I bought this watch to use outdoors and when kayaking. I especially like the strap which is heavy-duty yet very comfortable. The glow-in-the-dark feature is only for a short time like most watches with this feature. I wish it would last longer but none do so it does not change my rating. The Promaster Tough is well-named. It seems it will withstand a lot of activity. Eco-drive is the only way to go. I appreciate never having to purchase a battery for this watch.
Just so you know where I'm coming from, I am a mid-range watch collector. I own several Citizen watches. This one is quite a bit different than others. First of all, it's a monocoque design resulting in no case back. Along with a screw-down crown, it gets a true 200M water resistance rating. You can actually go swimming wearing this watch with no concerns. The lumination is amazing. Even low light charges up the hands and hour markers pretty well. Shock and heat resistance are also great features on which to rely. I like a watch that can take a beating, and this one certainly qualifies. It has a Duratect coating, which is supposedly scratch-resistant. We'll just have to wait to see if that's true. I will update this post if I have any issues which contradicts this review. I guess I need to address the military green Cordura® ballistic fabric strap. It has a silicone rubber lining, which is very stiff. Because of this, it doesn't seem like it will ever "break in" like leather or canvas usually does. At first, it bugged me a little bit, because the strap is pre-formed straight, while my wrist is curved. So, only parts of the band make 100% contact with my skin. But this "issue" ended up not being so bad. After wearing it for only two days, I could barely tell any difference between this and leather or canvas. It also breathes very nicely, preventing sweating. At first, it wasn't an easy watch to remove, due to band stiffness. But, both keepers being floating (sliding) helps that process along. Just slide both of them back to easily unbuckle the clasp. This is not just a heavy duty watch on paper. It FEELS heavy duty as well. I hand-washed some dishes while wearing this watch, just for the fun of it. I'll continue to abuse it, within reason, during the 5-year warranty period. Citizen says I get an extra year warranty if I register it online. I've done this four times now, and have yet to recieve any confirmation or verification that I have indeed recieved any extra warranty time. Online registration is not asociated with their online customer accounts! That's just stupid! I would love to see all of my registered Citizens on my account page. Hopefully, I'll never have to use the warranty. My oldest Citizen Eco-drive is about 7 or 8 years old, and has yet to require any service or repair. It just keeps chugging along. review image
Love the anti-reflective aspect. While driving in the sun I won't be blinded by glare from this watch as I do with some others. This watch is super tough with a rugged two piece construction. No frills, just a plain good watch. Wear it daily! May get a nice shark skin leather band on it though. Dress it up a bit.