Rotary Henley GMT
The Rotary Henley GMT is a new model from the British Based brand (though not produced in the UK), and comes in a few different color and strap options at a price point of $285-$335. The one I show here is on the lower end at $285 because it has a leather strap instead of a stainless bracelet. Checking the website before I sat down to write this review, I noticed that the blue dial version is currently sold out, but that is only temporary and there are other colors available, should you be interested in one. The Henley GMT is an attractive watch in my opinion and at just under $300, a decent value.
Rotary Henley GMT Specifications:
- 41.5mm Stainless Steel Case
- 46mm Lug to Lug
- 20mm Lug Width
- 10.6mm Thick
- Sapphire Crystal
- Ceramic Bezel Insert
- 100m Water Resistant
- Calf Leather Strap (As reviewed)
- Price $285 USD
https://secure.rotarywatches.com/en/the-rotary-collection/search-results?q=henley+gmt
The standout of the Rotary Henley GMT is the sunray dial. It is wonderfully executed and flows nicely with the applied nickel plated hour markers and hands. The date wheel also has a nickel plated border, which makes everything stand out on the dial and also very cohesive. This the type of dial you really enjoy looking at or photographing, or at least I do, as it is constantly changing shades of blue and I love how it plays off the light. The orange GMT hand, which can be set independently of the time, is bold and easy to see at a glance, but I cant say the same for the second hand. A little coating of lume paint or maybe if it was yellow, would have made it jump out more against the dial. As it is now, it just blends in too much.
There are some nice features that I did not expect to be on the Rotary Henley GMT. I had read the website quickly and had somewhat forgotten about it, and in the meantime, Rotary had sent the watch for review. I was pleasantly surprised to find a ceramic bezel insert and also a screw down crown seeing how it is only 100 meters water resistant and I assumed it was going to be more in the fashion watch category. Having a sapphire crystal as well, the Henley GMT is much more watch than I thought it would be, and of course, that is always a good thing.
I feel I have seen this style of a case before, where the middle sections of the sides flare out in the middle, similar to an Oris, but not exactly the same. I get that this is supposed to be more of an all-around watch and that they wanted to add some polished elements, but I wish it was more subtle than just polishing the entire sides of the case. It is just a scratch magnet (as is another much more expensive watch that I currently have in hand), and not my personal favorite. That is purely subjective, and on a positive note, the bezel and crown action are very pleasing, both with little to no play, though the crown is very small for my hands and does make it difficult to manipulate at times.
Wristshot on 7 1/2 inch wrist
Of course, at this price point, you are getting a quartz movement; the Ronda 515.24 movement to be exact. I could not even begin to knock it for being a quartz, as it would just be silly. There is nothing wrong with quartz movements at all, they have their place and in this specific example, allow you to have a nice watch for not a lot of money. If this were an automatic movement, you would be looking at triple the price easily.
A big area of disappointment with the Rotary Henley GMT is the lume, or lack thereof. I am not sure what bothers me more, to be honest, the fact that they did such a bad job on the hands and markers or that they even attempted to do lume at all. I would hope brands will start realizing, if you can not afford to lume a watch properly, then do not even waste time and money having the factory do it at all.
The Rotary Henley GMT is a nice looking watch, I mean, just check out the photos and video. It is aesthetically very pleasing. On the whole, it is built well with quality materials. A few missteps here, such as the lume and the second hand that somewhat blends in with the dial, but otherwise it offers a solid quartz movement, a sapphire crystal, ceramic bezel, and while I did not touch on it much here, a pretty darn nice leather strap that is a lovely caramel color that pairs quite nicely with the blue dial. As always, no sales pitch here. Would I personally wear this watch? No. It is a little on the small side for me, especially the crown and while it is beautiful, it feels a little dainty to me. Just not my style is all. For someone who maybe has a smaller wrist or just likes smaller watches that play smaller than listed specs, then it would not be a bad choice. Well, at least in my opinion.
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