First of all, these tops are gorgeous. They scream quality and look even more luxurious than previous S8 tops.
They are as tall as the old Giulia (84 mm) but considerably wider: 75 mm = 3 inches (compared to 64 mm).
They weigh:
Augusta (Giulia-like): 89 gr.
Dionisia (Sofia-like): 93.5 gr.
Rosalinda (YYJ Chihuahua-like): 74 gr.
Before receiving the tops, I had two concerns from the photos.
Firstly, I thought they would be top-heavy as they have metal on the crown and plastic the rest. This is the reverse than my old trusted modded HP. However, the aluminum is quite thin and this appears not to be the case. The large weight of the tip section also helps. I compared the center of mass of the Augusta and a Giulia, and it's only slightly higher.
The second concern was that the metal would separate from the plastic if hit hard. In fact, that already happened to me on a hard hit of the Dionisia:
However, the metal cap is attached with a series of flexible ribs, so it snapped back into position when I applied pressure. So I'm not concerned about it anymore.
You can also see on the photo my first ding on a Dreamcatcher. Both the Dionisia and Rosalinda have a very sharp edge at the rim what could cause same pain if you hit yourself.
I have only played them a little bit as bearing tops, so these are my first impressions.
Augusta is a worthy replacement of the Giulia. One difference is that it appears to be a "slower" top, in the sense that it's more difficult to change the axis direction. It reminds me in this sense the YYF Throwback. You will notice this if you catch it with a lasso and immediately want to get it into a trapeze mount: it doesn't want to do it. This extra stability can be an advantage or disadvantage, depending on what you are doing. But I would definitely recommend this top.
The Dionisia is even more unusual looking than the Sofia it's replacing, but it still plays surprisingly well. It's a little "faster" than the Augusta. You can throw it by either wrapping it starting from the crown or just use the bottom part. Is the large waist useful for any trick? I experimented a little by landing it on the string and doing a fast grind or roll, before popping it back into the air. I guess a few new tricks are possible but it's mostly for the looks. That look makes it a collector's must.
The Rosalinda is a fast top and it's very easy to get it to change axis direction. It has the concave profile of some traditional Mexican wooden tops and this was tried before by Yoyojam with it's Chihuahua top. The Chihuahua was a player failure (but great collectible) as it had two problems: an unstable wrap and when landing on the side the string tended to stall and not slide to the tip. To my surprise, I didn't have any problems with the wrap using the supplied string. I'm guessing that the wrap is still less stable than with a convex profile, but it doesn't appear to be a big problem. On the other hand, I found the non-sliding-to-the-tip a problem. The problem is not as big as in the Chihuahua: if you catch it on the side from a trapeze or a whip, the string will general slide to the tip but it takes a while, losing spin. The same if you lasso too high: the review by Dylan is wrong on this subject. I will say it's a distinct top, that could look great on a show: when standing up it appears to defy gravity even more than a regular shaped top. But I doubt we will see it on many competition freestyles.
Something I wish S8 would have changed on the new generation of tops is the size of the tip head. I always thought it was a little undersized for the Giulia and even more for these. A bigger head would make these tops play as a dream. Of course, S8 could always make new replacement tips compatible with all their tops.
Overall, these are great tops and considering their quality, size and the performance and proven reliability of S8 bearing tips, worth every cent.