Fox Transfer Neo - Is this the AXS Reverb Killer?

Intro:

After a decade of making dropper posts, Fox Factory has learned a lot in their years through trial and error and their RAD (Racing Applications and Development) programs with top lever racers. Recently, they came out with the new and much improved MY25 Transfer post with longer drop, adjustable air pressure and improved durability. Fox has now unveiled their wireless counterpart, the Fox Transfer Neo Dropper Post. 

What’s New: 

Aside from the obvious wireless connectivity, Transfer Neo features a longer drop, lower stack height, better tire clearance than other wireless posts, and a super quick actuation at the remote lever. The lower stack height and tire clearance is due to the battery being placed at the seatpost collar and not at the saddle rails. It allows for an 18mm improvement over the competition. Transfer Neo also comes with a schrader valve at the top of the seatpost, allowing the user to adjust air pressure, a feature that is much welcomed. Transfer Neo is available in Factory Kashima spec and will be Performance spec for OEM only. It will be available in all the normal seatpost sizes and up to 200mm of travel. The 34.9 has been optimized to have their own upper and lower tube, reducing insertion length and reducing friction at that size. 

The lever features an ergonomic design with some rubber over the thumb lever. It uses a tool-less removable CR2032 battery and is expected to get around a year of battery life. It comes with a 22.2 standard clamp but can also be configured to work with I-Spev EV shimano or SRAM MatchMaker. If your lever does happen to die in the field, there is a manual override mode on the seatpost itself that allows the seat to actuate without needing a lever. 

What is Neo? 

Fox went out of their way to develop their own wireless connection, getting rid of all of the non-essentials that other mediums use. At a claimed 26 millisecond actuation time, this is over 100x faster than Bluetooth and 20x than AXS. We don’t think this was necessarily an issue in the past but it is nice to see Fox pushing the boundaries of what is possible. The seatpost uses its own proprietary battery that will be compatible with future “neo” products. Battery life is expected to be 30-40 hours depending on the frequency of actuations with charge time being 1.5hrs. 

Technology / App 

Neo is supported by the “Ride FOX  Bike” app that gives an overview of the Neo product in use, firmware updates, ride modes and service interval tracking. 

• Bike Park Mode: disables the lever from use when riding downhill trails. You can deactivate this mode on the fly by pressing the lever 4 times. We’ve never really ran into this issue with other wireless posts in the field but it is a good idea none the less
• Transport Mode: disables the “shake to wake” feature so that the post isn’t on or searching while driving to the trail head. This is traditionally a huge flaw for wireless components on mountain bikes but Fox has solved the issue via this option. Deactivating this mode involves slamming the rear wheel on the ground from a few feet off the ground. When Transport mode is not in use, the post will sleep after 5 minutes of inactivity 
• Service Intervals: The app tracks each activation and at 8000 uses it will let you know that it is time to get the seatpost serviced. Additionally, the dust wiper on the seatpost is easily removed for re-greasing to keep friction low. 

Specs 

• Seatpost 
• 100mm, 125mm, 150mm, 175mm, 200mm in 30.9mm/31.6mm
• 125mm, 150mm, 175mm, 200mm in 34.9mm 
• Proprietary Neo battery (30-40 hrs) 
• Factory series available, Performance series OEM only
• 26 millisecond operation 
• 528g (30.9 x 100mm)
• 47mm stack height (18mm better than Reverb AXS)
• Remote Lever 
• Tool-free CR2032 Battery (1 yr battery life)
• 22.2 clamp, MatchMaker / I-Spec EV options 
• Rubber covered thumb pad 
• 62g

Product includes: Transfer Neo post, Remote Lever, Battery, Charger and Cable 

Outro 

Fox Factory has entered the wireless component market starting with the Fox Transfer Neo Dropper Post, using their prior knowledge to develop a fast and reliable option to compete with SRAM’s AXS Reverb. They know what customers are expecting and what their previous products were lacking. After successfully launching their MY25 Transfer post, addressing these issues, the same technology was applied to this new Transfer NEO post. With the addition of a useful phone app to put the post in different modes and a battery to be used in future products, this wireless dropper seatpost is sure to add performance to your mountain bike.