The People’s Choice Test

Over the years, many new branded cuts have been introduced and most of them did not impress us. After seeing so many cuts come and go, we doubted that any cut would be developed that could outshine the Hearts and Arrows Ideal Cut. Then we were shown the STAR 129, a new cut with 129 facets. This diamond looked impressive next to a Hearts and Arrows Ideal Cut. It was hard to compare the two. Both diamonds were very brilliant, but they were different.

We decided to conduct a survey to see which cut our customers preferred. We used three nearly identical diamonds. Each diamond had nearly the same color, clarity, and carat weight. The only difference between the three diamonds was their cut. The first diamond was an average commercial cut round brilliant diamond. The second was a Hearts and Arrows Ideal Cut. The third diamond was the new STAR 129 cut.

We put the diamonds side by side in a tray and showed our customers the diamonds. We asked them to tell us which diamonds they thought were the most beautiful and to rank them. We didn’t want to influence their decision, so we didn’t tell them anything about the diamonds before they chose. We conducted this survey with 148 individuals.

With 64% of the respondants choosing the STAR 129 as their 1st choice, it was the clear favorite. When the STAR 129 was chosen as their first choice, respondants usually chose the Hearts and Arrows as their 2nd choice. The average commercial cut was clearly the least favorite of the three.

The results of this survey seemed to agree with the results of Gemex's "Light Performance Analysis" for these diamonds. Our customers' preference for a particular cut corresponded with its measurable brilliance.

Our survey shows that you don't need to be a gemologist to appreciate a well cut diamond. Anybody can tell the difference between a well cut and a poorly cut diamond.