I'm at work, so no pictures yet (sorry Antonis!), but here's a quick "first impressions" post:
Specs: Solar/atomic, world time, countdown timer, stopwatch, one daily alarm, hourly signal. Module number 4359 (same as the GW-1700, in case you're wondering). No .pdf manual on Casio's site yet, and the included manual's in Japanese. However, the features are pretty straight forward for a G-Veteran like me ;-) .
Size: Much thinner than I had expected. Compared to the GW-1600 I'm wearing, I'd say the AWG-500 is about 1/8" thinner. I definitely prefer a beefier watch, but the slimmer profile definitely fits under a shirt sleeve much better.
Fit and finish: The resin band is not at thick as my other G's which makes it very flexible. It still feels substantial, just not as "heavy duty" as my other resin G's. The strap is also shorter than most of my other G's. It's about the same length as the G-2300, as a reference.
Features: Top notch. I have multiple solar/atomic models and firmly believe this is the way to go. Syncing to the atomic clock in Ft. Collins, CO was flawless.
The placement of the LED light on the bottom works very well, however, like other LED-enabled modules, some of the sub-windows are hard to read in the dark. But, reading the time is not a problem at all.
Also, the inclusion of a countdown timer (although just a 60 minute one) is quite nice. So many of the ana-digi models lack this feature and I'm happy to see it on the AWG-500.
Aesthetics: Very nice. The watch face is the same dark blue-ish/purple-ish as most of the newer solar models and works very well with the dark black resin color of the case and strap. The hands contrast nicely with the face so reading the time at a glance is quite easy. The color of the buttons (bright red!) will take getting used to (sorry Sjors!), but their look fits well with the overall theme of the watch.
I'm liking the watch and am glad to add it to the collection. Overall, I'd say this is a pretty good update to the venerable AW-500 and fits somewhere in the upper middle range of the current line of G Shocks, in my opinion. :-!
Pics forthcoming....
Specs: Solar/atomic, world time, countdown timer, stopwatch, one daily alarm, hourly signal. Module number 4359 (same as the GW-1700, in case you're wondering). No .pdf manual on Casio's site yet, and the included manual's in Japanese. However, the features are pretty straight forward for a G-Veteran like me ;-) .
Size: Much thinner than I had expected. Compared to the GW-1600 I'm wearing, I'd say the AWG-500 is about 1/8" thinner. I definitely prefer a beefier watch, but the slimmer profile definitely fits under a shirt sleeve much better.
Fit and finish: The resin band is not at thick as my other G's which makes it very flexible. It still feels substantial, just not as "heavy duty" as my other resin G's. The strap is also shorter than most of my other G's. It's about the same length as the G-2300, as a reference.
Features: Top notch. I have multiple solar/atomic models and firmly believe this is the way to go. Syncing to the atomic clock in Ft. Collins, CO was flawless.
The placement of the LED light on the bottom works very well, however, like other LED-enabled modules, some of the sub-windows are hard to read in the dark. But, reading the time is not a problem at all.
Also, the inclusion of a countdown timer (although just a 60 minute one) is quite nice. So many of the ana-digi models lack this feature and I'm happy to see it on the AWG-500.
Aesthetics: Very nice. The watch face is the same dark blue-ish/purple-ish as most of the newer solar models and works very well with the dark black resin color of the case and strap. The hands contrast nicely with the face so reading the time at a glance is quite easy. The color of the buttons (bright red!) will take getting used to (sorry Sjors!), but their look fits well with the overall theme of the watch.
I'm liking the watch and am glad to add it to the collection. Overall, I'd say this is a pretty good update to the venerable AW-500 and fits somewhere in the upper middle range of the current line of G Shocks, in my opinion. :-!
Pics forthcoming....