Once nicely nicknamed “the little skylight”, television opens up to many horizons, including (from time to time) watchmaking. While YouTube channels are aimed at tick-tock freaks, to use the formula dear to the creator of the channel Frank sans C, some watches evoke TV through their design. After following the debut of the Lip Big TV Titane GAxBI launched last February, the time has come to tune in to Mido’s new creation called Multifort TV Big Date.

Mido Multifort TV Big Date watch. Satin-finished and polished steel case. Dimensions 40mm x 39.2mm. Thickness 11.48mm. Caliber 80 automatic movement (based on ETA CO7.651). Power reserve 80 hours. Dial gradient from blue to black with horizontal brushing. Timer on the flange. Anti-reflective sapphire crystal. Transparent background. Water resistance 100m. Metallic bracelet. 1140 €. © DR

“Who still remembers the first televisions? we ask at Mido, where we recall the existence of screens displaying modest dimensions and a format that has now disappeared, an almost square rectangle with rounded edges. In 1973, then during the 1980s and 2000s, the Swiss brand was inspired by it for the design of some of its watch models. “Today, 50 years after its first appearance, the cult silhouette of the TV-shaped box returns to the catalog,” announces the house. In fact, the new Multifort TV Big Date evokes by its design the good old TVs of the 70s with curved shapes. The screen, sorry, the dial, even offers the choice between black and white and color! Mido offers the watch in an elegant shade of black, blue or green, depending on the version adopted.

The new Mido Multifort TV Big Date watch is available with a blue, green or black dial, on a metal or rubber strap. © DR

While the inlay technique makes it possible to multiply the images on a modern television, the designers of this unprecedented timepiece have incorporated a large date window at 12 o’clock. “Constituting a Mido signature, the famous Big Date already present on several models of the brand is entering the Multifort collection”, confirm the designers. Its extraordinary size certainly allows instantaneous reading of the date. The readability of the hour and minute indications is also guaranteed, thanks to the presence of large baton-shaped hands and refined luminescent markers. The sobriety of the whole does not exclude the elegance and visual pleasure offered by the horizontal brushing enjoyed by the dial.

Urban-chic elegance for this blue dial/steel bracelet combination. © DR

While this new watch cleverly cultivates a retro aesthetic, modernity reigns at the heart of the 40mm x 39.2mm steel case, water resistant to 100m. There is a latest-generation automatic movement, Caliber 80 equipped with a high-tech Nivachron hairspring, a guarantee, according to the brand, of great resistance to shocks and magnetism. Another advantage of this mechanism visible through a transparent back: its power reserve of up to 80 hours. A long-term program, therefore, and accessible to all audiences, for the Mido Multifort TV Big Date…

The point: a model with a history, an attractive design, an automatic movement, for a very affordable price.