Citizen Eco Drive Nighthawk Review
It is easy to understand why Citizen is the number one watch company in the world after wearing the Nighthawk for the last few weeks. Citizen's unique combination of quartz accuracy, solar charging, water resistance and overall solid build make it just about the most convenient daily wearer I've ever owned.
The Nighthawk model seen here is an all stainless steel (including an all solid link bracelet thankfully) aviator/military/navigator style watch that features an independently settable 24 hour secondary hand. The watch measures 42mm in width. Water resistance is rated at 200 meters (which is plenty deep) and the crown screws down. An internal chapter ring can be moved via the second crown to allow for world timer capability. The lume is of excellent quality, a cool blue color that is very long lasting. (It isn't quite in a Seiko Monster's league but it's close) Additionally, the Nighthawk's second hand can be hacked if that feature is of importance. The crystal on this watch is made of hardened mineral glass. The choice of that material, as opposed to synthetic sapphire is the only disappointment I could find with this watch. Mineral glass is reasonably scratch resistant but nowhere near as good as sapphire.
The Nighthawk's most impressive feature to me, one shared by many other Citizen models, is the Eco Drive system. Most folks are familiar with the periodic chore of changing our watch batteries when they poop out. It is an acceptable compromise in exchange for the superior accuracy that battery driven quartz watches provide over their mechanical counterparts. Citizen, however, found a way around this problem by building a solar cell into the watch face that continuously charges the battery. Once fully charged, the watch will run in darkness for up to six months. The result is a watch that, in theory, should never need servicing.