Are G shock Watches Waterproof?

By Asad | Updated 2 years ago

You have landed on this page because you are probably looking for some clarifications regarding are g shock watches waterproof. You may also be confused because you are planning to buy a G shock watch or you already have bought it and just realized that water resistant is written on the back side of the watch instead of waterproof.

My love with G Shock began after this beautiful masterpiece G Shock Rangeman. It is going fine for quite some time. I see it as one of the finest pieces designed by them.

Let’s get a brief definition of both terms in the easiest manner.

Water Resistant: A watch which can withstand water to some degree. In short, it can fight with water and will either win or lose the battle.

Waterproof: A watch which is indifferent to water or simply this watch does not give a sh*t about water because it always wins the battle with water.

So you bought the wrong watch?

This question might come to your mind. Damn! I wanted to buy a waterproof watch but this one is water resistant. Oops, what wrong decision I have taken. I should have looked before buying this watch. Or you might be the person thinking right now: Thank God! I did not buy this G-Shock. Hahaha, I will buy some waterproof watch now.

Who is in a better position then?

The one who already bought the watch or the one who was about to buy but changed the decision? In either case, no one is the loser here. Why? Because there are no waterproof watches out there. Person 2 will keep on looking for waterproof watches but still can not find any watch that can withstand the cruel pressure of Mariana Trench (deepest point discovered till date).

So what is fuzz about water resistant and waterproof watches?

As per now, there is no waterproof watch out there. No one labels their watch as waterproof, they are all labeling their watches as water resistant. So you can not go and buy waterproof watches out there.

No Standard Protocol

If you check IP codes or ISO codes for waterproof watches. You will only end up realizing that the IP and ISO codes do not cover waterproof test. In fact, IP codes are a way too simple test to declare watches as watches resistant so mostly ISO codes are used to declare a watch resistance ability of a watch. There are two codes for declaring watch water resistant. The most common is ISO 2281 and the other superior test for diver watches is ISO 6425.

WHY THERE IS NO STANDARD TEST OR PROTOCOL FOR WATERPROOF?

IP or ISO codes none has the standard to declare a watch waterproof. In fact, think about it by yourself. Mankind has not discovered what is the deepest point in the ocean yet. Mariana trench although is declared to be the deepest point but we are yet to explore the ocean depths. It cannot be declared with 100 percent certainty that Mariana is the deepest point of the ocean.

One day, let’s say in future we are able to completely scan the oceans and have agreed internationally that point ‘X’ is the deepest point in the world. Then ISO will make a code which will have some testing procedure to test watches at that point. The watch which is able to withstand such massive water pressure at that depth should be officially declared waterproof. Because ‘X’ is the point where water exerts the maximum pressure. The term Water Proof is a  perfect term and no one wants to give a complete guarantee that their manufactured watch is Poseidon of watches.

As soon as an object goes deeper in water, the water pressure increases with every meter and it becomes immensely difficult to sustain that pressure. So companies make watches mostly to fight water pressure to 200m or 300m depth. These watches are actually tested till the depth of 250 meters or 350m provided that they are diver watches. The companies like Casio have covered their backs firmly, so no one in the future can sue them if the watch collapsed at depth of 200+ meters.

So now you must have cleared in your mind that Casio G Shock watches are not waterproof. In fact, let’s do correction in the question  Are G Shock Watches Waterproof and get into the right question:

Are All G Shock Watches Water-Resistant?

Yes, As per now all Casio G-Shock watches are water resistant. There are over 200 watches on the G shock web at the moment. If you open details of each one of them, state 200 meters water resistance on each one of them.

Awesome! Can I go Scuba Diving now with my G-Shock Watch?

Absolutely not, Casio is producing two kinds of water-resistant watches. One is tested against ISO 2281 while the other is a test for ISO 6425. Those who are made to clear the ISO 6425 are categorized under G-Shock Frogman series while ISO 2281 watches are simple water resistant watches. You can only take the Frogman series or any watch which has cleared ISO 6425 for scuba diving.

So what is the difference between the two Watches?

You can take Frogman series watches like GWF-D1000 or GWF-D1000B for snorkeling. So if your watch can handle snorkeling it means that it can handle other water activities like swimming, jet skiing, snorkeling and places like water theme parks as well.

Which G-Shock Watch should I buy?

If you are a scuba diver then you should buy Frogman series only. Casio has worked hard over the years to improve the Frogman Series and current GWF-D1000B is amazing. It keeps logs of up to 20 dives. You can track the time of dive, water temperature and also water depths. You just have to set the watch into dive mode before diving.

If your plan is to do stuff other than scuba diving then you are good to go with any G-Shock watch. The good news is I have discussed G shock watch in tactical watches post at Tell Me Best. The detailed guide will help you select one of the top-selling G-Shock watches.

If you have already bought a g-shock watch already then you should be satisfied with your choice by now. You watch is able to resist water to great extent.

Difference between ISO 2281 and ISO 6425

This is where things get a little difficult in this post. I have already tried to explain each thing in the simplest possible manner but if you are looking for some more technical details then keep on reading the post. I will still try to keep things as simple as possible.

Watches are either 2281 or 6425 certified. Both are water resistance test. Watch which clears 2281 is water resistant and then one which clears 6425 is super water resistant. None of them are waterproof watches. ISO-6425 watches are safe for scuba diving or similar difficult activities.

Let’s compare two tests:

These are just some of the test procedures which I have not written completely for the sake of simplicity. The point of sharing the condition is to understand that the ISO 6425 is the very tough test. You can compare by yourself that the test for ISO-2281 is relatively easier than the version of the test in ISO 6425. A watch which passes such difficult conditions of ISO 6425 more than the rated conditions deserves to be called a super water resistant watch.

CONCLUSION

This post is entirely focused upon the G shock watches. We have not taken into account the other manufacturers who have their own set of claims. So by now, you should be clear in your mind with the question that is being G Shock Watches Waterproof?. The answer is G-Shock watches are not waterproof rather the correct term to use is all G shock watches are water resistant.