Citizen Eco-Drive EYES AO9010-02A

Now that the Citizen Eco-Drive EYES has been launched as an official limited edition watch, AZ Fine Time is proud to say that we were fortunate enough to get our hands on a few more. Previously, I had reviewed the black version AO9010-02E (which is also back in stock), but I did not have the opportunity to show off the white dial variation AO9010-02A. Our 1st allotment went quick, and I anticipate the same for our latest shipment.

I covered most of the vitals on the EYES in my 1st review. The incredible length of labor that goes into making the EYES (over 80 times that of a typical Citizen watch), the immaculate finish on its 4 part case design, and the uniqueness of its ceramic hand made dial.

There’s one major obvious difference between these two models. One is black, and one is white. The design inspiration is to play off of light and shadow, and this is where each color has more of its own strength. The black has a stronger effect from light. The glare of light seems to reflect on the black variation, illuminating the indexes. The white version has more strength in the sense of shadow. The white ceramic has great contrast from the dark shadows, making them very clear to see, and gives more depth to the dial. Both express the light and shadow incredibly well and pay great tribute to to its traditional Japanese aesthetics.

Another notable difference between the white and black variation is that the white dial actually utilizes a fully ceramic dial. The black uses sapphire crystal in the center so that light will pass through allowing the solar panel to charge. With the white, the white ceramic is translucent allowing light to pass through and charge the watch.

Utilizing such a material as ceramic can be very difficult. Not only because of its fragility, but also due to manufacturing process. In order to create the worlds 1st 3-D dial utilizing only ceramic, Citizen had to do a tremendous amount labor in order to achieve their goal. All ceramic parts are hand picked and thoroughly inspected to ensure the highest quality and most pleasing aesthetics. The parts are then completely hand polished down to the nearest micron in order to make every side of the surface completely even.