Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Casio G-Shock GW-225C-1 Master Blue Frogman

Yes, another new watch, and a Frogman no less. But really, I had no choice. I've been watching these on eBay for six months or more, and while I didn't want one as badly as I did a Dawn Black Frogman or Glorious Gold Frogman, I did think it was very good looking. Additionally, only three G-Shock 25th Anniversary Frogmen models have been released, so this completes my set. Prices of these watches just seemed to be going up and up, so when I saw an online retailer got a few in stock, I jumped on the opportunity. It's getting to be difficult to decide whether to pre-order special G-Shocks and pay full retail or a little more even, or wait until after they are released and hope for a decent (20-30%) discount. If they never make it to retailers that discount, then you're stuck buying from the secondary market or speculators and will pay a lot more. It used to be you could count on waiting, finding what you want (provided it was released in the U.S.A. in my case) and get a good discount, but that seems to be increasingly risky. So, I consider myself lucky that I got one of these. Honestly, it's much nicer than I expected with some subtle details that I hadn't noticed in photographs. When I initially heard of the Master Blue Frogman and saw a few pictures I thought the case was a dark blue. It is actually black, and the only blue on the watch is the "G-SHOCK" text above the display and the blue tint of the LCD. The most unique feature is the black PVD case and buttons instead of the typical titanium-colored case and polished buttons. The decorative "screws" at 1 and 5 o'clock are also given a black finish, although not as dark as the buttons and case. The caseback is polished gold-tone, the same as the other 25th Anniversary Frogmen. A different finish would have been nice there as well, but I don't mind it. There are two other Master Blue models, an atomic Mudman and atomic Gulfman, but those seem to be just as scarce and more expensive than the Master Blue Frogman, so I don't see myself adding them to my collection anytime soon. (I did purchase two of these and am selling the brand new one on the Watchuseek sales forum. If you're interested, let me know.)














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