Elevating Functionality Through Design
This is another one of the truly inspirational designs from Citizen that will never get enough credit, however, I would like to point out a myriad of choices that not only all work cohesively as a design palette, but elevate the functionality of the field watch. I'll try to be succinct, but this is Citizen and I'm fully aware I have a problem.
Whoever designed this field watch needs an award, because the information offered doesn't clutter or obfuscate the dial. The extended minute hand outlined in red offers legibility at a quick glance because the angle of the hand is always clear and when you catch it at night perfectly lined up on one of the five-minute intervals for a strong design win.
So as not to compete, the hour hand is widened and whitened. What I have described is a simpler model available as well, and well worth it, however, I would say that the day-of-the-week, 24 hr indicator, and day of the month are all an ideal size to provide the information if looked for, but not cluttering the more critical watch functions.
This brings me to the one issue I had with the watch, and ultimately the reason I don't wear it anymore, the sub dials push the design up which makes the ring cover up part of the ten, eleven, and twelve. It's a clear choice, beautifully executed, and gives the watch great depth, however, less of the two is cut off than the ten (they're different numbers so of course that's the case) and the one could be cut off or not. This exceptionally small detail makes the dial heavier, visually, only in the top right quadrant, which in turn throws off the balance of the whole thing.
