Hands-on: Rado Centrix

Text/photo: Mia Litström

We have looked at Rado's new collection Centrix which contains several different elegant models that suit both male and female wrists. 

Rado is a brand that started as early as 1917. Their speciality has always been ceramic. Today there are several brands that use ceramic for their watches but Rado were first out with a watch in ceramic in 1990. Since they were early it also means that over time they have built up an incredible knowledge about ceramic in particular, which is why their own expression ”Master of Materials” fits well. With Rado's expertise and their own ceramic which is developed through several advanced steps, their material is called high-tech ceramic and is not just a fantastically hard-wearing material, their finish is also so well made and is a must to see and experience in reality. 

The total process for developing their high-tech ceramic goes in eight steps. Where among other things the first steps take place in a kiln with an extremely high temperature of 1 450 °C. This makes the material incredibly hard. But it doesn't stop there, a couple of steps further on it's time for a plasma kiln which gives the high-tech ceramic a metallic look even though the material does not contain any metal. And that's where we come to one of the advantages of high-tech ceramic in particular. Since no metal is included, the material is hypoallergenic which is perfect for sensitive skin. In addition the material does not get warm in the summer, for example, the way steel can, which is pleasant. The material is also light, so a watch with high-tech ceramic is not heavy but very easy to wear and comfortable. And finally a fantastic advantage is that the material is extremely scratch resistant. Steel and above all gold are considerably softer, where with bad luck you can get deep scratches in it, high-tech ceramic on the other hand is hard and scratch resistant. 

The newly launched Centrix collection feels very fresh and above all elegant. It's fun that they continue with a model with a brown dial and don't just go with black and white. The sizes are 30,5 mm and 39,5 mm and the majority of the models have an automatic movement but there are also ones with a quartz movement. 

From the new collection we have picked out four favourites where we start with two in the smaller size. The one that stands out the most in a very romantic and beautiful way is the white one which feels perfect for graduation season. It has a steel case with a PVD surface in rose gold. The dial is white with a beautiful wave pattern and along with that there are 12 diamonds as indexes. The watch shows hours, minutes and seconds and the date display is placed at 6 o'clock. If you turn the watch over you see the open back where you can see the automatic movement through the sapphire crystal. 

The bracelet also has details in steel just like the case with rose gold coloured PVD, together with the delicious high-tech ceramic in white, an incredibly nice combination. 

The second one is in the same size and has a golden brown dial with the same type of delicious wave pattern and a diamond at every index. The same movement and functions as the white one and the bracelet here has brown high-tech ceramic instead of white. The brown colour with the golden details makes the watch soberly elegant. It suits the one who loves the feminine touch but feels that white becomes too conspicuous. This one also has an open back. 

With their neat size the watches are comfortable to wear and it's fun that a watch in a smaller size has so many details without it becoming becoming too much for the whole. The model has an automatic movement with an open back, caliber R582 with 48-hr power reserve and is water resistant to 50 m. The beautiful dial with the advanced pattern and diamonds together with the high-tech ceramic on the bracelet ties the whole together in a nice way. 

White ref: R300197744 Price: 32 100 kr

Brown ref: R30019732 Price: 32 100 kr

Now we go to the two in the larger size with a diameter of 39,5 mm. One that is more sophisticatedly just right and one that stands out a little more in its details as well as colour combination. 

We start with the one that is more restrained with a black dial and a case in steel. The different models can be had with either four or twelve diamonds. The one we have chosen has classic indexes and hands that are rhodium coloured. The watch shows minutes, hours and seconds and has the date at 6 o'clock. The heart of the watch is an automatic movement, R763, with a power reserve of 80 hrs and it's water resistant to 50 m. This watch suits those who like the simple and timeless. And what really makes it so delicious is the bracelet which has details in steel with black high-tech ceramic, a perfect combo for both the male and the female wrist that wants a larger size in a delicious classic style. Positive is also the long power reserve. 

The last one is in the same size but instead has a more daring dial which is in a rich golden brown tone and it's a joy to see when the light hits the dial. It feels very alive and beautiful, especially when it has 12 diamonds as indexes. The brown colour, sparkling diamonds with the rose gold coloured hands and matching case is strikingly beautiful in combination with the bracelet which also has steel with rose gold coloured PVD together with brown links in high-tech ceramic. A watch that is extremely unisex, you might at first think that it's most suited to a female wrist but after having tried it on male wrists it became extremely elegant and felt like an obvious choice. What is also delicious about the new Centrix is that the sapphire crystal goes all the way out to the edge of the case, a nice and advanced detail. Both models have the automatic movement caliber R763 with a long power reserve of 80 hrs. The back has sapphire crystal which means you can see the movement.

Black ref: R30018152 Price: 23 300 kr

Brown ref: R30017732 Price: 32 100 kr

Summary

High-tech ceramic is not just nice for the eye with its delicious finish, it also has purely practical advantages as we mentioned earlier at the beginning of the text. They are easy to wear and elegant watches with automatic movements and there are also two models in each size equipped with a quartz movement should you wish for that. Rado Centrix has entirely its own style with lovely elegance. All the watches have a 3-step clasp 

Read more about the watches at Rado