Casio G-Shocks play many roles: fashion icons, hardcore tool watches, respectable divers, etc. Today, we look at something of a new phase for the G-Shock line in the form of a “multi role fighter.” The Casio G-Shock GW-2000 sports aviation styling while retaining the GMT features of many of its older siblings. The GW-2000 combines the radio controlled technology which Casio is now famous for with a refreshed style more reminiscent of the MR-G series.

Let's take a look at the details:

The last multifunction watch I reviewed was the Citizen BL-5250 which shared some features with the GW-2000. Both watches are aviation style chronographs with alarms, chronographs, and solar powered movements. The GW-2000 adds world time tracking, shock resistance, and Casio’s excellent 6-band radio synchronized movement.

The model that we received came in full black with a bracelet fitted to a push button fold-over clasp. While the GW-2000 does wear smaller than its size would suggest, it's not a small watch; at 15mm thick, it is definitely a sport-oriented timepiece. But the GW-2000 is very light and easy to wear, and it's also available with a resin strap if you want to reduce the weight still further.

The GW-2000 comes in a standard G-Shock tin canister with a miniature users manual. Keep the manual handy; unless you have owned many G-Shocks, you will be referencing it as you get to know your new watch. Much like the BL-5250 and the Oceanus I had before it, freely moving between and activating features with reliable results takes a lot of practice. Any feature that requires the hands to move to a new reading (like the alarm) takes some time and a little patients. Additionally, the alarm is a little on the quiet side — it's sufficient, but it won't wake you from a deep slumber.

The nine o'clock subdial is the function/day indicator. To change features, you press the mode button, and it will cycle through the options which include day of the week, DST settings, alarm, and chronograph. This system takes some time to use properly, but you get used to it eventually. Using the second hand to select the city for the second time zone is simple enough, but I found it difficult to be sure that I was not changing my home time zone in the process. If you make frequent use of all these different features, you may prefer a model with a digital display (like the GW-2500 or the MTG-1500) as it makes navigation and configuration much easier.

The GW-2000 features a 6-band atomic synchronization system which uses radio signals from atomic clock broadcasts. These include clocks in the US, Japan, England, Germany, and China. This feature allows the watch to correct its timekeeping several times a day (or on deman), and is one of the features we like best about G-Shocks.

The most noticible feature of the the GW-2000 is the styling; much in line with the GW-2500, it is designed to be reminiscent of aviator watches and shares styling with Casio's flagship MR-G models (like the MRG-7500). The wide hour and minute hands make reading the time simple and remove much of the guesswork present in some of its thinner-handed predecessors. Additionally, the large "12" marker gives the GW-2000 a distinctive aviation look. This is a great improvement, and seeing as I normally wear dive watches, I felt right at home with the large hands. The luminous paint that Casio uses is called Neobright and can't quite keep up with the power of Superluminova (which is common on dive watches), but it's sufficient for something like this.

Combining the above features, the new styling, and 200m (650ft) water-resistance makes the GW-2000 an appealing sport watch that is light enough and suitable for most wrists (considering today's large-watch standards). The Casio GW-2000 is a great update to the GW lineup, and boasts an attractive $300 price range for the reviewed model. If the dual-display GW-2500 is not to your liking, the GW-2000 drops the additional LCD display but retains many of the features like radio controlled timekeeping, a light and comfortable bracelet, and the slick aviator styling.