The Japanese brand Casio, which specializes in watches, has teamed up with the Finnish brand Polar, which specializes in sports data collection, for its new connected watch. A partnership that makes up for the mistakes of the previous generation.
This is the first partnership between the two brands. On Tuesday February 28, Casio released a new connected watch dedicated to athletes who want to measure their efforts: the G-Shock GBD-H2000. This is not the first time that the multinational watch specialist has tried connected models, but this time it has teamed up with one of its competitors: the Finnish brand Polar.
This company has been a pioneer in the design of heart rate sensors (or heart rate monitors) for 50 years, in addition to being at the forefront of current sports measurement technologies on its own connected watches. An unprecedented partnership, since Polar only very recently opened the door to the sale of its technologies and algorithms by license, at the end of January.
A monochrome screen in a massive case
The G-Shock GBD-H2000 therefore seems to be the first product under this partnership: the Finn took care of the sports data analysis, while the Japanese focused on the watch itself. In terms of design, this new model follows the trend of G-Shock watches, with a fairly large case: 59.6 mm by 52.6 mm, with a thickness of 19.4 mm.
Unlike other connected watches, the screen of this model is monochrome, like a classic digital display watch, protected by mineral glass. Its bracelet is made of resin, while its case is made of ” corn biomass plastic, a renewable organic material “says the Casio site. Despite its size, the choice of materials allows it to weigh “that» 63 grams.
On the technical side, the Casio G-Shock-H2000 is equipped with the usual sensors of this category of watch dedicated to athletes: in addition to the inevitable GPS chip and the heart rate sensor, this model also includes a barometric altimeter , a barometer, a compass and a temperature sensor. The specialized site Montre Cardio GPS is also surprised by the presence of a blood oxygenation sensor, less usual on this type of product. Finally, the connected watch is waterproof up to a pressure of 20 bar, or 200 meters deep.
Cutting-edge technologies, but few profiles
On the software side, this is where the partnership takes shape. On its website, Casio states that “sensors can access the Polar Smartwatch library to analyze training and recovery level after sleep“. We thus find the technologies of the Finnish brand for monitoring running speed, heart rate and even calories burned. Polar also adds guided breathing exercises.
The G-Shock GBD-H2000 also offers eight sport profiles, dedicated to optimally tracking a specific activity, such as running,trail,swimming, cycling, or even the gym. A very low number of choices compared to the minimum twenty profiles encountered among competitors.
Casio reviews its copy, but keeps autonomy
A gap that could push consumers to look elsewhere, especially since the latest models from Casio have not lived up to the expectations of specialists. This G-Shock GBD-H2000 takes over from another connected sports watch from the Japanese brand: the GBD-H1000, marketed in France under the name G-Shock G-Squad HR, whose analyzes of the raw data collected lacked analysis, again according to the specialized site Montre Cardio GPS.
This new G-Shock will therefore have to convince by its integration and management of Polar technologies. In any case, it reiterates the promises of gigantic autonomy of the previous model: using it only as a watch, Casio promises 34 months of autonomy in energy saving mode thanks to a ring around the screen which functions as a mini panel solar. On the other hand, by using all the functionalities of the connected watch, the brand advances seven days of life before connecting it to USB.
The GBD-H2000 is available now for 399 euros on the Casio website, in four colors: black, black/orange, black/yellow and blue-green.
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