At Oracle Time we like to focus on mechanical wristwatches 99% of the time because based on feedback from you, our readers, those are the watches you’re more interested in learning about. However, every now and then a quartz watch will come along that’s worth talking about such as the ubiquitous MoonSwatch or this, the new Citizen Satellite Wave X, a watch that has the honour of being the fastest GPS satellite watch ever produced.
Firstly, what is a GPS Satellite watch? Well, as the name suggests, the watch is in communication with a network of satellites in order to track its global position. This allows it to automatically adjust itself to the correct time based on its position on Earth, accounting for changes of time zone and all but eliminating deviation, resulting in exceptional accuracy. Even without signal reception the Satellite Wave X has an accuracy +/- 5 seconds per month and that only improves when it does have a signal.
Specifically, this watch uses the Satellite Wave GPS, which receives signals from satellites in just 3 seconds, making it the fastest in the world. Essentially this functions as another form of regulation and having smaller intervals, such as 3 seconds, improves accuracy on top of the accuracy that comes from being a GPS watch in the first place. In short, you can trust that the Citizen Satellite Wave X is accurate no matter where on the planet you are.
Aesthetically, Citizen have doubled down on the satellite theme. The chunky 45.4mm super titanium case is made from a single piece and has a highly facetted shape. The sharp angles and triangular facets that lead into the integrated bracelet are representative of the panels of a satellite. This is also true of the unique, stepped ring around the inner portion of the dial, which has the look of some space age device you might expect to see attached to the James Webb telescope.
The Citizen Satellite Wave X builds on this by having an inkjet print of stars across its display, giving the appearance of aventurine glass at a more accessible price. It’s also available with either a black or blue backdrop. It looks great and, in my opinion, helps what would otherwise be quite an overwhelming and complex dial to feel cohesive. It almost makes the various complications and scales such as the world timer, date window and days/power reserve/light level indicator fade into the white noise of the stars. That’s all a slightly over the top way of saying that it’s much more stylish and elegant than you would expect.
Powering the watch is the Cal. F150, which is a reference to the original Wave Satellite F100 from 2014. In fact, the name Wave Satellite X is not arbitrary as the X is a Roman numeral denoting the 10th anniversary of the F100 model. The Cal. F150 is an EcoDrive movement, which means that it’s powered by light, which is why one of the functions is a light level indicator so you can check if it’s charging. Although similarly to how the watch remains accurate even without a signal, the EcoDrive movement has a battery life of 7-years at full charge even if it never sees light again (in power saving mode).
Yes, this watch is quartz but it is to a quartz Ronda three-hander what a Vacheron Constantin is to a Sellita, meaning that the price of £1,395 is fully justified. Just because we don’t always look at quartz watches doesn’t mean there isn’t an electric equivalent to haute horology and this is it.
Price and Specs:
More details at Citizen.
