Mido Ocean Star GMT Special Edition, the review (replica watches)
Seven years have passed since the first Mido article in our magazine and it is time to take stock of the latest addition, the Mido Ocean Star GMT Special Edition, which adequately summarizes the evolution of the Swiss brand; at the time Mido was an unknown brand (for many even a newborn brand) that timidly appeared on the Italian market, where it was mainly appreciated with the Captain Titanium. The prolonged investment in the product culminated, among the time-only underwater models, with the model equipped with a GMT complication and a ceramic bezel launched in 2022.replica watches
The diving watch architecture is the basis of the Mido sports models and the extension to the GMT complication proves that the brand prefers the pure sportsman to the version with three time zones, which objectively finds little practical application, resulting a little “naive”. The new Mido Ocean Star GMT Special Edition does not change the nature of the model from which it derives, a 200-meter diver that offers the possibility of traveling and measuring time in two cities separated by at least an hour of time, with extreme ease of use. and visualization. This version rejuvenates the identity of the entire collection by adopting the “Pepsi” template without replicating the formula to the letter.
The result is a pleasant watch, with rather warm pastel blue and red tones (the GMT arrow hand is beautiful), able to enhance the brightness of the dial compared to the other variants in the catalog. The original steel model, which we photographed two years ago, features a canvas strap but is more classic and less exciting than this version, which looks almost like a completely new model and is more lively. If the Mido designers had intended to revitalize the range with a sports variant of their Ocean Star GMT and climb the ranking of luxury sports, the goal has been achieved.
Case and bracelet: pros, cons and areas for improvement
The modern Ocean Star has been successful thanks to the triangulation between non-radical style, a particularly thin case, eighty hours of autonomy and an intelligent price (just under the fateful one thousand euros). The Captain Titanium model has long dominated the diver market in its segment, even without boasting professional ISO specifications. The GMT is the extension of this game scheme but it is overall a different watch from the starting model.
Case and bracelet are valuable; the second is built with great care and is precisely coupled to the case; it is also very convenient if you take advantage of the extension of the deployant buckle designed for possible use on the diving suit. Designers, planners and the sales network are aware that the quality of the workmanship and comfort of the bracelet are crucial for success in this segment (Seiko, a leader among professional diving watches, knows something about it, which in the last year has extensively modified its bracelets in steel). The bracelet plays an even more important role on a 44 mm diameter and 13.4 mm thick watch that marks 209 grams on the scale. The Mido Ocean Star GMT Special Edition requires an important wrist and the square shape of the case side does not help to mitigate bulk and volume.
Among the pluses there is also the quality of the workmanship of the graduated ceramic ring, executed in a workmanlike manner and best-in-class in the segment. I still cannot say the same about the experience of using the rotating bezel, a theme that to some may seem frivolous and repetitive where on the contrary it continues to represent an essential element of perceived quality on which enthusiasts often agree. More than one brand has made it a topic for the promotion of its new diving watches, for example Montblanc at the presentation of the new Iced Sea, among the generalists, and Christopher Ward among the independents.
Clearly, this is not an aspect that affects the performance or usability of a watch. A delightful detail is represented by the alternation between glossy and brushed finish; a small mirror-polished edge runs along the lugs and continues along the edge of the bracelet’s links. This case contains the proven automatic caliber with eighty hours of autonomy that debuted on Ocean Star and then spread, cascading, to the other brands of the group according to the specifications that the single brand assigned to the group supplier, ETA. It continues to be an exclusive prerogative of the brands belonging to the Swatch Group but some technical or finishing upgrades would be welcome after several years of service.
