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
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
I'm a sucker for green watches and I love Citizens so I bought this when Citizen was unable to repair another watch I had sent in to be fixed. I know there were some complaints about the included band (which I like the look of), but I also ordered the SS band for the other version in case I had issues with the one it came with. Later I ended up finding a very nice higher-end dense twill NATO strap that matches the watch perfectly. In my opinion this should be the strap that comes with the watch. I've included an image, with this NATO strap installed it is now in my top 4 favorite watches, which is pretty good since I am up to around 57 now.
Have really been loving this watch since purchase. Looks great, feels rugged. Brushed metal really complements the olive face. Strap is stiff but sturdy. Perfect for the wilderness; love to take it outdoors and off-roading. Really appreciate the reliability that Citizen offers in both make and performance. Great value.
Tough simple solar powered watch with good luminous markings at night. Date function is a little ‘tight’ & for me requires bright light and right angle to view. Nice solid steel case and 200 meter water resistance. Good solid ‘rubber’ synthetic strap & metal buckle. Field green dial matches strap. A good basic watch you can rely on.
Absolutely love this watch. It is gorgeous AND rugged. You really get amazing features for the price - the monocoque case, titanium coating, super luminova, sapphire crystal, , screw-down crown, and a super reliable e168 quartz movement with no need to every change a battery. This is an easy forever watch. Oh, and with regards to the band - ignore the nay-sayers. Wear the band a few days and you'll love it. It begins stiff, but ends up comfortable, and is very attractive.
I'm a sucker for green watches and I love Citizens so I bought this when Citizen was unable to repair another watch I had sent in to be fixed. I know there were some complaints about the included band (which I like the look of), but I also ordered the SS band for the other version in case I had issues with the one it came with. Later I ended up finding a very nice higher-end dense twill NATO strap that matches the watch perfectly. In my opinion this should be the strap that comes with the watch. I've included an image, with this NATO strap installed it is now in my top 4 favorite watches, which is pretty good since I am up to around 57 now.