Watches aren’t hard to come by.  That said, it ain’t easy to find a watch that gets our motor ticking (get it?).  Casio recently teamed up with LA-based lifestyle brand The Hundreds to produce the G-Shock GW 5610.  It sports a clean look unlike some of Casio’s other G-Shock watches thanks to the sleek all white band, black bezel and digital negative display.  We don’t know the price at this juncture, but word on the street is that it will launch this March or April.

We’ve heard of phones that can take bullets, albeit supposedly, but something tells us this handset from Casio might actually be able to survive a bullet wound to the body.  Why?  Well, first off it can purportedly withstand 1 ton of weight on its body, which is a feat in and upon itself.  That’s like a small car running over it and then using it like a fluffy pillow.  But that’s not that it can withstand.  The ruggedized phone, which reportedly will run a version of Android, can survive a 10-foot drop and be submerged in up to 10-meters of water without skipping a beat.

Casio has yet to make their latest G-Shock phone official, but one thing is for sure; it sure will be difficult cramming this phone into any pants pocket.

Tossin’ a smartphone around the good old construction site is never a good idea.  Unless of course it can withstand a myriad of elements thanks to a 810G military spec.

Enter the CASIO G’zOne Commando.  It hits Verizon Wireless on April 28th for $199.99 after signing a 2-year contract, the same day the Incredible 2.

In addition to standing firm through immersion, rain, shock, dust, vibration, salt fog, humidity, solar radiation, altitude, and extreme temperatures, this G’zOne Commando sports a 5 megapixel shooter, Android 2.2, WiFi b/g/n, and 3G connectivity with Mobile Hotspot.  They’re also tossing in a few apps for the outdoorsy types, including a compass, walking counter, trip memory, star gazer and more.

Verizon Wireless and Casio Introduce the CASIO G’zOne Commando
First Ruggedized Android Smartphone for Verizon Wireless

BASKING RIDGE, N.J., April 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Verizon Wireless and Casio today announced a new addition to the rugged wireless category and a new Android-powered smartphone in the marketplace, the CASIO G’zOne Commando™. Deployment ready, the Commando is a mobile office with high security features for secure corporate email; Wi-Fi for high-speed Web access; XT9 and T9 trace input for efficient typing; and snap-out menu for customized access to high-use applications.

Designed to withstand the most extreme conditions, the CASIO G’zOne Commando easily transitions from work to play with advanced G’zGEAR software. As the ultimate outdoor tool in a mobile device, G’zGEAR operates in eight modes to enhance the active, adventure-driven lifestyle. With the help of its Triple Sensor technology utilizing direction, acceleration and temperature, G’zGEAR enables adventurers to perform at their peak.

The Casio Commando is ideal for the business environment, especially for fields such as construction, transportation, manufacturing, utilities and healthcare. Workers in hazardous environments, such as construction sites, warehouses and factory floors, need a smartphone that has the capability to download blueprints, files and pictures; update project plans; access field force management, inventory access and corporate applications; and capture signatures.

Key features:

Android™ 2.2
Meets Military Standards 810G for Immersion, Rain, Shock and Dust Resistant, Vibration, Salt Fog, Humidity, Solar Radiation, Altitude, Low and High Temperature Storage
5-megapixel camera with auto-focus, still photo, video capture, LED light
High-security encryption for corporate email
Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n connectivity
Stereo Bluetooth™
VZ Navigator® for GPS and audible turn-by-turn directions
Mobile Hotspot capable-share 3G connection with up to five Wi-Fi-enabled devices

Lifestyle features:

G’zGEAR operates in eight modes
Earth Compass – Functions as a standard compass, the GPS shows the distance and direction to several domestic and international landmarks, including Yosemite National Park and Mt. Everest.
Walking Counter – Measures steps, distance and energy consumption, and total steps for the day, week or month. It also provides virtual treks for famous North American trails and roads including Mt. Kilimanjaro, Annapurna Circuit, Torres Del Paine Circuit, John Muir Trail and Transcontinental
Adventure Training – Takes training to a new level by allowing users to run with virtual opponents, like world-record holders, wild animals, or their own best personal performance stored in the training history.
Trip Memory – Plots and records outdoor activities along with location information to share with friends and family on Twitter™ and Facebook®.
Tides – Showcases the tidal graph for the day; time of tide ebb and flow; and current, past and future sea tide levels. GPS displays the nearest location map.
Thermometer – Displays current temperature in both Celsius and Fahrenheit with numeric and graphic thermometer readings and compares the current temperature across multiple locations.
Sun / Moon – Checks the time of the next sunrise, sunset, moonrise and moonset, and tracks the moon phases for your current location.
Star Gazer – Utilizes GPS to display the stars and constellation names based on the current season and time.

Pricing and availability:

The CASIO G’zOne Commando will be available online at www.verizonwireless.com on April 28 for $199.99 with a new two-year customer agreement. CASIO G’zOne Commando customers will need to subscribe to a data plan. Unlimited data plans are available to customers starting at $29.99 monthly access.
Business customers who want to purchase the device can contact their Business Sales Representatives at 1-800-VZW-4BIZ.

Amazon is offering a discount on this Casio EX-Z550 14.1MP Digital Camera!

Snap photos with style, without breaking the bank. This Casio EX0Z550 Digital Camera offers you a stunning 14.1 Megapixel resolution so you can quickly snap high quality photos large enough to be poster sized. You can customize your photos with animated backgrounds to use them as e-greetings for friends and family. It also includes a high sensitivity 4x optical zoom lens to center every shot just right regardless of the distance and CCD Stabilization to keep even a jittery image crisp and clear to make taking photos a breeze. Upgrade the experience with HD mode and take video up to 720p video and easily watch it afterwards by connecting it to your TV.

The price comes to $149 – $70 Instant Discount + Free Shipping = $79!

At first blush G-Shock’s next time piece appears to be your garden variety time keeper.  But wait, with further examination, and patience, you’ll discover that it’s much more than that.  Okay, so it’s not the first watch to accomplish this feat, but it features Bluetooth, allowing you to pair the watch with your phone.  What’s the point?  Aside from alerting you of incoming calls, emails and text messages, it will sync with your phone’s time.

Oddly enough, this watch will use Bluetooth 4.0, which is apparentely so power efficient that it allows for a two year battery life on a standard watch battery, you know, the ones that look like a fat US quarter.

We’ve seen comparable watches like this in the past, but never before from a company that has such a long track history with time.  We’re also hearing that it will include a vibrate/alarm function to help you locate your smartphone, or perhaps even vice versa, enabling you to locate the watch.

Unfortunately, for us, there is no mention of a price or launch date, but since no phones currently sport Bluetooth 4.0 it might be safe to say it will be a while.

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Available starting April, for $250, the Casio Tryx is a 1080p cam that has the looks of a transformer phone but more than those of a mid-tier camcorder.

In fact, the design is innovative even by phone standards, with a full 360-degree swiveling frame that surrounds the 3 inch 460k pixel touch screen.

Did I mention this camcorder is almost all screen real estate? It looks more like a media player. But the frame allows for a lot of comfortable and innovative grip variations, and obviously it can be used as a kickstand, which turns the Tryx into a – you guessed it – media player.

With a 12.1MP back-illuminated CMOS sensor, the Tryx should shoot very good 1080p video, and with a 21mm lens, it’s got a wide angle of view that doesn’t scream prosumer camcorder. Rounding out the features are touch focus and shutter, slow-mo video, HDR and 360 degree panoramas.

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Among the slew of news from Photokina is a world first Hybrid GPS camera from Casio. What does that mean exactly? We’ll tell you – geotagging photos and videos indoors. That’s something more traditional GPS enabled cameras cannot do. The Exilim EX-H20G also comes with a world atlas and comprehensive maps of 140 cities worldwide, with the camera’s screen capable of displaying the user’s position on the map. Not too shabby, and it might save you roaming charges for your smartphone when you’re abroad.

This geotagging globetrotter comes with a 14.1 megapixel sensor, 10x optical zoom, up to 3200 ISO, sensor shift image stabilization, HDMI output for its 720p video mode, SD/SDHC and SDXC card support, and a 3 inch rear LCD. Cost? $349.99 in November.

Sitting lower on the scale is the EX-Z16, with a 2.7 inch rear LCD, 640 x 480 movies, SD/SDHC card slot, the same sensor image stabilization and 12.1 megapixels. It’ll start shipping later this month for $99.99, with a Youtube mode, which captures web-friendly 640 x 480, H.264 format video and an auto mode that only needs you to set image size, flash and self timer, and it does the rest.

CASIO RELEASES COMPACT EXILIM® CAMERA WITH HYBRID GPS

World’s First Camera Combining GPS with Motion-Sensor Driven Autonomic Positioning

DOVER, NJ, September 20, 2010 – Casio America, Inc. and its parent company, Casio Computer Co., Ltd., today unveiled the world’s first Hybrid GPS enabled digital camera, the EXILIM® EX-H20G. The latest model to join Casio’s EXILIM Hi-Zoom lineup, the EX-H20G offers an impressive feature set as well as Casio’s state-of-the-art Hybrid GPS technology, which makes the camera perfect for traveling. Thanks to Casio’s Hybrid GPS system, the EX-H20G offers ultra-precise location data for the geotagging of photos and videos and is also the first camera able to geotag indoors. Additionally, the EX-H20G can display the user’s current location – as well as geotagged photos and videos – on a map which can be viewed right on the camera itself.

“Geotagging has increased in popularity, especially with the advent of photo-sharing Web sites and as consumers look to do more with their images,” said Toshi Iguchi, Senior General Manager, Digital Imaging Division, Casio America Inc. “With the new Exilim EX-H20G, Casio is taking the geotagging experience to a new level by incorporating exciting technologies which consumers can now leverage to make the process fun, easy and completely seamless. No matter where in the world you take an image, whether it is indoors or out, the EX-H20G will know exactly where it was taken.”

The EX-H20G’s Hybrid GPS system sets a new standard for geotagging and offers exciting new ways to use a digital camera. Casio’s Hybrid GPS system combines GPS with autonomic positioning, which is made possible by an internal motion sensor. This enables the EX-H20G to track a user’s last known satellite-acquired position against map data stored in the camera’s internal memory, even while the user is indoors. In addition to these features, the camera is pre loaded with information regarding 10,000 sightseeing photo spots around the globe. When in the vicinity of one of these photo spots, the EX-H20G will automatically alert the user, identifying the locations as points-of-interest.

The industry-leading GPS and geotagging capabilities of the EX-H20G will dramatically change how people use their digital camera when traveling. The EX-H20G’s on-screen map allows users to plan their travels before departing as they can view destinations, points-of-interest and photo locations. While on-the-go, users can then confirm their present location and utilize the EX H20G’s digital compass to determine the best route to their next destination. After returning home, users can manage and share their geotagged photos and videos captured with the EX H20G using popular photo-sharing Web sites and software which offer geotagging functionality, such as Picasa, Panoramio, Google Earth, Flickr and iPhoto. These platforms will utilize the precise location data embedded into each image’s EXIF file to plot exactly where they were captured on a world map, giving the photographer, as well as their friends and family, the ability to vividly imagine their travels by making the connection with the locations visited and images. By integrating camera and map as well as location data and photos, the EX-H20G creates a whole new way to enjoy traveling.

Equipped with the new EXILIM Engine HS, the EX-H20G features all of the essential capabilities expected from a camera. When used with Casio’s Single Frame SR Zoom function, the 24mm wide-angle, 10x optical zoom lens actually offers a 15x zoom range that maintains the image quality needed for 14.1-megapixel high-resolution photography. This represents 1.5 times the range of the optical zoom, with virtually no loss in quality. Other features include 720p HD video recording (30fps), as well as a three-inch, high-resolution 460K super clear LCD that is easy to view even when outdoors. The EX-H20G also comes with Casio’s advanced, fully automatic Premium Auto function for taking beautiful shots of scenery and people with just a press of the shutter button, and various useful functions for traveling such as Panorama Photo mode, which can take 360-degree photos, as well as auto-time adjustment which will automatically synchronize the camera’s date and time with that of the user’s current location and time zone.

Starting with the EX-H20G, Casio is positioning the EXILIM brand as “Amazing Gear” – a brand that never fails to deliver new surprises and excitement. Casio intends to revolutionize photography, creating new value by developing digital cameras that go beyond the limits of cameras in the past.

Please see the following pages for more details on the new digital camera.

EXILIM Hi-Zoom EX-H20G
A Traveler’s Camera Equipped with a Hybrid GPS System

The first digital camera with autonomic indoor positioning through Hybrid GPS
The EX-H20G is equipped with a Hybrid GPS system that combines a GPS engine with autonomic positioning made possible by a motion sensor. Even if no signals are received from GPS satellites when indoors, the system consecutively tracks the user’s location by employing an original algorithm using a three-way accelerometer and a three-way direction sensor. When the user goes back outside, the system automatically updates the positional information of the indoor location based on the exact location determined by GPS reception. Even when the camera is powered off, the GPS system continues to search for satellite signals at 10 minute intervals. This is an ideal system for a digital camera, allowing it to immediately track location data at any time and any place.

Highly accurate and speedy position tracking with low power consumption
The EX-H20G employs Casio’s advanced low-power technology, which ensures that the camera consumes only a small amount of power. Power consumption is suited for the various situations in which the EX-H20G will be used, including power on and power-off, satellite acquisition and even while the three-way accelerometer and direction sensor are working in the background while the camera is off. With the EX-H20G, users can rest assured knowing that they won’t need to sacrifice battery life to enjoy highly precise and speedy position tracking.

Complete with a wide range of functions useful for traveling
• Contains world atlas data including detailed maps of 140 world cities and 12 cities in Japan
• User’s location and photos and movies taken are displayed on a map
• Photos are saved with the location information, including longitude and latitude, shooting direction, and place names
• About 10,000 photos of popular sightseeing spots around the world are included in the internal memory
• Users can leverage the camera’s digital compass and map to determine the most appropriate route
• A location name database with approximately one million items is included , enabling the camera to display the name of the shooting location on the screen
• Location name and other data can be embedded in the photo when taken
• H.264 video format grants longer recording time for 720p HD Movies
• Travel memories can be reproduced vividly on a large-screen TV in a slideshow with a map using an HDMI terminal

Premium Auto function produces beautiful photos with just a press of the shutter button
Premium Auto enables the camera to automatically analyze the scene being photographed – including distinguishing night scenes, back lighting, a blue sky, green trees or a sunset – as well as sensing whether there is a face in the frame, the movement and position of the subject, and whether a tripod is being used. It simultaneously optimizes settings for exposure, ISO, sensitivity, focus location, photo blur correction, tonal range and color balance, and level of noise reduction. Images are analyzed pixel by pixel to apply different correction to people and backgrounds. Premium Auto delivers an advanced level of full auto photography, ensuring high quality photos with just a press of the shutter button. Landscape Makeup processing, which creates clearer landscape photographs, operates automatically.

Equipped with newly developed EXILIM Engine HS
The newly developed EXILIM Engine HS for advanced image processing boasts a multi-CPU and two parallel image processors, enabling the EX-H20G to accurately capture the genuine character of photo subjects with high-speed.

Powerful zoom that maintains high-resolution image quality through 15x
The EX-H20G is outfitted with a 24mm ultra wide-angle, 10x optical zoom lens which offers a 35mm film equivalent focal length of 24mm-240mm. To enhance the zoom range even further, Casio incorporated its Single Frame SR Zoom in the EX-H20G, which extends the camera’s 35mm film equivalent telephoto focal length to 360mm, for 1.5 times the optical zoom or a total zoom range of 15x. Furthermore, the EX-H20G features built-in CCD-shift image stabilization to help reduce photo blur from hand movement. These features allow users to photograph any kind of scene, from enormous structures in sightseeing areas to scenic views at a distance.

Dynamic Photo function for creating composite moving images
These EX-H20G also features Casio’s Dynamic Photo function, which makes it easy for users to create “moving photos” right on the camera by cutting moving subjects from the background in images taken with continuous shooting, and combining those images on a different still or moving image background. With Dynamic Photo, it is possible to make multiple characters move independently of each other against a background of moving images up to as long as 20 seconds. These capabilities encourage users to explore their creativity and make it more fun to create images. Sharing is also simplified as included software makes it easy to upload images to YouTube™ or post them to a blog.

The EX-H20G will be available November 2010 for $349.99.

Specs:

• 12 megapixel sensor
• 3x optical zoom
• 2.7-inch LCD
• HD movie mode
• SD card slot

It’s $249 + free shipping = $249!

It’s $249.95 – $50 instant savings + free shipping = $199.95!

Features:

• 12.1 megapixel sensor
• 720p movie mode
• 3-inch LCD
• 4x optical zoom
• SD card slot

It’s $279.95 – $61 instant discount + free S&H = $218.95!

I had me a solar watch when I was about 12 years old.  Unfortunately, the technology wasn’t far enough along and required constant charging under the sun’s rays. Casio’s newest Pathfinder watch, the PRG110C-3, however, requires only 5 minutes in direct sunlight for a 24 hour charge and when fully juiced can supposedly last up to 5 months.  Fittingly the watch is finished in an eye popping shade of green and is made from recycled packaging.  Other features include a compass, 200m water resistance, altimeter, barometer, stop watch, alarm and more.

You can grab one now from Amazon for $250.

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Talk about tawdry.  Looking like every Swatch Watch ever made mixed together, the Casio G-Shock Man Box has got to me to most cornea confusing watch there is.  At $225, it’s hard to imagine what kind of trustfund raver would throw down the cash for these when they could easily by a palette of glow sticks for the same amount.

Available only in Japan where it would look like everything else in downtown Tokyo.

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G-Shock watches are usually far from exciting, but I’m happy to announce their Go Green Project watches.  Each watch is crafted of 100% recycled paper packaging, advanced solar technology and sporting Earth Day colors.  The three models, the G5600GR-7, G6900GR-3 and G2300GR-3 will commemorate Earth Day’s 40th Anniversary and will be available this February for $110 each.

Watch details after the ‘leap’

G5600GR-7
Evocative of the very first G-Shock (DW5000C), the G5600GR-7 borrows its handsome square face. Truly building on a classic, the Go Green Project 5600 crisp white body is accented in forest green with a patent finish while maintaining the uncompromised G-Shock features of Shock Resistance, 200M Water Resistance and Full Auto EL green tinted Backlight.

G6900GR-3
Encased in eye-catching chartreuse with forest green contrast details (a new color shade in the G-Shock family) the G6900GR-3 reinvents the classic G-Shock DW6900. Beneath its sleek finish and irreverent color reside G-Shock’s superior water and shock resistance, 48 City World Time and 1/100 Sec Chronograph.

G2300GR-3
An evergreen twist on a classic G-Shock, The G2300GR-3 features unparalleled shock and 200M water resistance, 48 City World Time and Daily alarm with snooze.

[via Highsnobiety]