On the Wrist: Bvlgari Octo Solotempo Ultranero

In the watch enthusiast sphere, Bvlgari, or Bulgari as North Americans seem compelled to spell it, is in a bit of a peculiar position. Though the company is best known for stunning and often over-the-top Haute Joallerie, Bulgari timepieces have been an acquired taste to most until quite recently.

While still unique, creations like the Octo have garnered a significant praise – at least from those in the industry willing to give the brand a closer look. With Baselworld rapidly approaching we were offered the opportunity to spend a week with one of the latest variants of the sleek Octo in its latest black and rose gold combination, dubbed the Ultranero collection, which includes this Solotempo, a chronograph and an ultra-thin Finissimo Tourbillon.

Now that we’ve had the opportunity, to examine, handle, and most importantly wear the Solotempo for more than a few brief moments, here are our conclusions.

Design

If you were to catch a glimpse of the Octo Solotempo Ultranero from a distance, the perspective would be simple. You would see a somewhat plain deep black dress watch with a simple and subtle black case and rubber strap that looks plain, clean, and easy to read. This primarily is on account of its rose gold indices and hands that brilliantly reflect any kind of light. The vast complexities of its case design really don’t become apparent until you reach a much closer range. For a house that does big and bold as well as they do, Bulgari impressed me with its attempt at subtlety here. Granted, as you can see in these photos, this piece is only subtle in a truly Bulgari manner.

Credit where credit is due, there are so many things Bulgari did right with the Solotempo’s design. Pairing an extremely deep gloss-black dial with these stepped rose gold indices gives the wearer the illusion of staring into a vast expanse of nothingness where a dial would normally live, given the appropriate lighting conditions. This jet-black dial sans indices would be an excellent candidate for a 2nd version of H. Moser & Cie.’s Mystery Dial Concept without question.

The one criticism at hand thus far would be the lack of framing for its date window. I would have loved to see this watch lose the date window entirely. That said, if the date was argued to be a crucial requirement on the piece, matching the gloss-finish of the date wheel with the dial would be at least the minimum requirement to balance out the attention to detail we see throughout the remainder of the watch.

Moving on from there, the literal and figurative sharpness of the Solotempo’s case is the next highest-ranking element of the piece’s design. Bulgari is quick to bring to our attention the significant number of facets on the timepiece’s case – 110 in total. Examining the case from top to bottom and side-to-side we don’t doubt that figure one bit. There are four stepped transitions from the bezel down to the lugs, and multiple angled cuts along each transition. The octagonal case appears almost square when viewed at a distance. Add to that its smooth round bezel, and anyone not keeping close tabs on the industry could almost speculate that Bell & Ross had decided to build a dress version of the BR-03.

The moment you’re a touch closer, it’s clear that this isn’t the case (though wouldn’t it be interesting if they did?). Up close, the last of the Octo’s facets come to light along the inner edge of the dial opening underneath the crystal where a second and more symmetrical octagon lives as a very slender rehaut.

In The Field

The matter of slimness brings us to the very important point of how the Octo Solotempo Ultranero actually wears on the wrist. Being somewhat slim-wristed to begin with, I found myself surprised at how well the piece hugged my wrists given the specification. At 41 mm across I wasn’t particularly bothered. It was the 47.4mm lug-to-lug spec that I had expected to prove challenging; yet in the end it proved to be almost the other way around. Thanks to its short-angled lugs and well-integrated rubber bracelet, the piece wore really well.

Had the case been any thicker or heavier the Solotempo would rapidly become a bit challenging for wrists like mine, but at only 10.4 mm thick there were no issues to report. Its overall width across to the crown consistently felt more substantial than the specs present, though this is by no means a criticism. A handful of fellow enthusiasts who had the chance to view the piece while in my possession had the exact same response of 41 mm? That can’t be!

Being one to love wearing a timepiece out of its target context, the social experiment of wearing what can safely be dubbed a dress watch as a go-everywhere-do-everything timekeeper was pretty entertaining. I wouldn’t try to argue that this could be an only watch for someone (and nor would Bulgari for that matter), though I can say that its contemporary size and stealthy black case certainly makes it miles more versatile than your average luxury dress watch.

The Octo Solotempo Ultranero can tuck under the sleeve of a hoodie, or be paired with a smart designer t-shirt, black slacks and high tops without seeming the least bit out of place, where things like the IWC Portofino, Zenith Elite or even the Rolex Datejust would stick out like a sore thumb in the same setting.

Final Notes

Among the brand’s recent efforts, the Octo Solotempo Ultranero is definitely one of the brand’s stronger new releases. Sure, DLC black and even rose gold are subject to falling in and out of favor in the watch industry, but I’d argue that Bulgari has worked with them in a tasteful enough manner for this piece to stand the test of time. Even though it uses the in-house Bulgari BVL 193 automatic caliber movement, and considering the significant amount of tooling required to build the piece, its $7,400 price tag will be a tough pill for many to swallow.

There are a lot of great timepieces competing in that price range, and a few will end up coming to mind before many watch enthusiasts think hey, what about a Bulgari? That said, there’s something particularly special to the feel of the Octo Solotempo Ultranero that I don’t doubt a good number of collectors will be quick to pick up on if they take the time to get a look at this piece first-hand.