April 26th, 2012
Dan Cohen made this post in the speedsolving video section of a simple 7×7 single solve with the ShengShou 7×7. The time of the single solve was 3:17.05, three seconds under the current world record average and four seconds above the single solve world record. I’m not typically someone who is vaguely interested in the 7×7 event but this one sparked my interest simply because the 7×7 Dan is using is not pillowed. Compare these times to his in the wca database, his official single and average is 3:44.xx and 3:57.xx respectively. So if you’re following he got a single time on video 30 seconds under his normal average and uncomfortably close to the world record (uncomfortable if you’re Lin Chen)!
I think this is saying something more. Not just about the new 7×7 and ShengShou’s big cube innovations, but about pillowed vs non-pillowed cubes. This 30s jump for Cohen could easily go to show that pillowed cubes are generally slower. Although it’s a jump with only one firm data point, think to your own experience with non-cubic cubes (weird wording but you get it right?). My experience at competitions with pillowed 3x3s haven’t typically resulted in faster times and the pillowed V-Cube 2×2 wasn’t that much faster for me. The curved sides on the V-Cube 7×7 may feel better in your hands, an experienced cuber just dropping 30s in a solve says something huge, nay, screams it. The 7×7 world record is going to plummet this summer.
Further Reading/Viewing:
Tags: news, V-Cube, world record
Posted in Opinion, Speedcubing | No Comments »
February 8th, 2012
Remember this is all just for the flat version of the V-Cube 3. I got the V-Cube 3 and I was really hopeful for it. I really like the 2×2 and 5×5, also the times I’ve tried the 7×7 I was pleased. Unfortunately the 3×3 category was already take from them by Dayan and others. The 3×3 category is no market for any company to just throw in their take on a 3×3, however with the popularity of V-Cubes I don’t think they’ll suffer a loss from making this cube.
Video: My V-Cube 3 Unboxing and Review
The cube is o.k. there are pros, but equal cons to its performance and design. It can actually be kind of fast, you just have to be careful with it, because if you’re too fast pops are almost inevitable. Cons are easier to pick out in this case. The cube’s problem primarily extends from how it’s built, again the robustness of the edges and corners does not help it be smooth. At least it’s adjustable (hey there’s a pro), but any more loose than what I have it at now and I think it would pop a lot more. However almost no cube’s design flaws are incurable, I think the robustness of the pieces hold great potential for cube-modding. Think about it, the pieces are perfect cubes which become so easy to modify a newbie could do it.
I mentioned in the review that it didn’t come lubricated, once I lubed it up with silicone spray, it wasn’t hat much faster. This could be due to the plastic or maybe I just didn’t put enough in. I suspect a combination of both.
Finally it seems I got the “wrong” version of the V-Cube 3 as far as speedcubing goes. It also comes in a pillowed version and an unassembled DIY version. Good reviews have been coming in for the DIY version however! I now regret my quick purchase of the cube the day it came out, I usually prefer DIY kits anyway. Seems like this time around the difference between the two was more crucual than expected.
Can we have a v-cube 4 now?
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Posted in Speedcubing | No Comments »
January 24th, 2012
A few posts ago I talked about the leaking of the V-Cube 3. The primary issue we all saw in the leak is that it was pillowed, meaning that it was not competition legal. The lesson I learned today is not to base all expectation off of just one leaked image. Today the V-Cube 3 was officially announced and there’s good news, there is a non-pillowed version too! They’re calling it the “flat version” and it looks like it’ll be competition legal. No specifications on dimensions yet but in images where it is pictured with the V-Cube 2, it looks like it is of average 3×3 size.
Furthermore Verdes is providing a DIY version of the V-Cube 3 flat and pillowed versions, this is great news for a few reasons: For one, the kit comes with two sets of stickers, three sets of springs, and two cores. Not only is that a great package, for any DIY, but the fact that they’re providing extra cores, could imply that they might open up a greater DIY line? DIY’s have almost always only ever come in the form of 3×3′s. Some people specifically mod the V-Cube 5 so that it has a DIY core, it would be very advantageous to Verdes if they simply supply a DIY version of the V-Cube 5.
I’m excited to see how it is; in white and black pillowed and flat, the preassembled is €15 and the DIY is €14 (with shipping one cube is ~$35 USD). I ordered a black preassembled one mere moments ago (I’m assuming the preassembled is also adjustable) so expect a video review soon. Now when is the V-Cube 4 coming out?!
Source: V-Cubes.com
Tags: news, review, V-Cube
Posted in Speedcubing | 4 Comments »