It is now registered on the List of IEEE Milestones as a key advance in electrical engineering.

The Astron was unveiled in Tokyo on December 25, 1969, after ten years of research and development at Suwa Seikosha (currently named Seiko Epson), a manufacturing company of Seiko Group.

Within one week 100 gold watches had been sold, at a retail price of 450,000 yen (US$1,250 (equivalent to $10,386 in 2023)) each (at the time, equivalent to the price of a medium-sized car).

[1] Essential elements included a XY-type quartz oscillator of 8192 Hz (8192 = 213), a hybrid integrated circuit, and a phase locked ultra-small stepping motor to turn its hands.

[5][6] Among them, the model produced in a limited edition of 50 pieces (3.8 million yen) mimics the original case design and has a rough engraving pattern by craftsmen belonging to Epson's "Micro Artist Workshop".