New Orient Bambino 38mm

One of Orient's best-sellers of the modern era is the famed "Bambino" entry-level dress watch, widely accepted as offering some of the best value-for-money in the industry.

For years though, a major complaint of many watch buyers was the size of the model, which at 40.5mm (and 42 for some versions) was too big for a classic dress watch. The 36mm version was of little consolation, being too small for many and generally sold as a ladies' model.

But now it seems Orient really was listening to its customers (and following the current trends in watchmaking), and is finally announcing a new 38mm Bambino!

Yep, Orient has just announced the new "Classic and Simple Style" (they never officially adopted the American, and now global, "Bambino" name) 38 model, featuring a style very similar to the Bambino V4 – but with broader dauphine hands, similar to V1.

The new model finally features dimensions that should be embraced as truly classic proportions: 38.4mm width, 44mm length, 12.5mm thickness, and a standard 20mm lug width.

Four versions are being presented:

·         Reference RA-AC0M01S with a gold-colored case, hands and markers, a white dial, and brown leather strap.

·         Ref. RA-AC0M02B with plain steel case, black dial, and black strap.

·         Ref. RA-AC0M03S with a white dial and black strap.

·         Ref. RA-AC0M04Y with a beige dial, blued hands, and brown strap.

The movement is Orient's automatic cal. F6724, offering a 40-hour power reserve, and stated accuracy of +25/-15 seconds per day. Water resistance is a very basic 3 bar.

The new 38mm Bambino looks like the right watch at the right time, packing all the familiar and well-loved design elements of the original model, with the curved dial and domed mineral glass, and that clean and simple (yet not overly simplistic) dial.

Prices have not been advertised but are likely to be very similar to the affordable range of existing Bambinos.