With Bluetooth® connectivity and a solar charging system, the new GA-B2100 shock-resistant watches take the iconic 2100 series to a whole other level. There’s a supplementary half dial – indicating the day – next to the 9 o’clock index, and a small digital screen positioned in the lower right quadrant.

As the creative and cultural industries face increasingly uncertain and challenging times, we hope these sessions can help creatives of all disciplines, find inspiration and re-connect with their unbreakable spirit. It’s form-follows-function minimalism combined with G-SHOCK durability, reliability and rugged good looks. Should a hand or both hands obscure the digital screen, pressing the light and mode switches rotates the hands away from the screen. It represents the quest for a new standard of G-SHOCK, whilst still retaining the iconic elements of icons past in the DW-5000 and AW-500. A luminous coating provides long-term illumination in the dark after only a short exposure to light.

It delivers a small feature set for a G-SHOCK: analog and digital time, stopwatch, world time, perpetual calendar (good through 2099), five daily alarms and a countdown timer. Running through the functions and setting the watch is straightforward – with a bit of optional theater. The daily alarm reminds you about recurring events with an acoustic signal at the time you have set. In recent years, as streetwear has evolved from alternative fashion to, well, fashion itself, the G-Shock line has doubled down on its position by embracing the genre’s new tropes, notably limited edition, hip hop-oriented collaborations with musicians, artists, designers et al.

What has helped make the 2100 series such a phenomenon is something else: it’s a streetwear-adjacent timepiece that the capital-W Watch community has got behind.

The GA-2100’s designer, Ryo Amikura, went on to emphasise to Hodinkee that "An octagon has been an iconic shape for the G-Shock as well. Despite its deceptively compact design, this watch is as durable and tough as any G-SHOCK on offer with 200 meter water resistance and shock resistance. Features such as time zone settings, stopwatch function, countdown timers and alarms provide versatility and unbeatable utility.