The Eco-Drive watch by Citizen is a solar powered wristwatches. These new Eco-Drive watches will never need to have the battery replaced. And they come in a wide variety of styles for both men and women.

The main feature of the eco-Drive watches is the way it store the solar energy.

The dial on eco drive watches is made from ceramic or a special plastic. This allows the light sensitive panel that is hidden in eco drive watches to absorb enough light.

In eco drive watches there is a light sensitive photo electric cell hidden right underneath the dial. This panel converts light into electrical energy even in low light. A few minutes of daylight provides enough energy to run a eco drive watch for a day.

One important lesson here, it is not a 100% solor powered watch. It just convert solar energy by charging the lithium-ion battery stored inside the watch.

The lithium-ion battery will probably run this watch forever. It usually is designed to run on a full charge for 180 days, (or 6 months). It takes 3.5 hours to charge fully, in sunlight; and 1 minute to charge for one day's worth of power.

One word of caution. It is not easy to operate and set. So, do remember to keep the operating manual handy with you.

As for me, I got a BL5180-57L. a soft copy of the manual can be downloaded here. If you have other model and need to look for the operating manual, let me know. I will try my best to find it for you.

Manual Download:

BL5xxx | BJ1xxx |

Buy Citizen Men's Titanium Eco-Drive Chronograph Watch with Black Dial from Amazon