Bulgari Octo Roma Chronograph: A makeover with sense and purpose

Posted by lifata on July 13th, 2023

"Reduce to the max" is how Bulgari's strategy can be described, consistently focusing on a few lines, but renewing them consistently and thoroughly if necessary. This successful approach is also readily apparent in the new Bulgari Octo Roma Chronograph. After all, the striking shape of the Octo Roma, first launched in 2004, with its unusual combination of octagonal, rounded case and dial in connection with the round bezel, is part of Bulgari's design heritage.

In addition, the Bulgari replica Octo Finissimo with all its derivatives has developed into a bestseller and cash cow of the Roman Bulgari Group and its watch segment in just a few years. The Bulgari Octo Roma, which is clearly showing its age, could not keep up with this success.

The Octo Roma line was revised accordingly and finally launched at the Watches & Wonders watch fair 2023 in Geneva. Not only has the classic Octo Roma three-hand watch with date been revised, but the new Bulgari Octo Roma Chronograph has been expanded to include a complication that is extremely popular with watch buyers.

Bulgari Octo Roma Chronograph

If you take a quick look at the design of the Bulgari Octo Roma, you might think that little has changed due to the retained basic structure. After all, Bulgari managed to preserve the special character of the watch. At the same time, both the classic chronometer and the Octo Roma Chronograph appear clearer and more masculine without the Luxury Fake Watches losing any of their elegance. A circumstance that, probably not entirely unintentionally, places the new Octo Roma models directly in the segment of luxury steel watches that are currently in great demand.

For this purpose, the stainless steel case with a diameter of 42 mm and a height of 12.4 mm was provided with brushed and polished surfaces, which underline the sporty and elegant appearance of the watch. The desired sportiness is also expressed by the water resistance of up to 100 meters. In order to achieve this water protection, which enables both swimming and snorkeling, the watch has a screwed crown and a screwed sapphire glass back. Additional protection against mechanical stress is provided by the side flank protection of the crown and a small ceramic inlay at the tip of the crown.

The positioning of the chronograph pushers is also very nicely solved. These integrate perfectly between the flank protection of the crown and the flanks of the case and thus form a creative unit. This maintains the creative balance of the radially brushed bezel ring and the octahedron case shape.

At the start there will be two dial variants of the Bulgari Octo Roma Chronograph Stopper. You can choose between a dial in a deep blue or a dial in a warm black tone. Both variants are provided with a Clous de Paris guilloche dial. The applied indices and Arabic numerals at 12 o'clock are coated with Super-LumiNova, so that the watch is easy to read even in poor lighting conditions thanks to the luminescent mass. Of course, Bulgari best replica watches has also coated the sword-shaped hour and minute hands with Super-LumiNova.

The small date display, which is located at 3 o'clock on the Octo Roma Chronometer, moves to 4:30 o'clock on the Octo Roma Chronograph. This change of location is due to the fact that the small seconds totalizer scales are located at 3 o'clock, while the chronograph hour and 30-minute displays are located at 6 o'clock and 9 o'clock respectively, complementing the time measurement of the large central chronograph seconds hand.

Octo Roma Chronograph

The time measurement of the Octo Roma chronograph, which can be easily observed through the sapphire glass back, is driven by the caliber BVL 399. The in-house automatic movement, which was equipped with a Dubois-Depraz module to upgrade it to a chronograph, works at 4 Hz or one frequency of 28,800 vibrations per hour and offers a sufficient power reserve of up to 42 hours if worn regularly. This places the chronograph well above the in-house competitors Baume & Mercier Riviera Chronograph or Montblanc 1858 Automatic Chronograph, but also well below the steel watch competitor Chopard Alpine Eagle with in-house caliber.