
While we tend to think of the old, heritage watch brands as all coming from Switzerland and Europe, Japan has an equally rich watchmaking history. In fact, Orient is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, having been founded in 1950 (Seiko is even older, tracing back to the late 1800s). To celebrate this landmark Orient have expanded their best-selling Bambino range. There are four standard Bambinos in new colours, three Bambino Day/Night models in three of those same colours and then a 75th Anniversary Limited Edition of each.
Orient Bambino Classic




The Orient Bambino’s appeal is immediately obvious. At 40.5mm in diameter it with a thickness of 12.3mm it’s well sized for a daily wearer in steel. The display is also elegantly charming with its curved dial and combination of minute, second and hour scales with both Arabic and Roman numerals present. It’s understated with just enough going on to stop it from being boring, which means the result is actually very handsome.
For the 75th anniversary, the Bambino is now available in green, navy blue, burgundy and for the first time ever, beige. Beige might not sound like an exciting prospect but paired with rose gold coloured hands and silver Roman numerals, it’s one of the most refined in the whole range. Plus, the off-white colour gives it the look of an aged vintage watch, which lines up with the current popularity of neo-vintage designs.
The fifth model is the Orient Bambino 75th Anniversary limited edition. Though when they say limited it’s not exactly hyper exclusive with 9,500 pieces available. It has a white dial with rose gold-coloured numerals and scales, completed by contrasting blue hands. It’s inspired by vintage dress watch designs that feature precious metals and high-end production techniques like thermally blued hands.
All five of these variants house the in-house calibre F6724 with automatic winding. It’s pretty solid given the price point with a 40-hour power reserve and +25/-15 seconds per day accuracy. Speaking of value, the four regular models are £275.99 and the limited edition is £329.99.
Price and Specs:
Model:
Orient
Bambino Classic
Ref:
RA-AC0023E
(green), RA-AC0024L (navy blue), RA-AC0025N (beige), RA-AC0026R (bordeaux), RA-AC0027S (white, limited edition)
Case:
46.5mm
diameter x 12.3mm thickness, stainless steel
Dial:
Green
Water resistance:
30m
(3 bar)
Movement:
Orient
calibre F6724, automatic, 22 jewels
Frequency:
21,600
vph (3 Hz)
Power reserve:
40h
Functions:
Hours,
minutes, seconds, date
Strap:
Leather
Price:
£275.99
and £329.99 (white, limited to 9,500 pieces)
Orient Bambino Day/Night
Adding an extra layer of information to the dial is the Orient Bambino 75th Anniversary Day/Night editions. They feature two additional subdials on their displays that show the days of the week at 10 o’clock and a 24-hour day/night indicator at 5 o’clock. It’s important to note that while it does have a moon on it, it’s not a moonphase complication. A moonphase completes a rotation once every 29-and-a-bit days while a day/night indicator rotates fully in the span of a day.




Here they’ve given the three standard models the green, navy blue and burgundy colours of the classic models. That new beige tone is absent but that’s not the saddest thing in the world given it does bear some similarities to the limited-edition model. The colours and style of the 75th Anniversary model is the same as the non-day/night model but it’s mildly more exclusive with 5,500 pieces available.
Beneath the surface is the F6B24, which has exactly the same specs as the movement in the Classic despite the additional functions. Both of the Orient Bambino 75th Anniversary limited editions also have exhibition casebacks with commemorative markings to add another special twist to the piece.
The standard Day/Night models are priced at £359.99 with the limited edition at £399.99. Personally, I prefer the clean dials of the time and date models over the additional subdials of the day/night versions. The Bambino is at its best as a clean and elegant daily wearer and I would hope that for the most part you can tell whether it’s day or night. Though if you do like the extra decorative elements of the day/night models, fair play.
Price and Specs:
Model:
Orient
Bambino Day/Night
Ref:
RA-AK0805E
(green), RA-AK0806L (navy blue), RA-AK0807R (bordeaux), RA-AK0808S (white)
Case:
47mm
diameter x 14.2mm thickness, stainless steel
Dial:
Green,
navy blue, bordeaux and white
Water resistance:
100m
(10 bar)
Movement:
Orient
calibre F6B24, automatic, 22 jewels
Frequency:
21,600
vph (4 Hz)
Power reserve:
40h
Functions:
Hours,
minutes, seconds, day, date, day/night display
Strap:
Leather
Price:
£359.99
and £399.99 (white, limited to 5,500 pieces)
More details at Orient.
Oracle Time