Citizen Alterna Pilot Eco-Dive Watch

With a name like "Alterna," you'd think there is something very alternative looking about these watches. There isn't. Just another one of those soft sounding names that Citizen likes to give to their  sportier timepieces. My favorite so far is the "Atessa" watch. Which isn't nearly as feminine  a watch as the name might suggest. Actually, the Atessa is a very powerful and durable timepiece. Citizen Alterna watches make up a really large family of timepieces, most of which aren't available in the US. I wrote about another Citizen Alterna watch here a while back. If you Google Citizen Alterna, you'll find a wide range of some really cool stuff. Problem is that non of them seem to fit a "family mold," and you'll be gouged a bit when buying them online as they are not officially for the US market. Also, the name "Citizen Alterna Pilot" doesn't narrow this collection down completely, as there are other models with this same name. You'll need to use the reference numbers which are: VO10-3831T, VO10-6833T, and VO10-6832T.

I have a feeling that this watch is gonna come to the US market. It is part of a series of Japanese watches by both Citizen and Seiko that are thematically similar to watches popularized by brands such as Sinn, and Bell & Ross. It has all the bits and pieces that make a watch popular in the US. Being easy to read, sporty, "activity themed," and not very expensive. Not sure of the exact price yet, but from the Yen conversion, they would cost about $250-$300.

The Alterna Pilot comes in a series of colors (perhaps more than shown here), in an IP black or brushed steel case that is 42.5mm wide. The strap is Nylon, and is sort of a mix between a stand strap and a NATO strap with some contrast stitching. Very sport oriented, I like that. Crystal over the dial is mineral (OK for this price), and luminant is Citizen's Lumibrite lume that comes in different colors. Case is water resistant to 100 meters. Movement is the Eco-Drive caliber 8637 quartz movement that is light powered. Very interesting choice on Citizen's behalf to leave off the "Eco-Drive" label on the dial.

At first look the dial looks like it has a chronograph, but then you realize that those are an AM/PM (synced 24 hour hand) and calendar indicators (day/date). Some people are gonna like that, others simply aren't. No chronograph is OK, but I would have gladly traded the day of the week indicator for a subsidiary seconds hand. Overall I really like the watches -though ideally I would want Citizen to offer a black case with white colored hands and numerals. The blue is quite compelling though. Hands are well rendered in the style they are trying to emulate, but are too short. An interesting design component is the crown. It looks like a interpretation on modernizing the turnip or onion style crown that classic mechanical aviator watches have.  For the price, these aren't too bad, and might end up at your local Citizen retailer soon. Otherwise look online.