Introducing: The Mido Ocean Star GMT Special Edition — Celebrating The Collection’s 80th Anniversary
To celebrate the Ocean Star’s 80th anniversary, Mido introduces a new GMT Special Edition. It doesn’t take much inspiration from a specific reference from the past, but it certainly looks inspired by vintage watches. And, just like the other Ocean Star GMT models, it features a so-called “flyer GMT” movement. Even though more and more watches at this price point are utilizing such a movement, it’s still not very common. We stumbled upon this exciting new release last week and certainly didn’t want to keep it from you, so let’s take a quick look.
Although Mido had already trademarked the Oceanstar name (yes, as one word) in 1944, the first watch carrying that name didn’t come out until 1959. Since then, the name has stood for very sturdy, capable, and water-resistant watches. While the regular Ocean Star collection consists of many such watches, I prefer the special editions within the collection.
Those are usually a little smaller and feature charming nods to the past. Look, for example, at the beautiful milky-blue Ocean Star Tribute and the colorful Decompression Worldtimer. But the best version so far was the Oceanstar GMT Limited Edition in collaboration with our friends from Hodinkee. That version finally got a bit of brushing, and the dial, in particular, was very tasteful. And since I quickly saw the new Mido Ocean Star GMT Special Edition that we’re discussing today on a Swatch Group representative’s laptop screen last week, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it.
The Mido Ocean Star GMT Special Edition
Just like those Decompression Worldtimer and Limited Edition versions, the new Ocean Star GMT Special Edition also features a stainless steel case without crown guards. It measures 40.5mm wide and 13.4mm thick and spans 47mm from lug to lug. These dimensions make it a very wearable tool watch on the wrist. I also like that the case has both brushed and polished finishes. This suits its style better than an all-polished case like the Tribute’s. The bidirectional 24-hour bezel has a dark blue aluminum insert, and a domed sapphire crystal guards the dial.
The watch comes on an 11-row stainless steel bracelet with an additional blue NATO-like textile strap. I especially like the bracelet as it looks more integrated than the mesh bracelet of some other Ocean Star models.
The dial starts with a brushed, silver-colored flange on its perimeter, displaying the odd-numbered hours. The central portion of the dial is a glossy navy blue with applied indexes all around. Those have been inspired by sharks’ sharp teeth and feature Super-LumiNova. The diamond-cut hour, minute, and seconds hands have a polished finish, and the GMT hand displays a red paint job. Other nice details are the raised Mido signature at 12 and the red “GMT” text at 6 o’clock. At 3 o’clock, you’ll find a simple but functional date window.
A flyer GMT
Although there’s no mention of it on the dial, the watch is water resistant to a pressure of 20 bar (~200 meters). That is thanks in part to the screw-down crown, which also controls the Mido automatic Caliber 80 (ETA C07.661 base) inside. Basically, it’s a Powermatic 80 movement with a GMT function added to it. It runs at a 21,600vph frequency and features 25 jewels and an antimagnetic Nivachron balance spring. It’s also adjusted in three positions and holds a power reserve of up to 80 hours.
But the most exciting thing is that this caliber is a flyer GMT. This means that you’re able to set the 12-hour hand individually. That way, you can keep the 24-hour GMT hand set to your home time and quickly adjust the 12-hour hand to local time when traveling. The great thing is that while you’re setting that hour hand, the movement will keep running and the other hands will stay put, thus not affecting the timekeeping. As mentioned, more and more affordable watches are featuring flyer-style GMT calibers these days. This is mainly because the Miyota 9075 movement is becoming widespread. But it’s great to see that Swatch Group is also starting to use its flyer GMT movement in more and more watches.
First thoughts
Of course, we’ve requested the new Mido Ocean Star GMT Special Edition for a hands-on review. Judging by the press material, though, this already looks like quite an exciting release. The dial is laid out well with its shark-tooth indexes, the silver flange, and the sophisticated blue color on both the dial and bezel insert. For its €1,440 price, I think it offers a very nice package, especially compared to Seiko’s recent GMT releases. Some of them cost around the same or more, but unlike the Ocean Star, they have what many consider the less attractive caller GMT complication.
I can’t wait to take this new Mido Ocean Star GMT Special Edition for a spin and tell you all about it. So stay tuned, and if you need more information in the meantime, please visit the official Mido website.
Let me know in the comments below what you think of the new Mido Ocean Star GMT Special Edition.
