Has Moyu Lost Its Way?

[gsingh]

Is there anything wrong with Moyu releasing multiple cubes? In my opinion, making cubes for different price ranges is a good thing. They have a budget oriented line, a mid-range line, and a flagship line. They are all great cubes at different price points, ranging from $10 - $45. I think this is an idea that other cube companies should be trying to follow.

 

[Bingus Ringus McDingus]

Cube hardware kind of peaked pretty recently, so I get why it's hard for MoYu to find innovation, but I don't get why they almost downgraded the Weilong line. If they just added core magnets and UV to the standard WRM 2021, they would:
1. Save money on making new molds and whatnot
2. Be able to keep the adjustable magnets while also adding innovation in the form of core magnets and UV
3. Not risk having problems with new designs (e.g. the corner twist conundrum with the WRM V9) and stick with perfection
4. Have more freedom to experiment with new dual-adjustment designs instead of using the same old system
5. Appeal to fans of the standard WRM 2021

Buuuut no, just release a bunch of new cubes that feel almost the same and feel like you got shot back in time. I love MoYu, but all the other cube companies may have a better idea of what to do. QiYi's new MS Pro and TV3 are already top-tier, and they're not going to mess with perfection.

Don't get me wrong. I still love MoYu. I don't love what they're doing. I guess since we're at the point where all cubes are effectively optimized, it's harder to create new cubes that can improve everything.

 

[OreKehStrah]

Cube hardware kind of peaked pretty recently, so I get why it's hard for MoYu to find innovation, but I don't get why they almost downgraded the Weilong line. If they just added core magnets and UV to the standard WRM 2021, they would:
1. Save money on making new molds and whatnot
2. Be able to keep the adjustable magnets while also adding innovation in the form of core magnets and UV
3. Not risk having problems with new designs (e.g. the corner twist conundrum with the WRM V9) and stick with perfection
4. Have more freedom to experiment with new dual-adjustment designs instead of using the same old system
5. Appeal to fans of the standard WRM 2021

Buuuut no, just release a bunch of new cubes that feel almost the same and feel like you got shot back in time. I love MoYu, but all the other cube companies may have a better idea of what to do. QiYi's new MS Pro and TV3 are already top-tier, and they're not going to mess with perfection.

Don't get me wrong. I still love MoYu. I don't love what they're doing. I guess since we're at the point where all cubes are effectively optimized, it's harder to create new cubes that can improve everything.

The WRM21 was not good though. The adjustable magnets did not have enough range and often broke (not to mention the horrible disposable tool they included). They would still have to make new corner piece moulds to have slots for the magnets. If they wanted to put magnets in the feet of the edges too, that's another new mould.

The V9 is just a better cube. They got rid of a bad adjustable magnet system which is a lot better imo. It means the cube can be designed with a set magnet strength in mind which should give the cube more tuned settings if they design the cube right. Most people I know who have both prefer the v9 over the 21.

What you do mean by them feeling the same and like you got "shot back in time" though? The most recent 2 cubes, the ys3m and v9 have pretty distinct feelings.

 

[Bingus Ringus McDingus]

The "shot back in time" feeling came from the hollowness and the split-piece design. I don't mean back to, like, Guhong days, but the cubes just are too similar to what's been done before. The RS3 Super feels unnecessary when compared to the options between the RS3M and the YS3M, and the Weilong V9 is too similar to the WRM 2019 and the GTS3M.

 

[Kaiju_cube]

funny timing, my V9 UV is out for delivery.

idk what to expect really but one thing I saw reviews say is, "it's like a Gan 13 for half the price".. .which is interesting if true.

I also complain that everyone is copying Gan and each other; however for those who can't afford a Gan I guess it's pretty cool if MoYu made something 'just like a Gan 13 for half the price.' I'm an old man (over 45), so I can get whatever cube I want. But I know for the younger crowd that maybe can't afford a Gan cube, a cube 'just like Gan for half the price' might be a good thing.

Plus Gan could use the competition.



.....I still think Tengyun v2 is highly underrated. I'll die on that hill. Lol.

 

[OreKehStrah]

funny timing, my V9 UV is out for delivery.

idk what to expect really but one thing I saw reviews say is, "it's like a Gan 13 for half the price".. .which is interesting if true.

I also complain that everyone is copying Gan and each other; however for those who can't afford a Gan I guess it's pretty cool if MoYu made something 'just like a Gan 13 for half the price.' I'm an old man (over 40), so I can get whatever cube I want. But I know for the younger crowd that can't afford a Gan a cube 'just like Gan for half the price' might be a good thing.

Plus Gan could use the competition.



.....I still think Tengyun v2 is highly underrated. I'll die on that hill. Lol.

To me, it's kinda like a mix between Gan 12 and 13 and the wrm20. It's really nice imo.

 

[Kaiju_cube]

I think it's sort of amusing that ball-core/maglev/UV coating is now the hot thing that all the cubes want to have.

 

[Cubinginatree]

I find this funny that people are mad at GAN for focusing on features instead of new piece design and stuff and people are mad at MoYu for not focusing on features enough.

I'll stick to my X-Man Tornado V3 for now.

 

[Kaiju_cube]

V9 Ball/UV/Mag is here and I did a few solves on it real quick. It's very nice, the nicest Moyu I've used. Doesn't feel (sloppy?) and loose at all like the Super RS3M cube. It does feel Gan'ish, but it also reminds me of the Tornado V3 a little bit.

It kind of reminds me of the Tengyun V2 in that it's very light and turns really smooth with no friction; but it has that Gan UV feel with the coating, and it has the strong 'auto-complete turn' feeling like a Gan 13 and a Tornado v3.

Very nice cube.

it is very, very, very, very light turning. If you turn fast and hard all the time it would probably feel uncontrollable and you'd overshoot unless you set it up for your turning speed.

<shrug>... I'd say it's a win for MoYu. It's a really nice cube.

 

[Bingus Ringus McDingus]

funny timing, my V9 UV is out for delivery.

idk what to expect really but one thing I saw reviews say is, "it's like a Gan 13 for half the price".. .which is interesting if true.

I also complain that everyone is copying Gan and each other; however for those who can't afford a Gan I guess it's pretty cool if MoYu made something 'just like a Gan 13 for half the price.' I'm an old man (over 45), so I can get whatever cube I want. But I know for the younger crowd that maybe can't afford a Gan cube, a cube 'just like Gan for half the price' might be a good thing.

Plus Gan could use the competition.



.....I still think Tengyun v2 is highly underrated. I'll die on that hill. Lol.

I love both the OG Tengy and the Tengy2 but the Tengy3 lost the charm, as well as bringing back the GES nightmare

 

[Dan the Beginner]

Should I get a YS3M Ballcore and put in springs instead of the maglev? Will it work?

Let me explain. With all the 10 new releases, I still can't get one that I like to buy, something that can be an upgrade for the cubes I like best - my WRM 2021, Moyu's AI cube and the Tornado V3 Flagship. I like their feel and also their lightweight (for my old fingers). I don't want auto-homing, and I prefer a weight of under 80g. I just want to see if Moyu's highly praised Ballcore, the only thing that seems a new worthwhile feature, can make a difference for me, but none of Moyu's new cubes offer what I want. I'm fine with Maglev without auto-homing, but it makes the cube heavy. It also makes the cube way too fast for a slow cuber like me, and would have to be tightened so much that it will defeat some of the hyped improvements on these new Moyu cubes (corner cutting etc). After waiting so long for a new WRM, and with a large selection finally available now, it is disappointing that none of them suits. Why can't Moyu make one of its new cubes with features more like the Tornado Flagship, arguably the most popular cube in recent times? I think YouTube is probably the one happiest about their big release.

As for their 3-year-old smart cube, I'm still waiting for an updated model. Their competitor Gan OTOH has released about 5 new smartcubes in the mean time.

 

[OreKehStrah]

Should I get a YS3M Ballcore and put in springs instead of the maglev? Will it work?

Let me explain. With all the 10 new releases, I still can't get one that I like to buy, something that can be an upgrade for the cubes I like best - my WRM 2021, Moyu's AI cube and the Tornado V3 Flagship. I like their feel and also their lightweight (for my old fingers). I don't want auto-homing, and I prefer a weight of under 80g. I just want to see if Moyu's highly praised Ballcore, the only thing that seems a new worthwhile feature, can make a difference for me, but none of Moyu's new cubes offer what I want. I'm fine with Maglev without auto-homing, but it makes the cube heavy. It also makes the cube way too fast for a slow cuber like me, and would have to be tightened so much that it will defeat some of the hyped improvements on these new Moyu cubes (corner cutting etc). After waiting so long for a new WRM, and with a large selection finally available now, it is disappointing that none of them suits. Why can't Moyu make one of its new cubes with features more like the Tornado Flagship, arguably the most popular cube in recent times? I think YouTube is probably the one happiest about their big release.

As for their 3-year-old smart cube, I'm still waiting for an updated model. Their competitor Gan OTOH has released about 5 new smartcubes in the mean time.

Yes you can replace the maglev magnets with springse

 

[Dan the Beginner]

Just watched Shawn's video asking the same question. (What were they thinking?) Since my posts here, Moyu has again released more cubes, the Super RS3M V2 cubes, still with no magnet adjustment, still with the same old spring tension adjustment mechanism, and still not offering Ball Core unless you get Maglev.

I buy on average 5 cubes every year. However, I have not bought any of the 13 Moyu cubes they released in the last 8 months, ie any of their cubes from the Super RS3M and on. I like quality, not quantity. I can afford expensive cubes, and I am interested in new cube technology (having bought 5 smartcubes), but I don't want to just buy them unless I am convinced they are worth it. Well, I found that things are not making sense. None of Moyu's recent cubes can compare with the Tornado V3 IMO, when you consider prices, features, as well as performance. Moyu's flooding strategy does not work for this consumer. I did order Pi Cubes' special edition of the V9 though. It has Ball Core and springs. None of the crazy fast Maglev, funny auto-homing stuff for me. Those features are probably good for the extremely good cubers, but they are likely just 1% of the consumers.

(I don't hate Moyu. I bought 12 Moyu cubes already and I really like the WRM 2021, Weilong AI cube, the RS3M 2020, and WRM Maglev 2021. I hope they will focus on what is important for their customers and also what is good for their business, ie what can compete with others' products. I know there are dumb consumers, parents and grandparents, and seeing Moyu everywhere may get some more business, but in general they would just buy Rubik branded cubes. If Moyu are raisimg their prices just because they have to maintain a big inventory of different similar products, I say good luck to them.)

 

[artless1der]

the short answer is YES

also, on all their cubes they should go back to the shades they had on the GTS3M and the WRM 2019

 

[J41]

It's getting to the point that I'm struggling to work out the unique selling points of each. As a result, I'll probably just avoid them all for a bit for fear of making the wrong choice (or one that will be outdated within a matter of months).

 

[Dan the Beginner]

It's getting to the point that I'm struggling to work out the unique selling points of each. As a result, I'll probably just avoid them all for a bit for fear of making the wrong choice (or one that will be outdated within a matter of months).

Exactly, it's more likely now that the next cubes released (YS3M V2 ?) will have some different spring tension mechanism or at least magnet strength adjustment. However, that would cause a big problem for sales of all the 13 cubes released in the last months. They are already struggling to sell I guess. The proliferation could only mean higher costs of goodss sold per unit. However if they still double down next time and not offer newer/more features, then the next release will most likely also struggle. It's not looking good either way, I'm afraid. Without something that is fresh and innovative, it seems their best next products will just be similar to the cheaper Tornado V3.

The downturn in economy should mean less disposable income in most places. So it does not look like a good strategy to expand and hike prices IMO.

 

[sDLfj]

They are already struggling to sell I guess.

They had some huge sales on the RS3M Super, I managed to pick up 15 for mbld for $4 each. They must have thought they were going to sell a lot and built up inventory, and now that all of their other cubes are released, people don't want the super anymore (so they released a v2, lol).

 

[abunickabhi]

I do not think cubing hardware has peaked. Moyu by releasing many cubes in the market is creating artificial hype and confusing everyone into buying stuff yo.

 

[quanloh]

I will not buy all those cubes so I dont see a problem Moyu releasing so many cubes at once, it doesn't bother me.

Moyu has been on its way to earn money and I dont see how releasing new cubes are making it losing it's way. I know they have been releasing like tons of cubes in a relative short amount of time, but I really dont see what's the problem here, or should they have released when ppl starts to lost interest in Moyu's cube? or should they release when others company just released some awesome good value cubes?
when the cubing tech is at a temporary peak now, competitors can potentially catch up in no time, so I dont think it's a terrible idea to flood the market with so many cubes.

And I think releasing all Super RS3M V2 with all UV coated is one of Moyu's best move recently. Performance wise I dont think V2 can out-perform a V1, at least not by much. If Moyu release the V2 without UV coated, why should any of us get that instead of V1? Especially it's likely to be a little bit more expensive due to the piece design.

So far I had not seem anything very wrong about the pricing of their new cubes but some ppl seems to be upset about the Super RS3M V2 pricing. So with the name "RS3M", every cubes should automatically be less than $25? even with the UV coating? I dont see why these ppl complain about a cube with UV coating is priced $20ish. If someone wants a very functioning cube at the $10ish range, get the Super V1, it's not outdated by all means.

 

[BenChristman1]

Please correct me if anything is wrong, but here is a crude summary of all the Moyu cubes that are currently available to be purchased at TheCubicle (prices in USD).

It seems that the cubes that share features (excluding all the cubes that have none of the shown features) are:

• RS3M 2021 Maglev, Super RS3M 2022 Maglev, YS3M Maglev and Weilong WRM v9 Maglev,
• Super RS3M Ball Core and YS3M Ball Core
• YS3M Ball Core UV, Weilong WRM v9 Ball Core UV, Super RS3M v2 Ball Core UV