Gizmodo: citizen

CItizen AIBATO M Bluetooth Watch Can Remotely Trigger Your Camera Shutter

Sean Fallon — Tue, 19 May 2009 16:00:00 EDT

The AIBATO M Bluetooth watch from Citizen has a close relationship with your cellphone. It can alert you to calls and display caller information, emails and news tickers. It can even remotely operate a camera.

Yeah, that last feature sounds a little dubious (like it could be used for evil), but rest assured—the watch will be available in Japan only starting on July 1st and will work with only a select group of phones. [Citizen via Slashgear via OhGizmo]

Citizen ITX21-5014 Watch Looks as Futuristic as It Sounds

Adrian Covert — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 19:00:06 EDT

Citizen has taken the futristic route with the ITX21-5014 watch from their Independent line. Behind the machine-like watch hands is a green LCD, turned 90 degrees to the left, that displays the digital date, time, alarms, chronographs and timers. The watch is finished off by a checkered band and engraving along the sidewalls of the watch. While not quite the controlled chaos that best describes the average Tokyoflash watch (who is importing this Citizen watch, btw), it's pretty cool and out there for Citizen, who typically make more boring timepieces. The ITX21-5014 is currently selling for ¥22,900 in Japan, so expect it to cost around $223 in the US. [Tokyoflash via Geek Alerts]

Citizen i:Virt Bluetooth Watches, Convenient Without Being Completely Dorky-Looking

Charlie White — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 14:16:24 EDT

Until now, if you wanted a Bluetooth watch that could show you your cellphone caller ID info, usually you had to wear a cheap plastic monstrosity on your wrist. But Citizen has somewhat alleviated that problem, releasing i:Virt, a variety of five Bluetooth-compatible watches that don't look half bad. With a product like this, pricing is one of the most important specs, so it's too bad Citizen's not forthcoming with that info just yet. If the price is right, we wouldn't mind wearing that titanium model in the middle. Each watch even comes with a strange-looking canister case that we rather like. Check out the gallery for close-ups of each timepiece. [Wristwatch]

Citizen Develops Seismic Earthquake Early Warning Watch

Wilson Rothman — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 12:15:00 EDT

There's nothing to stop Japan's infamous earthquakes, but there are better ways to get ready for them. Citizen is developing the Seismic watch to take advantage of the country's "Earthquake Early Warning" radio service. It will pick up the radio signal as much as 10 seconds faster than the cellular text-message alternative. The way the watch alerts you of a coming earthquake does have a certain cinematic disaster-movie intensity to it:

According to Gizmag:

The Seismic watch functions as an ordinary watch until it receives the EEW, which causes the hour hand to speed up based on the seismic intensity estimation, while the minute and second hands give the countdown time to the earthquake arrival.

I can already picture the adrenalized jump-cut-heavy scene involving a watch counting down to earthquake, starring Jason Stratham of course.

The watch itself will be ready in 2010, first for men (given its size) but eventually for women, too. A wall clock connecting to the EEW system via home network will also be available.

Speaking of that, it's probably clear why this technique, using Japan's EEW system, is a better bet than Hitachi's tremor-sensing AirSense watch, which we told you about a few years back. After all, what good is being told of an earthquake when all your crap is already falling off the walls. [Gizmag]

Citizen W700 VIRT Caller ID Bluetooth Watch Updated

Charlie White — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 15:45:00 EST

Citizen has dabbled in Bluetooth watches before, rolling out the VIRT W700 last June that connects to your Bluetooth-enabled cell phone and displays caller ID and vibrates when a call arrives. Now the company has updated its design, improving that ominous black look of its predecessor to this more "casual" appearance.

But the product has us scratching our heads:

Is it that big of a deal to have your cell phone in your pocket, and quickly glance at it when it rings to see who's calling? Many people are now using cell phones as a timepiece anyway these days, so a clunky watch, even though it's updated in colors of pink, blue and black with white trim, might seem redundant. Too bad it's not a phone, too. Anyway, Citizen didn't announce its price but said this updated model will be available in Japan by mid-March. – Charlie White

Product Page (translated) [Citizen, via Ministry of Tech]

Citizen Bluetooth Watch

johnb — Thu, 08 Jun 2006 14:51:01 EDT

The VIRT from Citizen is the first Bluetooth watch in the whole entire world. This limited edition monstrosity, the VIRT W700 connects to your phone and displays caller IDs and vibrates when you get a call. This presumably allows you to keep your phone in a chest at the bottom of the sea and, when someone you want to talk to calls, you can then dive into the ocean, unlock that selfsame chest, and pull your phone back up to the surface in order to take the call. That is the only acceptable scenario I can personally think of in order to justify the purchase of this timepiece. You see, once your phone starts ringing, it takes only one second to make a surreptitious movement in order to check who is calling you.

If you could talk into this thing, maybe I'd support it. – John Biggs

Citizen VIRT Bluetooth Wristwatch Talks to Your Mobile Phone [WristDreams]

Citizen Scale Measures Internal Organ Fat

Noah R — Thu, 12 Jan 2006 11:40:58 EST

There are two ways of looking at fat in America: either we are too obsessed with it, or not nearly obsessed enough. This lovely HM7000 scale from Citizen fits in the latter category. It not only measures fat, but the fat levels of your internal organs, basal metabolic rate, inner body age (say what?), amount of muscle and estimated bone density. Yes, but can I put my morning Twinkies on the scale and have it tell me exactly how much weight I will gain from eating them both in one bite? Well?

Personal data for up to 4 people can be registered. Available January 23 in Japan.

Product Page

More health and body fat scales [Amazon]

Big Bendy Clock

Noah R — Tue, 13 Dec 2005 16:00:07 EST

Watch company Citizen announced the development of an e-paper-like technology for use as a clock. "Yawn", I hear you say — but wait, Citizen's e-paper is really BIG. Measuring 4.2 feet x 1.7 feet, Citizen's giant, bendable timepiece can reportedly run for a whole year on two regular button batteries. That's all very well, but I'm skeptical about the real-world uses a bendable clock might have. Given the way digits appear on a digital clock like this, asking a friend what the time is when this thing is half bent around a corner would elicit a response such as "well, it's either 1:45, 7:45, 8:45 or 9:45." Which might be a lot less useful than, say, looking at my watch.

Citizen's Big Bendy Clock. No, Clock [The Daily Yomiuri]