hoseachandra
1184
Octo Roma - A Brief Review
Aug 02, 2023,15:14 PM
Hello All 
Allow me to share my impression of my newest acquisition , the new Bulgari Octo Roma (2023 release).
After considering few watches in the sport integrated bracelet watch, namely Bulgari Octo Roma, Baume Mercier Riviera 39 mm, Cartier Santos Medium Blue dial, IWC Ingenieur, Chopard Alpine Eagle, and even a preowned VC Overseas (1st gen), i decided to pick the Octo Roma. And i absolutely satisfied. There are plenty of reviews and tech spec in the net so i will just highlight my personal opinion.
First, the wearability. Bulgari has done an amazing design to make a 41 mm integrated bracelet a joy to wear. There are 2 main contributions here : the very thin case, at 9.15mm; and the shortest lug-to-lug measurement on any 41mm watch i have known, at just 46 mm. The case is thinner than Royal Oak regular, IVC Overseas, WC Ingenieur, Chopard Alpine Eagle, BM Riviera, and even thinner than the new Rolex dress watch, the Perpetual 1908. Its only half mm thicker than Cartier santos, PP Nautilus, Aquanaut, and Royal Oak Jumbo. Considering that it is a true sport watch with 100 meter WR and a screw down crown, it is a remarkable achievement.
On rubber, the watch wears even more comfortable and looks very sporty. The rubber is of very high quality, with same pattern as the dial (more on that later).
Second , the dial. Here Bulgari has done a very subtle Clou de paris motif, but with a twist : instead of making it horizontally oriented like GP Laureato, Bulgari rotate the patter 90 degree, thus make the texture like diamond pattern. It create a unique and different look. More importantly, the dial is done is matte finish, not sunburst or shiny finish usually found in many other watches. This make the dial very legible in any light, very easy to the eyes, not blindingly hurt my eyes especially under bright light. Also makes the hands and markers pop out so much and have great depth. The date window is done in white, which may irk some, but personally i am glad they do it, because it match the marker on 9 o clock. Notice how the total length of the date window and the "3" hour marker is equal with the length of "9" hour marker. Small detail matters here.
The watch is equipped with a quick release system that allow you to change from the beautiful bracelet to sporty rubber (which came in the package), and also to a leather strap (have to bought separately). A warning though for one with smaller than 6" wrist, the rubber may not fit (too long), because on my 6.25" wrist, i have to use the last hole to get a snug fit. Additional rubber with "S (short/small) size is available. Quick release system is getting more used nowadays, including in Cartier santos, VC overseas and BM Riviera. So i think IWC make mistake by not having this system in Ingenieur with much higher price tag.
The movement is in-house BVL-191 with ceramic ball bearing and bridged balance wheel. 46 hours power reserve. Nothing fancy, but it is reliable workhorse movement.
All in all, i am very pleased with this new watch. A very value for money, dare i say. Bulgari now has upped the warranty to 5 years (from 2 years).
if there is one thing that i think can be improved : the size may be better at 38-39 mm, because hexagonal case wear a bit larger. Looking at the caseback, i think Bulgari can shave 2-3 mm off the case size. Maybe not more than that, because the quick release system is integrated to the case, not to the strap.
Thank you for reading this. hav ea nice wednesday