I don’t remember how old I was when I received my first Casio G-Shock watch, but I reckon it was just before the millennium, placing me squarely in my pre-teen era. Ever since, I’ve been hooked on the brand’s playful, rugged design and rock-solid performance.
In the realm of non-smartwatches, in 2025, G-Shock remains one of the best bang-for-the-buck brands, up there with Seiko and Timex. That said, not all G-Shock watches are ‘dumb’.
The G-Shock Move line has been around for five years, and as the name suggests, these watches offer fitness-tracking features despite looking no different than an ordinary G-Shock.
With smartwatch design in 2025 being anything but exciting — would you prefer a square or a circular-shaped piece of glass affixed to your wrist? — the Move series remains a breath of fresh air.
This brings me to the new G-Shock Move GBA950: it caught my eye, and I just had to try it. The cool combination of analog and digital displays, mixed with just the right smattering of smart features — including basic fitness tracking and mirrored smartphone notifications in the form of a beep — is unlike any watch, smart or dumb, I’ve tested.
I’ve been rocking the Move GBA950 for a few days now, and I’m sold. This is my official watch of the summer, sorry Apple Watch Series 10. And, hey, maybe it should be yours too? Here are five big reasons why.
Bluetooth for timekeeping and app syncing
The G-Shock Move GBA950 pairs with your phone using Bluetooth and the Casio Watches app, which is available for iPhone and Android devices. Users enter basic health parameters, like height and weight, along with daily step-count and calorie-burning goals when setting up their account.
The app also automatically adjusts timekeeping on the GBA950 for precision when you open it, and while there’s no onboard GPS, the watch can piggyback off your phone’s signal for distance and step-count data. That said, this G-Shock Move model can still track these parameters, even without your smartphone nearby, but accuracy may be slightly off.
The Casio Watches app also makes it easy to select and change the watch’s secondary time display. As a U.S. West Coast resident with many colleagues on the East Coast, I tend to keep the main time set to Pacific Standard and the other tuned to Eastern Standard Time.
However, if I’m traveling, I’ll probably switch the primary clock to that current time zone and the secondary to Pacific Standard Time. Again, doing this takes just seconds in the app.
Tracks fitness basics
The GBA950 keeps tabs on your daily step count, distance covered, calories burned and real-time physical excursion levels. Best of all, each of these parameters is viewable at a glance (though not all at the same time).
For example, the vertical display on the right side of the watch face shows how intensely you're working out on a scale from one to five in real time. One bar indicates a light amount of excursion, while five bars reflect maximum excursion.
Casio’s workout data can even be synced to Strava, something I look forward to testing out in the coming weeks.
No battery to recharge
Do you dislike the chore of recharging a smartwatch? I’m right there with you. Fortunately, the G-Shock Move GBA950 never needs to be recharged. The onboard CR2025 has an estimated two-year lifespan, and replacement batteries cost less than a dollar.
Of course, to maintain the watch’s water and dust resistance — more on this below — it’s probably best to send it to Casio for replacement, but your local jeweler will likely be able to handle the job with less hassle (and likely, for less cash).
Doesn’t look like a smartwatch
The GBA950 doesn’t look anything like a smartwatch. Instead, it resembles a classic, tough-built Casio. The watch face is admittedly a little busy, but once you wrap your head around the different displays and button assignments, it’s a delight to wear and use.
In addition to the cool mix of digital and analog elements, the GBA950 has some nifty tricks up its sleeve. For example, the big button below the six o'clock position turns on a fairly bright LED light within the watch face. This can be used to check the time or light your way in a very dark room.
The watch dial and hands also offer a generous amount of glow-in-the-dark lume.
200 meters of water resistance and a shock-resistant case
Speaking of design, not even the Apple Watch Ultra 2 or Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra can touch the G-Shock Move GBA950’s 200 meters of water resistance. The model also features a shock-resistant, carbon-fiber-resin reinforced case design.
When it comes to durability, G-shock crushes the competition. My Apple Watch Series 10, meanwhile, is only approved for brief periods of shallow-water swimming. Sorry, Apple, that’s not going to cut it this summer.
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