Bulgari Octo Review: Design and Durability

Bernard Cheong shares his initial impressions of the new Bulgari Octo, praising its slim profile, intricate crown, and robust case design. He highlights the watch's surprising durability and thoughtful aesthetics, positioning it as a strong contender in the luxury sports watch segment. His review emphasizes the Octo's potential to become a design icon.

I didn't see it till about 10 days ago..first, it is MUCH MORE slim.

The crown is VERY finely cut, and I am a bloody stickler for detail.

The crown is the ONLY rival challenge to Vianney Halter's incredible crowns of tubular and pin contruct.

See also:

bulgari.watchprosite.com

But here, I took the watch fresh from Bulgari to Beijing where to my surprise, it got AMAZING attention, when it was partnered with the HM 3 from Max Busser.

I guess it was also the GOLD and that it was a Bulgari and that it was 8 sided several times over.

The FIRST thing...it is damned tough and hard to get a scratch into it, altho it may seem that the round bezel over the octo's original was a scratch magnet, it was NOT.

I slept with the watch ON my wrist inside the cattle class cabin (6 hours) not to waste money...better spent on an upgrade on car performance!

I ha a temporary faux leather strap as the real thing had not yet arrived, but the "rubber" like material was VERY well put together.

The MOST impressive was the regulator arrangement and to my surprise, the rotor.

The regulator has a STAR like revolving click, which is VERY well finished...the entire collar and kiv shock absorber (I think it is a kiv) is VERY well assembled after finish, as one can see the degree of polish that went into the parts that form this original arrangement.

You can see the rotor has a fine, and subtle curve and that the joint between the steel and solid gold weight is pieced together after a fine finish, again a sign of very careful attention to details.

The plates have a varied and deeper cut to the Geneva stripe style, here it may have been hand finished...not sure, but it is VERY VERY good.

ALL screw heads were FLAT and totally polished to a high degree.

If you look at the regulator collar, you can SEE the new arrangement, which is no small feat, as it will probably have taken sometime to test the fit and assembly process.

I am looking at a Patek Nautilus alternative, and I really like it.

It is different without being too obtuse from a perspective of using thickness, and a reduction of ALL the three to four levels of the Octo case.

VERY daring in a move against the tide of enlarging watch cases worldwide...including LV, Cartier and Patek.

But in the end, the case work and the total case presents a design statement that will allow ALL watch designers to relook at a thinner case...and to use design to protect the metal from damage.

Here, I learnt from first hand experience that if you bash the watch against the door, table edge, handle of airplane seat, the blow will go straight to a side VERY close to a corner, and slide off and away...no scratch.

Of course, asmall "bash"...but in any other watch, you would have a deep gash.

Also...NO MORE scuffing from the shirt sleeve..the design protects that.

Next, the aesthetic flow of EACH angle to angle, and from each step to step on the case is damned well thought out..it reflects light from all angles but in a different color and tone..both the steel and the gold.

I highly recomend this watch.

It will prove to become an icon in design, and a step forward.

It was the same feeling I had for Lange 1, when I saw and felt the use of weight, brush and polish surface interaction on the Lange's caseband.

The same feeling I had for Richard Mille when I saw his first RM01 and RM02.

The same for Panerai's case way back when.

you get the idea.

I hope this proves to be a REALLY good thing...and it is honest, and affordable, and no BS.

Affordable, and risk level is low.