Introducing: The Orient Bambino 38 With Sportier, More Casual Attire
Last year, I had a hands-on experience with the fun and affordable Orient Bambino 38. The watches were limited editions and available in four colors, each with a brown nubuck leather strap. To me, they seemed quite dressy with their soft pastel colors and the relatively formal-looking strap. Now Orient tries to make the Bambino 38 feel a little more casual by adding a stainless steel bracelet and more saturated colors on the dials. Let’s take a quick look.
I thoroughly enjoyed my time with the Orient Bambino 38 last year. I think it’s a great offer for a mechanical watch at its affordable point. These three new Bambinos have a lot in common with those earlier models and build on the success of their predecessors.
The Orient Bambino 38 “Casual Dial Models”
In terms of specs, there aren’t many surprises here, which is a good thing. The stainless steel case measures 38.4mm in diameter, 12.5mm thick, and 44mm from lug to lug. Both the bezel and lugs are slender, which gives the case a friendly character, just like the highly domed mineral crystal. The new feature here is the five-row-style bracelet. In actuality, each link is just one piece, but machined channels give the links a multi-piece look. Similar to the case, the bracelet has brushed and polished parts. It also features a folding clasp with push-buttons and one micro-adjustment position.
Orient describes these new Bambino variants as the “Casual Dial Models.” I think this phrasing refers to the slightly more saturated colors on the dials. There are three new colors available. The first one is Grass Green, the second is Light Blue, and the third is Copper. All versions feature a very soft sunburst effect. I haven’t seen them in person yet, but the blue one doesn’t look that light to me, and the copper one looks more like pink. The Grass Green name does seem to capture the shade of green used quite well.
The dial layout is the same as last year’s models. Raised indexes mark all the hours, and the date is visible through a cutout at 3 o’clock. The sharp hands perfectly suit the watch’s steel exterior and hour markers as well.
Automatic caliber
Through the exhibition case back, you can see the in-house automatic caliber F6724. At this price point, you can’t expect any fancy finishing. Still, the etched decoration on the rotor is a nice touch. Regarding accuracy, the movement should run somewhere between -15 and +25 seconds a day. It features 22 jewels and holds a power reserve of 40 hours. The movement is operated through the crown, which is of the push-pull variety, not the screw-down kind. That’s why it’s good to remember that this watch is only water resistant to 3 ATM and isn’t the best choice for aquatic activities.
Final thoughts
I’m curious to see and especially feel what these new Orient Bambino 38 models are like in real life. On paper, these all-steel automatic watches seem to be a very good deal for their €330 price. So, when we get the chance to go hands-on with these new versions, we’ll make sure to report back to you. For now, if you’d like to know more, check out the official Orient website.
Let me know in the comments below what you think of the new Orient Bambino 38 models.
