Citizen watches

Citizen watches

by David Barth
written March 29, 2003

Citizen

In 1924, Citizen's forerunner, the Shokosha Watch Research Institute, produced its first pocket watch the "CITIZEN". At that time, the Mayor of Tokyo, Mr. Shimpei Goto, named the watch "CITIZEN" with the hope that the watch, a luxury item of those times, would become widely available to ordinary citizens and be sold throughout the world.























Citizen Watch























Citizen Watch























Citizen Watch























Citizen Watch

The Citizen Watch Company, Ltd. was established in 1930, and eventually became the world's largest watch company, later to be eclipsed by The Swatch Group. Citizen produced 292 million timepieces in 1999, about 24 percent of the world total.

Citizen has developed technologies that take their power from natural energy sources. One of these is the Eco-Drive. Through the use of photocells, even the weak light from candles can be converted into electrical energy to power the movement. Since excess energy is automatically saved in storage cells, these watches can continue to keep time even after they have been in the dark for months.

A further advantage of the Eco-Drive models is that no battery change is necessary, an advantage since batteries contain substances that are harmful to the environment.

About 300 engineers, scientists, and designers work on the development of new watches.

Citizen Thunderbird World Time Watch























Citizen Thunderbird World Time Watch























Citizen Thunderbird World Time Watch























Citizen Thunderbird World Time Watch























Citizen Thunderbird World Time Watch























Citizen Thunderbird World Time Watch























Citizen Thunderbird World Time Watch























Citizen Thunderbird World Time Watch























Citizen Thunderbird World Time Watch























Citizen Thunderbird World Time Watch























Citizen World Time Watch, Model 300























Citizen World Time Watch, Model 300























Citizen World Time Watch, Model 300























Citizen World Time Watch, Model 300























Citizen World Time Watch, Model 300

Citizen Highlights:

1975 - World's most accurate watch.

1976 - World's first solar watch.

1978 - World's slimmest wrist watch with a width of less than 1 mm. When it was manufatured, it was world's slimmest wrist watch

1980 - World's smallest movement, measuring only 9 x 7 x 2 mm, was the world's smallest movement.

1983 - World's first watch with a thermometer. This watch was is also waterproof up to 100 meters.

1985 - World's first diver's watch with an electronic depth gauge.

1987 - Company began using titanium.

1989 - World's first professional mountaineer's watch. This watch has an integrated altimeter and barometer.

1990 - World's first multiple-time-zone radio-controlled watch.

1994 - World's first diving watch with a PC interface.

1994/95 - Introduction of the Eco-Drive technology.

1996 - Radio-controlled Eco-Drive watches.

1997 - Eco-Drive Signature. This watch has amazing accuracy for a quartz watch of +/- 10 seconds per year.

1998 - Eco-Drive Duo. This watch features the revolutionary hybrid-movement (Eco-Drive + Automatic).

1998 - World's first professional diving watches to use light energy.

1998 - Promaster Aqualand Eco-Drive Chronograph.

1999 - Eco-Drive Thermo, is powered by the temperature difference between the back of the watch's case, warmed by body heat, and the surrounding air temperature.

2000 - Eco-Drive Vitro features specially developed photocells incorporated almost invisibly into the watch's glass face.

Watch models:

Eco-Drive
Eco-Drive Signature
Eco-Drive Duo
Promaster Aqualand Eco-Drive Chronograph
Eco-Drive Thermo
Eco-Drive Vitro

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