We are fans of Citizen here at StarBuy. The brand’s rich history, strong focus on functionality, but most of all, Citizen, for us, is about incredibly competent dive watches.

Although they’re affordable, the NY0120 series are also serious dive watches with a focus on specs and competence. Let’s talk specs first. This series of watches have 200m-water-resistant stainless steel cases that are 41mm in diameter, 50mm from lug to lug, and 13.7mm thick. Each watch also offers a 60-click unidirectional rotating bezel with an aluminium insert, and you will find a modest screw-down crown on the right side of the case. In terms of finish, the watch is classic with a fully brushed case and a polished bezel and crown.

If we zoom in on the dials of the two watches, we see that in this series, they all have a grainy texture. The NY0120-01E has a black/grey gradient dial paired with a black bezel insert, while the NY0129-58L has a blue gradient dial with a dark blue bezel insert. The series also features the NY0121-09X, with a green gradient dial and a green bezel, as well as another NY0120 model. The NY0120-01Z has an orange gradient dial and a black bezel. The orange-dial variant is probably my favourite out of the four because it’s a the most standout piece.

All four dials come with raised (stamped) rectangular indices with high-polished edges and generous lume filling. The markers at 6 and 9 o’clock are slightly wider, while the marker at midday is an inverted triangle shape. You will find a day-date window with a white frame and a smaller hour marker filled with lume at 3 o’clock.

The NY012 series features a Mercedes hour hand, a long and slim arrow minute hand, and a lollipop seconds hand.

A fun detail is that the dial is placed quite deep in the case and surrounded by a steep rehaut. It’s not always noticeable in the pictures, but the distance between the mineral crystal and the dial is substantial. Another thing that stood out visually for us was that the case shape doesn’t seem as curved in the pictures as it is in reality. The lugs have a steep slope to them that starts immediately where the lugs begin. As a result, in real life, it looks less like a standard skin diver case than the pictures might have you think.

Inside the case, Citizen equips the watches with its in-house caliber 8204-21A. This 21-jewel automatic movement operates at 21,600vph, and it has a 42-hour power reserve and an advertised accuracy of +40/-20 seconds per day. It is hidden behind a very simple screw-in case back that features some small engravings about the details of the watch.

The NY012 series comes fitted with a polyurethane strap or a three-row stainless steel bracelet.

Judging from these features, it seems that these ISO 6425-compliant divers are a complete package. And once on the wrist, they feel great too, especially considering the sub-$500 price point. They feel like properly made, sturdy dive watches with plenty of bang for the buck. The black polyurethane strap is supple and easy to wrap around the wrist. The Oyster-style bracelet is comfortable, and the push-button clasp features a dive extension for all your underwater adventures. The bracelet has one nice detail and that is that the bracelet includes half links, making it easy to get the right fit.

Whichever one you might pick, it’s hard to go wrong with these new Citizen Promaster Mechanical Divers.

If you are taking your first steps into the universe of mechanical watches or just looking for a great, affordable daily wearer that you can wear during your holidays and adventures in the water, look no further. It’s hard to see any similar, better watches out there for the price.