The DW-5000C was recognized as having significantly changed the value proposition of wrist watches.
The National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo (Director General: Yoshihiro Hayashi) launched the future technology heritage programme in fiscal 2008 to encourage the preservation and use of materials on the history of science of technology.
These materials are chosen because they have made an important historical contribution to the advancement of science and technology, for having a significant economic, social, and cultural impact, and for having a significant impact on the lives of Japanese citizens.
The DW-5000C was the first-ever model in the G-SHOCK brand of shock-resistant watches.
It overturned the accepted notion of the time that wrist watches are inherently fragile and susceptible to shocks, thereby reshaping the value proposition of wrist watches.
Subsequent G-SHOCK watches reshaped the image of digital watches with their good looks embodying functional beauty, leading to the adoption of digital watches by youth culture.
Casio has to date shipped more than 100 million G-SHOCK watches worldwide in some 130 countries and regions, which represents an unprecedented sale volume for a single wristwatch brand.
Casio has developed more than 3,000 models in the continuing evolution of the G-SHOCK brand, which has grown to become a distinctive brand that stands on its own, beyond the definition of a wrist watch.
This is the sixth Casio product to be named a future technology heritage.
The others are the Casio Mini electronic desktop calculator (registered in fiscal 2008), DC-90 digital camera prototype (fiscal 2009), QV-10 digital camera with LCD monitor (fiscal 2012), SL-800 credit card-sized calculator (fiscal 2013), and AL-1 scientific calculator (fiscal 2014).
( With inputs from IANS )