Citizen Men’s CA0467-11H Eco-Drive Primo Chronograph Watch review

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With only one week left until Father’s Day, I’m sure a lot of you are still scrambling to try to find the perfect gift for your dear old Dad. How about a very snazzy watch? Citizen sent me one of their latest Eco-Drive watches – the CA0467-11H Eco-Drive Primo Chronograph Watch to be exact to try out. With a racing inspired design, this is a cool watch that will keep time and turn heads. Let’s take a closer look.

Note: Images can be clicked to view a larger size.

I wanted to start off with a little Gadgeteer trivia… Fourteen years ago, back in 1999, we posted a review of then brand new Citizen Eco-Drive watch. That review continues to make our yearly top 25 most read reviews even after all these years. That goes to show that Citizen Watch Company and Eco-Drive watches are just as popular as ever.

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It’s easy to see why these watches are so popular. The new Primo watch has a sporty style that features a chunky stainless steel grey ion-plated case and a clear mineral crystal. It has a 1/5 second chronograph measuring up to 60 minutes, tachymeter, rotating 360 degree bezel and is water resistant to 100 meters.

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And of course it offers the ultra-convenient (and eco-friendly) charging design which is powered by light – any light. It never requires a battery change and will charge in the sun, in the house, anywhere where there’s ambient light. When fully charged, it will run for up to 6 months. Light is absorbed through the crystal and the dial where the solar cell converts the light to energy.

Although the watch doesn’t have an easy to see charging status indicator, when the reserve power becomes too low, the 2nd hand will start moving in 2 second increments instead of 1 second increments. This is an alert to let you know it’s time to expose the Primo to direct light. Placing the watch in a window sill on a sunny day for 5-6 hours will fully charge it.

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The soft-touch strap is made of black polyurethane coated leather with a black metal buckle. Orange stitches pair with the orange watch face details.

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The strap is backed with orange nylon for added good looks and comfort.

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It is very easy to set the time and date on the Citizen CA0467-11H Eco-Drive Primo Chronograph Watch by using the crown which pulls out to 2 positions.

There are 3 dials on the face of the watch. The top most dial is the minute hand for the chronograph / stopwatch feature. The dial below that one is the 24hr hand and the bottom most dial is the second hand.

The stopwatch feature is very smooth and easy to use. Just press the top button to start the chronograph and press again to stop it. Pressing again will restart and pressing the bottom button will cause the chronograph 2nd hand to sweep back to the 12 o’clock position and the chronograph minute hand to sweep back to the 0 min position in one smooth sweep. The chronograph can measure up to 60 minutes. The watch will continue to keep time while it’s also being used as a stopwatch.

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It’s easy to see the time in the dark and the watch is completely silent. I couldn’t hear any ticking when held up to my ear.

I tried wearing this watch for a couple of days and found that it was a bit too much for my little wrist. It’s chunky and heavy… but that’s also what makes it look and feel like a quality time piece. During my short time trying it, I could easily view the time with a quick glance. There’s a lot going on on the face of the watch, but the numbers and minute/hour hands are clearly visible.

In this age of the smartphone and the smartwatch, wrist watches like the Citizen CA0467-11H Eco-Drive Primo Chronograph Watch are still very popular and make a great gift for anyone that wants to look great while being on time.

This watch is also available in blue, green and yellow. The MSRP is $395, but you can save about $100 through Amazon.

 

Product Information

Price:$395.00 MSRP
Manufacturer:Citizen
Retailer:Amazon
Pros:
  • Stylish
  • Doesn't require batteries
  • Easy to set
  • Stop watch function
  • 5yr limited warranty
Cons:
  • None

12 thoughts on “Citizen Men’s CA0467-11H Eco-Drive Primo Chronograph Watch review”




  1. Gadgeteer Comment Policy - Please read before commenting
  2. i hate such type of watches. i need to spend about a second to determine what time is now. display is the useless mess of hands and stripes…

    watch strap is cool by the way…

  3. Bryan Broadbent

    Nice review. I’m a watch freak and it sounds like we share the same smaller wrist. It would help if you posted the size of the case h/w/l 🙂

    Thanks
    Bryan

  4. comment just on the Citizen EcoDrive. I’ve had one for three years (Father’s Day). Wonderful thing. As Ron Popeil says, “set it and forget it! The only negative thing I can say is the watch slows a wee bit if you put it on ice/ice pack. I had been a Swatch Automatic/self-wind fan but the mechanism failed after 5 yrs. I have higher expectations for EcoDrive. Fingers crossed.

  5. You mention when it’s low or charge it’s OK to sit it on the window sill and charge. But in the manual for it, it states direct sunlight (not through a window).

    Also mentions in the manual that if you wear clothes that cover the watch, you’ll have issues with it charging.

    Still nice looking watch.

  6. My wife just bought me this watch for our anniversary and i wanted to ask one question, i know it might sound kind of silly. But does the second hand – or what looks like the second hand not move on its own? I know it does the stop watch feature but I need to have peace of mine knowing that it stay at the “12” if the stop watch feature is not active.

  7. I just bought this watch tonight. I had not gone to the watch store to buy anything. This watch really caught my eye. Great watch for the price. To Allen T: The second hand is the small bottom sub-dial. The larger “second” hand is only for the chronograph.

    1. Thanks for the reply! One year later… lol.. I switch frequently between this and SkyHawk Blue Angels and NaviHawk… All beautiful Eco-Drive watches from citizens.

  8. Ended up being a bit of a waste of money. Considering the price, I expect a light, not some cheap glow in the dark feature that doesn’t last long at all.

    If in a really dark room for the night, don’t expect to be able to tell the time in the middle of the night.

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