Contrast of a Solar and Kinetic Powered Dive Watch

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Contrast of a Solar and Kinetic Powered Dive Watch

Traditionally watches have either been mechanical or battery powered. The mechanical variety had to be wound regularly, while the latter required changing batteries from time to time. But what if it was possible to find a watch that would run for a lifetime without winding or new batteries?

Well it is possible, and aside from being a boon to us lazy folks, it’s quite practical for watches that aren’t worn everyday, like diving watches. And not just a dive watch, but those used for different occasions, like only everyday casual or just during more formal events.

Used to be one had to either rewind and reset their mechanical watches, or if they were self-winding, invest in a watch winder. In the battery variety, it seems like the battery always needs replacing at the most inconvenient times, and besides that, often requires the services of a jeweler.

Today there are a couple different alternative ways to go. This is especially great news for divers, who may not wear a diver watch on a regular basis.

First is the kinetic watch from Seiko which utilizes kinetic, or motion-generated, energy created by the wearers arm movements. It’s similar to the self-winding watch which used that same energy to wind the mainspring. The difference is these Seiko dive watches use that energy to charge up a battery which actually powers the watch. The excess is kept in these storage cells to provide power when there’s been no movement.

Solar is the other power option, and is used in Citizens Eco-Drive series of watches. Instead of kinetic energy, these Citizen Eco-Drive dive watches are powered by light from the sun, or a lamp, or virtually any source of light.Tiny solar cells on the watch dial transform light into electrical energy, which is collected and stored in energy cells, similar to a battery. This supplies power for extended periods, even without light.

Once they’re charged up, both Citizen Eco-Drive and Seiko Kinetic models can be left for months without being worn and still keep running. Many newer designs have a hibernation mode which freezes the hand and dial functions when no movement is sensed for extended time periods. But internally the quartz movement keeps the time, so once motion is sensed, everything resets automatically.

Battery technology is now at the point where the life of this storage cell or battery can reach past the lifetime of the wearer. Since batteries needn’t be changed, these watches are super green.

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