Meet the new purple Orbit from Armin Strom. You may recall the Orbit First Edition from 2022, which was the first wristwatch with an on-demand pointer-date on a bezel, developed by watchmaker and Armin Strom co-owner Claude Greisler.

It was then followed by the Orbit Manufacture Edition. You can read about the technical aspects at either of these previous posts, but the date hand has two modes, stationary and active. When disengaged (or ‘off’), the hand returns to a ‘neutral’ state, pointing at the red “DATE” at 12 o’clock on the engraved ceramic fixed bezel. When activated by the pusher on the left side of the case, the central date hand is ‘engaged’ and jumps to the current date.

When in this active mode, the date automatically advances a day at midnight. With another push of the button, the hand returns to its stationary position, with a mechanical memory allowing it to jump back to the correct date when required by the wearer.

The hand never points to the current date except when the complication is disengaged, meaning there can never be any uncertainty as to whether it’s active or not. A retrograde mechanism allows the date hand to jump back from 31 to 1. The date can be set using a corrector button on the 8 o’clock or advanced manually via the crown.

If they so choose, the wearer can leave the date function active, whereupon it will operate like a regular pointer date, changing over at midnight.

Now we have this third purple variant. Its 43.4mm case is DLC black-coated stainless steel with a fixed ceramic bezel and water resistance of 50m. The fixed ceramic bezel features date markers in white on a black surface. The purple date pointer and the date on the ceramic bezel are purple to match the dial.

The purple fumé dial has a purple-to-black gradient and the indexes have Super-LumiNova, as do the rhodium facetted and polished hands.

The activation of the patented date pointer function is achieved through a column-wheel – yes the same type as you find in chronographs – which controls the engagement of the date display. Through the open case back can be seen the automatic ASS20. Featuring a micro-rotor, it beats at 25,200 VPH and has a power reserve of 72 hours. The movement has Armin Strom’s equal force barrel.

Coming on a black textile strap with a DLC black-coated stainless steel pin buckle in a limited edition of twenty pieces, the Armin Strom Orbit Purple has an RRP of $64,5000 (including GST)/ CHF 36,000.

[Photo credit: Armin Strom]

Categories: Armin Strom, Watch Profile, watches