1) This year, Rolex have overtly tried to give us what we ask for. And when i say "we", I mean the type of person who posts on this forum. No question at all, they have tried to deliver some modern twists to some iconic pieces.
2) The GMT and SD stand as bellwethers to whether this will be successful. At this point, I think the GMT looks the Top Gun. Now, I say that as a biased lover of Sea-Dwellers way above GMTs....but this year's offerings do seem to be topped by the GMT. But here is my second observation......I think both watches need to tried on to confirm it.
...if you look at the vintage model on which the marketing says this modern variant was based, it wasn't that the vintage ...1665....had a bigger case. It had a deeper case that allowed it to sit more prominently on the wrist, but it wasn't bigger in diameter. I wear my 5512 and 1665 and what makes the difference.....a big difference.....is the depth of the case.
With respect to the 116600, i think its fine at 40mm. Just my opinion, but I would guess most will be happy at 40mm. If i wanted something much bigger....well....they already have one that fits that bill.