Together with the “monstrous” and technological GBD-H1000 [ GBD-H1000 – pulse sensor, solar power and much more ], the Japanese showed a similar appearance of the GBD-100 series, smaller in size and with more modest functionality. Not all runners need a heart rate monitor with its specific capabilities, in fact, someone will just need a regular pedometer, interval timer and Bluetooth for convenient visualization of activity results – the Casio G-Shock GBD-H1000 series is just for such cases.
The appearance of the “younger runner” gives out similarities with the older model, although the dimensions here are not so huge – 58.2 × 49.3 × 17.0 mm versus 63.0 × 55.0 × 20.4 mm. The thing is the lack of not only a heart rate monitor, but also a triple sensor [barometer, thermometer, compass]. For the budget segment, such restrictions are very appropriate, and we think the new product will compete with the same GBA-800 and GBD-800 with almost the same functional core.
Pleased with the presence of the same digital display MIP – electronic panel “pixel” type with high contrast. In practice, this type of display contains more information [indicators, charts] and can display not only the data that has been pre-programmed for it [speech about notifications from a smartphone]. Yes, there are also notifications [incoming calls, SMS, e-mail, calendar, reminder] and this is very cool, in our opinion. The vibro function is also present. In general, Kasiites should seriously think about adding this feature to all digital watches with Bluetooth.
On the case of GBD-100 there are a lot of angular shapes and asymmetric elements – the watch seemed to come to us from the future. The polymer strap has become even softer and stronger than the previous generation [so far from the words of the manufacturer], and the running concept of G-Squad [the so-called special sports direction G-Shock] – a strap with wide openings for better ventilation of the wrist and lining is generally respected [ under the mount] to securely fix the watch on your hand.
Designers prudently placed the Run button on the left to exclude accidental clicks [in case you are right-handed and wear a watch on your left hand]. For lefties, it’s enough to use the watch on the right hand. The button itself starts the training mode [activates the stopwatch / timer + pedometer]. At the same time, no one has canceled individual modes – switching is available by pressing the Mode button [lower left].
The training journal stores records of individual 100 races, up to 140 laps in each. For a productive workout, a 100-hour stopwatch with split time and 5 interval timers with auto-repeat are provided.
An ordinary battery for 2 years acts here as a battery. No “sun” and, all the more, additional charging from USB – such an option for unpretentious athletes. The Super Illuminator backlight is the same as the GBD-H1000.
GBD-100 will cost about 180 dollars. In fact, we have advanced GBA / GBD-800 with a more informative and customizable screen, notifications from a smartphone and advanced training mode. We are waiting for the start of sales in April for a detailed review on the blog.