Yes Bulgari, we see what you did with your latest Octo model, launched recently at Geneva Watch Days. The runaway success of the AP Royal Oak is something to be admired and let’s be honest, get a slice of the octagonal action by releasing more iterations of the Octo format.

So you have an eight-side bezel on this Bulgari model, which joins the existing Octo model line-up. This latest one has a Worldtimer dial display with Roma right at the top – well, you expect that.

The movement is an in-house Cal BVL257, which has similar gear work linking the auto rotor to the old Uno watches from the 60s and 70s, which I think were ETA powered. 42 hours reserve, which is pretty standard these days.

Here’s the word from Bulgari;

Jumping at a glance from one time zone to another, the Octo Roma WorldTimer serves as an open invitation to travel. Driven by a new integrated movement comprising 261 components, this creation renews the genre of a classic function, the WorldTimer, and propels it into the contemporary world by playing with temporal boundaries and enabling instant reading of the time in 24 cities.

This elegantly understated model with its iconic case is one of the most emblematic and timeless designs of 21st century Haute Horlogerie.

Octo Roma WorldTimer watch with mechanical manufacture movement, automatic winding, World Timer, 24 time zones and 24-hour indicator, hours, minutes and seconds, BVL257 caliber, 42-hour power reserve, 28,800 VpH (4Hz). 41 mm case (11.35 thick) in satin-brushed and polished stainless steel, blue sunburst dial and indicators, applied brushed rhodium-plated gold hour-markers, plus transparent caseback.

There’s a screw-lock stainless steel crown set with ceramic inlay serving to set the time as well as the cities indication, bracelet in satin-brushed and polished stainless steel with triple-blade folding clasp. Water-resistant up to 100 meters.

Price is £7100, you can buy online from the Bulgari website.

VERDICT; Way cheaper than a Royal Oak and a great looker. But arguably the Bulgari name is not really a safe investment like  Rolex, AP, Breitling, IWC or other established watch brands. We would probably take a Grand Seiko at five grand over this AP homage, because the GS goes its own way and boasts a decades old heritage.