The GMC-2500D brings the shape of the DW-5000C, the first G-Shock, to an analog watch with a steel bezel and bracelet and a three-cell window for the date and stopwatch.
Casio launched the DW-5000C, the first G-Shock, in April 1983. Engineer Kikuo Ibe, who led its development, set out to build a watch that could survive a 10-meter drop, resist water to 10 bar and run for 10 years on one battery. It was a digital quartz watch, its module cushioned by layers of urethane inside an octagonal case.
On October 22, 2026, Casio announced the 2500 Series in Tokyo, which adapts that design to an analog watch. It comprises four GAC-2500 models, with resin case and bezel, and five GMC-2500 models with a steel bezel. Two of them, the GMC-2500D, add a steel bracelet: the GMC-2500D-1A with a black dial and the GMC-2500D-1A2 with a blue one. The quartz movement was developed for the series and is made in Japan, at the Yamagata Casio plant.
Technical Specs
| References | GMC-2500D-1A (black dial) and GMC-2500D-1A2 (blue dial) |
| Case | Bio-based resin and stainless steel; 46.7 × 43.8 mm, 12.9 mm thick; 138 g with bracelet |
| Bezel and crystal | Stainless steel bezel; mineral crystal |
| Water resistance | 200 m (20 bar); shock-resistant construction |
| Dial | Brass, sunburst or polished finish depending on color; raised bar indices; small seconds at 9; three-cell Multi-Mission Date window at 3; Neobrite |
| Caliber | Analog quartz developed for the 2500 Series; accuracy of ±15 seconds per month; magnetically held hands |
| Functions | Hours, minutes, small seconds with sleep function, date with automatic calendar to 2099, 1-second stopwatch up to 29 minutes 59 seconds, hand shift, amber LED light |
| Battery | CR1025, approx. two years |
| Bracelet | Stainless steel with push-button triple-fold clasp; adjustable from 150 to 205 mm |
| Price | USD 350 (U.S. list price) |
The DW-5000C shape with a steel bezel
The GMC-2500D keeps the DW-5000C's octagonal outline, now with more rounded edges. The stainless steel bezel covers a case of bio-based resin, and a fine horizontal brushed finish runs from the bezel to the bracelet. The dial is brass, in black or blue, and its parallel-sided hands share the straight lines of the raised bar indices.
At 9 o'clock, the tail of the small seconds hand carries the words Shock Resist, a reference to the shock-resistant construction G-Shock was built on. The window at 3 o'clock matches the dial color, so it stands out less than the hands when reading the time.
The Multi-Mission Date window
Casio calls that three-cell window Multi-Mission Date because what it shows depends on the function in use. In timekeeping mode it shows the date; with the stopwatch running, the elapsed minutes; and while the watch is being set, the setting data. Once the year, month and day are entered, the calendar runs automatically until 2099 and handles the end of 30-day months and February, leap years included. Because the stopwatch minutes appear in the window, the dial needs no extra subdial for that function.
The hands are not fixed directly to the shaft; a magnet holds them in place. According to Casio, this mounting lets the minute hand, which it calls Shock Release, absorb part of the force of an impact. The brand notes that after a knock or vibration the hand may slip out of place for a moment and returns to the correct position within a few minutes.
The small seconds hand can be stopped when it isn't needed and restarted at any time. With this sleep function the watch uses less power and the battery lasts longer.
Pricing and availability by market
In the United States, both versions of the GMC-2500D carry a list price of USD 350. In Spain, the GMC-2500D-1A already appears in Casio's online store. For Mexico, Colombia and Argentina, Casio has not announced a price or release date for the 2500 Series; in Mexico it runs its own site, casio.com/mx, with the G-Shock catalog it sells in the country.
The only steel bracelets in the series
Of the nine models in the 2500 Series, the two GMC-2500D are the only ones on a steel bracelet. With the bracelet, the metal bezel and the brass dial, a shape first drawn for a resin watch moves closer to an everyday watch that can also be worn with office clothes. It keeps the brand's shock-resistant construction and 200 meters of water resistance, enough for swimming.
Forty-three years after Kikuo Ibe set out to build a watch that could survive a 10-meter drop, the shape of that first G-Shock reaches an analog watch in the GMC-2500D.
