABC watch out there runs today on a high capacity CR2032 Lithium cell (230mah) while a CTL1616 only has 18 mah. Timex even goes a step further and uses a monstrous CR2430 cell in the WS4 with 280mah.

I don't think that all other manufacturers of ABC watches are too stupid to make solar powered devices, they rather can't see the point of them with todays battery/rechargeable storing capacities (this will probably change in the not so far away future).

One more word on atomic timekeeping: I do have four atomic watches right now and although it is a nice to have feature for me (they sync every night no matter what, because I live only 15km northwest of the German transmitter) I don't consider it in any way necessary. I just had that same discussion yesterday on a German watch forum and one guy was complaining, that his non-atomic casio runs about 7 seconds fast per month. Well, if you presume a month with 30 days, there will be 2592000 (that is two million, fivehundred and ninetytwothousand seconds) in a month. 7 seconds aberration are equal to 0.00027%. Now, should that number ever start hurting my monthly lifecycle, I think I'll have a whole lot more to worry about....;-)

cheers
 
#35 · (Edited)
Cal45,

Okay, this watch is really neat. I do like the G-7900MS-1A (all black). Besides the stopwatches, having a measuring capacity of 999:59'59.99 is important to me. And the tide and moon graph data is a nice touch. (As a marathoner, this will come in handy when I do some of my running on the moon. ;))

Edit: Okay, my bad. You detailed the strap information in your review. Many thanks! :)

"Introducing three new color variations for the leather and cloth band G-7900MS Series. The bands of these models use ballistic nylon, a lightweight fabric originally designed for use in flack jackets that enhances overall toughness and perfectly matches the tough and durable G-SHOCK image."

http://www.javys.com/casio/series.php?series_id=GT0034
 
#37 ·
Don't worry about the different appellations. Important is only the "3" behind the model which is the colourcode for green. "1" is the colourcode for black, "2 for blue, "4" means red - just to mention the most popular colours. The different letters behind the colourcodes are refering to the different worldmarkets. The correct appellation fo my green is actually G-7900-3ER or G-7900-3VER, and EU means europe. Not really sure what the "DR" on yours stand for, maybe it was made for the Dominican Republic....:think:


cheers
 
#39 ·
I bought mine from "msgdistributor.com" via ebay. Looks like the black version is hard to come by these days, not sure why...


cheers
 
#40 ·
Well, the G-7900MS all-black may be an almost perfect G-Shock, but finding a site that has it (or has it in stock) has been difficult. I can't find it on the Casio site, and I'd rather not go the Casio.Japan route. Skywatches says that it's temporarily out-of-stock. Could someone please recommend a couple of sites that have the G-7900MS-1A in-stock? I was quite surprised that I could not find the all-black at the Casio site:

http://www.casio.com/search/?key=7900&x=12&y=4

Many thanks!
 
#41 ·
I heard back from two sites. Both said they are out-of-stock and do not have plans to restock the G-7900MS. I have no idea why, and didn't ask them to elaborate.

Anyway, I think I've settled on the G-Lide. It has the two stopwatches, which is paramount for me. And it also has the moon data and tide graph, which is a nice touch. I also like the overall 'look' of the watch, especially the color combination.

This watch is not difficult to find, either. At least three sites I've checked currently have it, and at the same price.
 
#43 ·
:-! Looks great, much better than the GW-7900B in my opinion. I still prefer a positive display but your mod definitely makes this series the coolest looking 7900 on the planet. It deserves its own, seperate review! Do you do one?


cheers
 
#48 ·
Hi !!!
I'm a new G-Shock's fan, i have also bought a GW-7900b-1ER... but the strap is in resin !
I really love the look with your nylon strap.

I just want to know if you know the reference of your strap, is it an official G-shock strap or not ?
Because it's so difficult to find one like yours !
If you have details, or if you know where can i buy it... i'm here ;-)

Thank you !
 
#49 · (Edited)
The nylon strap is an official Casio product, all models of the G(W)-7900MS series are equipped with it. However, this series is not to find in europe and if you want to buy one you probably have to do outside EU, or you can try to contact Keith at Casio Watches at Discount Prices | Casio Watches , Casio Watch Straps | Casio G-Shock Watches | Casio Pathfinder Watches |Casio Wave Ceptor Watches|Casio Watch Straps in the UK.

For your information: I don't have the nylon strap any longer attached to the watch. I swaped it for the regular black resin band, because it drove me crazy that the nylon stays wet forever once I took a shower or went swimming. Lookswise it is a winner, functionwise unfortunately not so much. A 24mm or 26mm Maratac Zulu would be awesome, but that requires additional adapters which are also hard to find and they are pretty expensive too.

cheers
 
#50 ·
Thanks for your help Cal..45 !!
I hesitate between the offical strap of GW7900MS series and Maratac straps and adapters !
It's a difficult choice ;-)

But i love the way we can custom our watches, first i will try to find the nylon and leather strap...
But i wake up too late, i only discovered this brand three weeks ago, and now i'm addict !

Thank you again !
Have a great day,
PS : it's snowing in France =)
 
#51 · (Edited)
The lug spacing is pretty standard on G-Shocks these days and so I'd guess that the strap adapters will fit on the G-7900. They can be bought directly from Casio Parts (# 74243710), for $4 per set.


Incidentally, I've found a way to beat having atomic synchronization. All G-Shocks come with a trimmer screw that can speed up and slow down the movement. So, if your watch is gaining or losing more seconds per month than you care for, you can adjust this. I did this adjustment on most of my watches, to include an atomic Gulfman that I got really lucky with... after a week, it's still showing dead on accurate with my Citizen that synchronizes nightly. I'll likely end up turning on the Gulfman's atomic sync only a few times per year at this rate. ;-)
 
#52 ·
The lug spacing is pretty standard on G-Shocks these days and so I'd guess that the strap adapters will fit on the G-7900. They can be bought directly from Casio Parts (# 74243710), for $4 per set.
Unfortunately Casio Europe (Germany) is too stupid or/and too stubborn to sell directly to customers. Even if you want to buy just a replacement strap or a gasket and try to get one from an authorized Casio dealer, it turns into a marathon (and fortune), you wouldn't believe...

cheers
 
#54 ·
You don't need any additional parts, only the strap. Just pull out the springbars, swap the band and push them back in - done in no time.


cheers
 
#55 ·
Great thread and fab article to start it off.

I agree that this watch model (in its various versions) defines pretty much for me the spirit of the G, especially today. I love my red Rescue G79 and hope one day soon to compliment it with IMHO the best looking of the whole pretty bunch:

Watch Analog watch Watch accessory Strap Fashion accessory

The GW-7900MS-3ER which totally floats my boat although the comments about the Nylon getting wet makes for interesting reading. (pic from amazon)
 
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