Matt Clymo 
The new Tudor Black Bay Chronograph “Flamingo Blue” was released a few weeks ago and to much excitement. We take a look at the piece and hype around it.
Lets face it, turquoise blue is a hot colour thanks to a certain luxury brand who decided to put it’s brand colour on the dial of another certain major watch brand’s hype piece. The result? A dial colour that ever since has gone a little nuts in the watch world, making certain pieces with this colour much sought after and making secondary prices skyrocket. Tiffany and Patek Philippe aside, who can forget the prices the Rolex Oyster Perpetual in the light blue commanded when it hit the market? Good luck getting one of those and if you couldn’t, then on the secondary market you were paying sometimes up to 5x retail. Since then, may watch brands have brought out their own version of this iconic colour, and each time it seems to go down well with collectors in the watch community, as well as those who are looking to make a quick dollar should they be able to get their hands on one.
Tudor is the latest brand to adopt the light turquoise blue colour, and this time, it is in the form of the Black Bay Chrono, with what Tudor dubs, “Flamingo Blue”. No, Flamingo’s haven’t had a make over and changed from pink to blue, but the waters around the Florida and the Caribbean where they frequent are a shade of turquoise blue. Plus, the colour evokes that feeling of the art deco style that is common down in South Beach Miami, full of pastel pinks, blues, yellows and greens.
Substantially not much has changed with this release. You still have the 41mm case that is 14.4mm thick, the 5-link bracelet that was released in 2023 with the new(ish) Tudor T-fit clasp, giving you an extra centimeter or so of on the fly adjustment and the steel bezel with black anodised aluminium insert. It also has the Tudor Manufacture Calibre MT3813 automatic winding movement with 70 hours of power reserve and like all Black Bays, 200m water resistance. All up, a pretty good all round package for a watch that still retails under A$9,000 in comparison to other chronographs on the market today, many that don’t have equivalent specs I may add.
What has changed is the obviously “Flamingo Blue” dial, the light shade of turquoise that is very reminiscent of the aforementioned Tiffany colour. You can’t miss it either. Tudor has in recent times started to break away from convention slowly. Their DNA was, and still is for the most part, that of solid pieces which take their design cues from vintage watches, like the Black Bay’s DNA of a vintage ’55 Sub. However, being the younger and slightly more adventurous sibling to Rolex, Tudor has had the chance to play around a little more, even with their tagline – “Born To Dare”. It shows Tudor’s more adventurous side and allows them to do things a little out of the box. Maybe Rolex has learnt a little from this when they released the coloured OP’s or the puzzle and celebration dials in 2023. Either way, Tudor has helped pave that road.
Having seen a few of these pop up now on collectors wrists and in person, it is a bold colour choice for those who want to wear it. Similar to the pink dial released last year, it really is for those who were “born to dare”, but unlike the pink dial, the blue is somewhat a little more versatile, and still just as fun. This is showing that Tudor isn’t afraid to have some fun, and with the success of the new Black Bay Chrono colour variants, we may well ask, what is next?
But, back to the originally stated question at the very start of the article. Is this then next hype watch? Possibly. But to answer that, we also need to ask why? Not an easy answer. Tudor loves their brand ambassadors, and seeing this piece teased on the wrists of David Beckham and Jay Chou meant we were in for a piece that would be highly sought after – after all, this was the playbook we saw with the pink dial release. Tiffany, I mean, flamingo Blue is possibly one of the most sought after coloured dials in the watch world today.
Tudor hasn’t said that this watch will be limited or done in small quantities like they did with the pink dial, but you can safely assume that they won’t be made in giant numbers (yet at least) and will be in hot demand from Tudor collectors and watch lovers alike. The initial limited supply however will most probably keep demand high and as a result, those who are not a regular Tudor customer, or those that don’t have a good relationship and spend with an AD may find it hard to get their hands on one – this year at least. Add to this the fact that a notable celebrity like Mark Wahlberg was one of the first people the world to get this piece (who isn’t a Tudor ambassador that is) shows that Tudor wants this piece to be in hot demand, and there is really nothing wrong with that.
Initial Thoughts
Colour is a good thing, especially when it comes to watches, and sports watches no less. I’ve mentioned now is a few articles that I’m in a more ‘colour centric’ phase with watches, appreciating those that are not the classic blue, black or white. These colourways have their place, and will always be timeless, but sometimes you just need to throw something on that goes against the convention, or at the very least, gives you a bit of flair on the wrist. The new Tudor Black Bay Chrono ‘Flamingo Blue” does just that.
Outside of the blue dial, you get all the manufacturing nous of Tudor put together in a watch that has the DNA of the Black Bay with the combination of a vintage style racing chronograph, complete with screw down pushers. The “flamingo Blue” Black Bay Chronograph is Tudor blending the heritage with the modern, taking vintage styling and giving it a new look that is anything but vintage. For those who want a good, well made and value for money piece, this is certainly one option. For those who want a cool, fun, summer colour, then the Tudor Black Bay Chrono “Flamingo Blue” will tick that box most definitely.
Reference: M79360N-0024
Specifications:
- Dimensions: 41mm case diameter x 14.4mm thick
- Case Material: Brushed & Polished Stainless Steel
- Dial: Turquoise with black sunken sub-dial & date at 6 o’clock
- Movement: Manufacture Calibre MT5813 with chronograph function COSC Chronometer Certification
- Power Reserve: 70 hours
- Water Resistance: 200m (20bar)
- Bracelet: 5-link 316L stainless-steel bracelet with polished and satin-brushed finishes, with TUDOR “T-fit” rapid adjustment clasp
