Description
Orient Star has refreshed the M45 — its most symbolic flagship, named after the M45 Pleiades star cluster — with an all-new in-house moon-phase movement. The M45 F7 Mechanical Moon Phase carries a semi-skeleton dial with a power-reserve indicator, and lands at a price that makes an in-house mechanical moon phase genuinely accessible: around GBP 2,199.99.
The line spans permanent white and navy-blue dials, a light-blue limited edition of 190 pieces, and a headline limited edition of 120 pieces with a grey, grainy "lunar-surface" gradient dial on a Cordovan leather strap. It becomes available from Orient UK on 26 July 2026.
Design
The 41mm steel case — black-plated on the limited pieces — measures 13.8mm thick and lays out a classic, symmetrical Orient Star face: a semi-skeleton aperture at 9 o'clock, a power-reserve indicator at 12, and a combined moon phase and date sub-dial at 6. The grey limited-edition dial uses a grainy gradient meant to evoke the surface of the moon, while the standard white and navy versions keep things clean and dressy. The headline limited edition ships on a Cordovan leather strap, with a crocodile-strap variant reserved for Orient's prestige boutiques in Japan.
Specifications
- Model: Orient Star M45 F7 Mechanical Moon Phase
- Dial options: white and navy (standard); light-blue LE (190 pieces internationally, 270 in Japan); grey "lunar" gradient LE (120 pieces)
- Case diameter: 41mm
- Case thickness: 13.8mm
- Case material: stainless steel; black-plated on the grey 120-piece limited edition only
- Display: moon phase + date (6 o'clock), power reserve (12 o'clock), semi-skeleton aperture
- Movement: in-house automatic — calibre F7M42 (white, navy and light-blue models); calibre F7M65 (grey 120-piece limited edition)
- Power reserve: 50 hours
- Accuracy: +15 / -5 seconds per day
- Strap: Cordovan leather (LE 120); crocodile version exclusive to Orient Japan boutiques
- Price: approx. GBP 1,699.99 (standard and light-blue limited edition); approx. GBP 2,199.99 (grey 120-piece limited edition)
- Availability: Orient UK and Orient Star boutiques
What's Exciting
An in-house mechanical moon phase with a power-reserve display and a semi-skeleton dial for roughly GBP 2,200 is one of the better value complications you can buy right now. The new F7 movement generation is the real story: it gives the M45 a longer 50-hour reserve and a more finished, contemporary look than the outgoing calibre, and it does so while keeping Orient Star's signature power-reserve-and-open-heart layout. This is exactly the kind of quietly over-delivering Japanese watch that rewards people who read spec sheets rather than logos.
History
Orient Star is the higher-end mechanical arm of Orient, itself one of the few remaining full-in-house Japanese movement makers, now under the Seiko Epson umbrella. The M45 collection — named for the Pleiades (Messier 45) — has long been the brand's design showcase, favouring balanced, serene dials and visible mechanics. Moving it onto the new F7 movement generation signals where Orient Star wants its flagship to go: same restrained aesthetic, more modern engineering underneath.
