Citizen Calibre 9000 Eco-Drive Wristwatch

This is a fun watch to wear.  It has a number of handy features and I like the way it looks.  The links are smaller, so the band is very comfortable and the case is large w/out being too large.  It's also easy to read.

Here are some highlights:

• Eco-Drive, meaning that it draws power from light through the crystal to capacitors in the dial face
• Perpetual calendar: maintains time, day, date, and year including leap year
• Multiple alarms
• Local and regional times displayed
• Stopwatch, countdown, seconds correction function

If I remember correctly, the 9000 sold for $495 retail.  I found mine on eBay after it had been discontinued and it was a store return, so it was considered 'new, open box'.  The dial came in three color schemes: black, white, and blue.  I thought I'd have to get black, as I almost never saw the blue for sale.  When I saw this one for $50, I pounced.  It has a 5-year US warranty and has run flawlessly.

Citizen, Seiko, Accutron/Bulova, Tissot, etc. are what I would describe as at the top of the lowest end of the watch market.  They're good watches with good quality control, nice designs, and 3- to 5-year US warranties, honored when purchased from an authorized dealer.  I consider these watches to be two steps above, say, Casio and Timex watches and are good for business attire: they say quality without saying that you have a lot of extra money to throw at jewelry (and therefore don't need that promotion).  Best of all, they look great!