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93 of 97 found the following review helpful:
 Nice watch, could be betterApr 01, 2005
By toughcrowd
I purchased this watch because I wanted a solar-powered watch with analog-digital display (plus the usual things that go with a digital watch, i.e. alarms, stopwatch, and countdown timer). The only analog-digital solar watches I found included the Citizen Skyhawk, Citizen Sailhawk (JR4000 and JR4010), Citizen JR0006 (discontinued, but still available on some sites), the Casio atomic WVA430xxx (there are several incarnations, thus the 'x's'), Casio WVA510x, Casio AWS90x, and the Casio PAG60 line (watches that sport barometer, thermometer, and compass functions). The Casios (those I could find in stores) all seemed rather bulky and "plasticky." The discontinued JR0006 had a more primitive power management system and lacked a coordinated analog and digital display, and I didn't need the Sailhawk's yacht racing timer. I went with the Skyhawk in stainless, because I had read that titanium was more prone to surface injuries and I didn't think the weight would be a problem. The watch looks great and, indeed, the weight doesn't bother me, even though my benchpressing limit is probably about 20 pounds. The power save function really works. A moment after I took it out of the box, the hands started to spin around until they came to the right time; it had kept the time correctly for however many months or years it had been sitting in that box! It is NOT true, as many people have written, that this watch lacks luminous coatings, or that they lose their glow very quickly. The coatings seem very similar in brightness to those on my Seiko Diver's watch (which are very bright), and remain visible all night long. However, it IS true that the luminous regions are very small in area, so the overall impression is that the watch is a bit dim at night. The circular slide rule on the bezel is very cute. I'm not going to need it to calculate fuel consumption, but I will use it to calculate tips. There are a few things, however, that make this watch less than perfect. First, as others have observed, the watch face is attractive, but not particularly readable. The 24 hour and UTC subdials are adorable, but I can't see that I will ever need either (for any application that requires UTC, I would want to read the time off the more accurate digital display), and if the subdials weren't there the minute marks could have been made larger and more readable. Second, there's no backlight for the digital display, so the digital functions are useless at night. (Casio somehow manages to have a backlight in their solar-powered watches.) Third, it only works with full-hour time zones, so the watch isn't going to work properly in those parts of the world with half-hour time zones. Fourth, in most modes the two buttons are given over to the change-time zone function. If you want to do things like set the alarm or the countdown timer, you have to fiddle with the crown. But the crown is so beautifully protected that you pretty much have to remove the watch from your wrist before you can manipulate it. Frankly, I might need to change time zones once every couple of months, but I need to set alarms a couple of times a day, and it would have been better if the commonest operations had been the easiest to perform. Fifth, the countdown timer only goes to 99 minutes, which is too short for a lot of timer applications. The timer function display is actually redundant; Citizen might have been able to make better use of the LCD display to allow one to set countdown times in hours and minutes. Sixth, the alarm is very quiet. It won't wake anyone from sleep, and probably won't be heard in a noisy environment, either. In contrast, the alarm on my old Timex Expedition is many times louder, goes into a more insistent mode if ignored, and repeats after an interlude of a few minutes if not cancelled. In sum, buy this watch if you want an attractive analog-digital, solar-powered watch, but recognize that there is a lot of room for improvement, and something better is bound to come out, someday.
23 of 24 found the following review helpful:
 I keep getting asked if this is a Breitling....Nov 21, 2003
I have owned Brietlings (highly recommended if you can afford them) and all manner of other watches over the past 40 years and I must say that the Citizen Skyhawk has everything I need in a relatively inexpensive timepiece. I use every function, from the countdown timer to the stopwatch to the alarm in different time zones. In my trip to Kuwait, Jordan and Iraq this year, not one feature of this watch has failed me...not once.I even use the rotating slide rule to convert statute miles to nautical miles and gallons to pounds of fuel. I higly recommend this watch. And people keep asking me if the watch is a Breitling Navitimer.....a nice additional benefit.
38 of 43 found the following review helpful:
 Should Be A Better WatchMay 21, 2005
By Gumbeaux13
My review closely follows "toughcrowd" who wrote an excellent and detailed review.
(...)
Remember that the bezel is bi-directional in keeping with the concept of the watch. There's no ratchet/spring device to keep it from moving around which for me was aggravating.
The background UTC and 24 hour subdials are ok with me but should have been designed better to allow for larger time markers. Given the choice I'd rather have larger markers than the two subdials which are not a necessity.
The digital clock/date window is too small and has black LCD figures on a gray background. It needs to be larger and the background color more contrasting with the digits for better visibility. It's hard to read the digital time or date even in daylight. The digital clock and date are useless at night due to no background light.
The time markers and hands do have illuminous coatings. But the hands and markers are so small that they are too dim at night. My experience was that the coatings only held light for a short time-certainly not overnight.
The lack of half-hour time adjustment is unfortunate but will only affect those in Newfoundland, Suriname, Iran, India, Sri Lanka, and Central Australia. Suriname, Iran and Sri Lanka are not on my travel list so this is almost inconsequential.
The alarm volume is way too low and not adjustable.
If you have a skinny wrist and have to take a few links out the watch may become uncomfortable as it did for me.
This indeed is a nice looking watch with many functions but you have to consider its limitations as well. The numerous features and functions of the Eco-Drive are still quite impressive. Except for the Arabic numeral bit, this timepiece is loaded with amenities. It's difficult to find a quality solar-powered watch with so many functions.
I cannot find anyone or any study that shows titanium is more prone to surface damage than stainless steel. In fact it is twice as strong, a third lighter, and is extremely corrosion resistant compared to stainless. Unless you like the polished look of stainless, which is less expensive, go with titanium. I've also researched analog/digital watches solar watches and Citizen is the way to go. The 5-year warranty and the Amazon price are outstanding as well-the retail price is $575.00.
Having said all of that, I ended up returning the watch. The clincher was it simply became too uncomfortable after taking links out to fit my relatively skinny wrist. I give the 51L a marginal recommendation but look forward to continued evolution in design from Citizen and others in the solar/chronograph category. The Skyhawk should rely less on the Blue Angels motif and more on functionality.
16 of 16 found the following review helpful:
Favorite of all I ownDec 02, 2004
By Robert Glass
The Skyhawk has ended my 30+ years of collecting watches. There is simply nothing else on the market with its functionality, durability and efficiency.
Its Eco-Drive technology runs on light and never needs a battery. Its quartz accuracy has kept up with the atomic clock! I personally like the distinctive design, the Skyhawk's size and weight. (I own larger and heavier watches, so its size and heft is not a problem to me -- and I have relatively small wrists).
Its amazing range of functions are practical and I use them daily: the 24-hour dial, the UTC dial, the 30 different cities and time zones, the timer, the chronograph, the three different alarms, the perpetual calendar that never needs setting, instantly switching the hands to any time-zone in the world (great for traveling) -- I use everything but the slide-rule bezel (though it's easy to learn and, in a pinch, it's THERE).
Did I mention its FOUR-YEAR POWER RESERVE? (Once fully charged -- by light -- you could shut the Skyhawk in a dark drawer, pull it out after four years, and it starts right up with the perfect time and day-date!) I've always appreciated and collected automatics. But NO automatic is this accurate or efficient. Or fully functional.
I'll keep my Rolexes and Breitlings and Omegas and wear them on special, formal occasions, I suppose. But I can't imagine ever being without the Skyhawk. Nor can I imagine ever buying another watch again.
14 of 14 found the following review helpful:
Great watch, but one negativeJan 13, 2006
By GoBlueFan
I bought the watch and think that the overall quality of materials and design was excellent. Everything works as advertised. The watch never fails to draw attention. The interactive instruction manual (also available on Citizen's web site) does a good job of instructing users on some of major features of the watch.
I did return the watch for only one reason: I can't quickly read off the time and date from the watch. This is the major reason why I wear a watch. The busy dial and very small numbers and letters in the non-backlit and low-contrast LCD subdials affect the readability of the watch. My aging eyes just cannot cope with such small letters, and the slide rule numbers on the bezel are almost imposssible to use without resorting to a magnifying glass.
Bottom line: A great watch with many features, but hard to read.
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