Citizen Eco-Drive Photon hands on – celebrating 50 years of powering watches with light

50 years is a long time, and that's exactly how long Citizen watches have made use of the Eco-Drive technology. A revolutionary way to power watches, Eco-Drive makes use of any light source to power a quartz watch movement.

Now, to celebrate the milestone, the brand has unveiled the Citizen Eco-Drive Photon. That's a neat sports watch with a slightly octagonal case shape and a bracelet which almost looks integrated.

All of that is purposeful, with the brand seeking to champion light in all its glory with this release. The brand's Senior General Manager, Yoshihisa Yajima, tells me that the piece was actually designed as part of an internal competition, with people within Citizen tasked with coming up with a design.

Whoever got the winning one should give themselves a pat on the back. This piece is exquisite, with a perfect blend of new and old in the design affording it a timeless look.

The case wears really nicely on the wrist – I was lucky enough to get hands on early with the two models – thanks to a 39.6mm case diameter and a 9.9mm case height. If you've got smaller wrists, or simply appreciate the luxurious feel of a slim watch, this is worthy of your time.

Inside, the piece is powered by the Calibre E036. That offers accuracy of +/-15 seconds per month, while a full charge will last a staggering 365 days. Yes, you read that right – one year of power from a single charge.

The case and bracelet is crafted from Super Titanium, which ensures an impressive, lightweight wearing experience. There's a plain titanium model with a blue dial, but the more adventurous should look to the black and yellow gold-toned DLC version, for an added pop of class.

Both are limited to just 5,000 pieces worldwide, which isn't the most limited thing ever, but should still ensure a degree of urgency if you're looking to purchase.

Priced at £749 (approx. €870 / US$1,000 / AU$1,420) for the titanium and blue dial model, and £895 (approx. €1,040 / US$1,200 / AU$1,700) for the black and gold DLC option, this is going to be a popular number in the brand's catalogue.