Originally Posted by
Leinster
You'd have to think that for Shimano’s 100th birthday, they’ll need to do something more innovative than Wireless (which SRAM has had for a while) 12 speed (which is standard in MTB, and SRAM and Campag have on the road) with a microspline (starting the obsolescence clock on all old wheels). Maybe put the gearbox patent into production? A new way to do road 1x that doesn’t suck? Some form of CVT transmission for bikes?
Even going to 13 speed will still leave them 2 years behind Rotor.
I will say this for Shimano though - they often are not first to the party, but in my experience when they do launch they've tested most of the kinks out of whatever they produce. I remember back in the early 2000s when compact cranks were starting to catch on, if you wanted one you were basically limited to an aftermarket version (my first was an FSA). We wondered if Shimano would EVER produce a compact crank - but when they did they nailed it. My suspicion is that the 12 speed road group has been undergoing testing for quite some time, and it going to come with some bells and whistles we haven't really thought of yet. Hoping it comes soon though.