I wonder how many times the words “It’s an anniversary year for…” have been written on this website? It probably wouldn’t be that hard to figure out, but frankly I have too many articles about anniversaries to write to devote even a small amount of time to this particular task. Case in point, the latest from Citizen, which celebrates not the anniversary of the brand itself, but rather a piece of technology that they have pioneered and has in many ways come to define them for both casual watch consumers and hardcore enthusiasts alike. That’s right folks, Eco-Drive turns 50 this year, and I think you’ll agree that at the half century mark it’s looking as youthful and promising as ever, countering the conventional wisdom and advice from dermatologists everywhere to stay out of the sun.
The new watch is called the Photon, and when it hits retailers in the fall it will come in two versions: the BJ6560-53W in silver titanium and the BJ6569-59X in black coated titanium with a gold toned accent on the outside of the case. Both feature the same latticed dial made up of two metal dial plates that allow light to pass through and hit the Eco-Drive sensor. According to Citizen, the design is inspired by the famous “double slit experiment” that proves light can exhibit both wave and particle-like behaviors. I can already imagine 7th grade science teachers removing their watches in class to perform live demonstrations while simultaneously indoctrinating a new generation of watch enthusiasts. This is how the hobby survives, I think.
Eco-Drive technology, of course, allows a watch to be powered indefinitely through light. Over the course of the last 50 years, much of the advancement in the technology has been in making sensors that absorb more light, allowing for movements that can stay powered up for longer and longer periods without being exposed to new light sources. The Photon is yet another evolution of that technology, featuring the new Eco-Drive Cal. E036 movement, which is capable of running for a full year once the power reserve is topped off. Like other newer Eco-Drive movements, it also charges on dimmer light sources, including artificial light. That means that unless your watch is quite literally sitting in a completely dark environment for a year straight, it’s probably picking up enough light to keep it running for as long as you might want to use and wear it. Perhaps the next 50 years?
Citizen, I think, has succeeded in making a big anniversary watch feel special by creating a new case profile that doesn’t really resemble anything in the current lineup, but still feels like its in communication with the brand’s more experimental past. The Super Titanium cases feature Duratect coatings and measure 39.6mm in diameter and 9.9mm tall. They have a shape that straddles the line between angular and sloping, and in Citizen’s images they appear to have a nice ergonomic quality to them (we look forward to getting hands on with these watches soon). They are paired to an integrated titanium bracelet that to me immediately brings to mind that of the H. Moser Streamliner, but no points taken off for that as it’s a watch I happen to really enjoy.
The Photon is a limited edition made up of 5,000 pieces in each version. So, not really super rare by most LE standards, but the pricing ($995 and $1,195 for the BJ6560-53W and the BJ6569-59X, respectively) should entice plenty of curious enthusiasts. Citizen
Zach Kazan
2026-03-25 16:00:00