When it comes to brands touting their heritage, there are more than a few that, shall we say, embellish the links to the past. Then you have brands like Mido who have more concrete claims underscoring a release. Take, for instance, the Mido Commander Icône. When the brand is celebrating 60 years of unbroken production of a watch line, you can take that at face value.
Frankly, looking at the Mido Commander Icône, it even feels like something that could have come from a neo-futuristic look of the late 50’s, early 60’s. By this, I mean that the lugless look has an aged-but-modern feel, only further enhanced and underscored by the dial design.
Then again, modernity in a watch comes with the materials and movement. In this case, the Mido Commander Icône has quite a nice movement – COSC certification and an 80-hour power reserve are tags attached to this particular caliber (all the details listed down below).
At 50m of water resistance, the Mido Commander Icône certainly won’t be mistaken for a dive watch. That said, for an everyday, non-waterbound watch, the stainless steel case and sapphire crystal will certainly keep things safe. While the design of the $1,390 Mido Commander Icône may not be my cup of coffee, and I can certainly appreciate the commitment to continuity that the watch represents. shopmido.com
Watch Overview
- Brand & Model: Mido Commander Icône
- Price: $1,390
- Who we think it might be for: This seems to be a watch that calls to people of a similar era, for which the watch style evokes memories that I just don’t have
- Would I buy one for myself based on what I’ve seen? Nope, I like Mido, but this one isn’t for me
- If I could make one design suggestion, it would be: Color-match the day/date display
- What spoke to me the most about this watch: That movement
Tech Specs from Mido
- Movement: Automatic Mido Caliber 80 Si (ETA C07.821 base), COSC-certified chronometer, 111?2’’’, Ø25.60 mm, height: 5.22 mm, 2 jewels, 21,600 vph, ELINFLEX mainspring, silicon balance-spring, decorative disc with transferred Si logo on the balance bridge. Finely decorated chronometer movement with blued screws, oscillating weight decorated with Geneva stripes and Mido logo. Functions: HMSD+Day. Adjusted on 5 different positions for high accuracy. Up to 80 hours of power reserve.
- Case: Satin-finished 316L stainless steel, anthracite PVD-treated, polished bezel, Ø42 mm, 3 pieces, faceted and domed sapphire crystal, screwed case back, finely decorated chronometer movement visible through the bevelled transparent case back, water-resistant up to a pressure of 5 bars (50 m / 165 ft).
- Bracelet: 316L stainless steel Milanese mesh, anthracite PVD-treated, satin-finished, integrated into the case, sliding clasp.
- Dial: Anthracite, sunray satin-finished, polished applied indexes with white Super-LumiNova®, day and date at 3 o’clock
- Hands: Flat diamond-cut, hour and minute hands with white Super-LumiNova® for easy readability at night, seconds hand entirely varnished in MIDO orange.
