Casio’s new ultra-limited MRG-D5000 fuses titanium and solid sapphire, but costs more than 10 Grand Seiko

Casio has officially priced and listed its G-Shock Sapphire, and the number is ¥11,000,000 including tax. That’s about $69,520, and that historically makes the MRG-D5000 the most expensive G-Shock the company has ever sold, by a huge margin.

Around twenty will be carried out. Not twenty per market, but twenty worldwide. Casio Japan is running it through a lottery system, with the watch scheduled for release in December.

We reported this one as a rumor back in September, when it was described as the most expensive and rare G-Shock yet. Both halves are now confirmed.

You only pay for the exclusivity and of course for the bezel, entirely cut from blue sapphire. Casio calls this first sapphire crystal model of MR-G and markets it as a “manufacturing success”, not like any other material swap, which is fair enough. Sapphire is extremely hard and therefore difficult to shape, and a G-Shock bezel is not a “basic” shape, like a round disc. The case underneath is made of titanium with a DLC treatment, and the MR-G multi-guard structure has been reworked to absorb shocks before they reach the sapphire.

The rest of the watch is much more conventional than the price suggests. It measures 51.1 × 43.2 × 16.5mm and weighs 121g on a Dura Soft rubber strap. Water resistance is 200m and power comes from Tough Solar, good for around 11 months in the dark or 22 months on power saving. Multiband 6 manages radio synchronization in Japan, North America, Europe and China.

There’s no Bluetooth, which is worth saying out loud. The MRG-B5000SA announced by Casio costs an eighth of the price and has it.

Timing covers world time in 38 cities, a 1/100th of a second stopwatch, a 24-hour timer and five alarms. The glass above the display is sapphire with an anti-reflective coating on its inner side.

Buy the Casio MRGB5000D-1 on Amazon.