Fifty years of solar, and a green dial I didn't expect to want
By Abby Turner, Melbourne · · Citizen
Citizen sold its first light-powered analogue watch in 1976, the Crystron. Fifty years on, the tech is Eco-Drive and it's the reason I haven't bought a watch battery in about a decade. So I'm a soft touch for this birthday.
There are two anniversary Promasters. The one I keep looking at is the Tsuno Chrono, ref AV0104-06W. Tsuno means horn in Japanese, after the horn-ish shape at the top of the case. This one has a dark British racing green dial, a two-tone case with some gold-coloured plating, and a brown leather strap. Limited to 5,000 pieces. Citizen's US store has it at $1,350.
The good stuff:
It's solar, and it runs about eight months on a full charge in the dark. It's rated at plus or minus 15 seconds a month. The chronograph does 1/5 seconds up to 12 hours, and the hands snap back to zero instantly, which is more satisfying than it has any right to be. Lumed hands and markers. Spherical sapphire crystal. And 200 m water resistance, which is properly tough.
The not so good stuff:
It's 44.5 mm across and 15.3 mm thick. That's a lot of watch on my wrist and it'll catch on every glove I pull off. And they've put a 200 m chronograph on brown leather. Leather and the amount of handwashing I do at work are not friends. I'd swap it to rubber on day one, which feels like a waste of a nice strap.
The other anniversary piece is the Skyhawk, ref JY8144-50E, limited to 5,200. It's the big pilot's watch with the radio-controlled U680 movement, world time, perpetual calendar and a slide rule. Jess thinks it looks like a cockpit, which she meant as an insult. If you want the everyday version, the regular Skyhawk A-T is a fraction of the price.
Would I buy the Tsuno? Probably not for night shifts. For camping trips and weekends, though, that green dial got me. Happy birthday, Eco-Drive.
Abby Turner is a pen name of The Watch Quest editorial team. Opinions are based on the published specs, the brand's own information and the watch's reputation, not a long-term test.