Bonzo Banana

Looks interesting but more a variation on what has been done before surely. Strida etc.

The colour of the model shown makes me think of something like this.

tds101 

2_i 

That stadium is humongous. Will they rent a meeting room there ?

WCycles

This video is truly bonkers. WTF?

Bonzo Banana

Going by that video it seems to suggest this bike can be used in place of many other types of bike so maybe we will see it performing stunts, racing, off-road type of terrain at the arena.



The bend of it looks like one of those early bicycles.



Looking at the bike though it seems to be single speed with a chain tensioner and no obvious provision to allow for gears and the dropouts are low quality crimped ends.

When you haven't got any gears you wonder if this is an e-bike somewhere to assist on hills and what is blurred on that image, maybe some sort of e-bike control pad on the handlebars and some sort of front wheel motor assist mechanism (friction wheel motor above the tyre). Maybe the battery is in the main frame?

Seems to copy some of the ideas from the original Dahon bike with the supporting bars.

When I started the video I was expecting to see a Dahon e-bike announcement so was a little surprised to see this design which seems to be focused on being stored relatively flat and may not be an e-bike at all.

Dahon are always looking for ways to sell their products at a premium with a very high margin in my opinion. E-bikes have many expensive components and it would be difficult for Dahon to compete in that sector at realistic pricing however this looks to be an extremely cheap, basic design with personality which maybe they will sell for $400 retail or maybe $700 if its got some sort of simple basic motor assist just for the hills.

Maybe those support arms are flexible somehow and provide a suspension effect?

It looks like a very basic bike which they are going to wow us with some sort of display at the arena to try to convince us of its versatility.

What other bikes go for thin vertical storage like this, the hideous Strida and perhaps this one.

1nterceptor

Pacific Reach CarryMe with bigger tires and curved instead of straight frame.

Bonzo Banana

I couldn't watch that video in my country sadly but it looks to take many design elements of that product (searched the name) and take them into a bulkier but better riding design.



I don't really get Dahon though as I've said in the past so won't give my own opinion of the product but whatever an interesting product at least.

Even if this product fails commercially I can see it being very collectable in the future especially if it only has a short run at the factory. Dahon seem to like very frequent model changes you can never get bored with their line up. Still yet to see a Curl in the flesh anywhere in the UK, maybe too early.

2_i 

Oh, I think he aims at the share market, particularly with the patents claimed. Share bikes delivered a big blow to folding bike market in China and Dahon tries apparently to break in with innovation into shares. At least in China, share bikes are basic single-speed.

Bonzo Banana

Yeah maybe it's that and they are just blurring the share lock mechanism they have come up with. However that video seems to suggest its a new format of frame which supports a range of wheel sizes and has a very narrow and low profile. So can be easily pulled and travel with you without taking much room due to its ease of staying vertical.

I think the model shown is a compact share bike but at the stadium they will show a range of bikes in this format doing all sorts of different riding after watching the video again. I think even the larger frame, bigger wheel versions will be easy to stack to the side and perhaps on top of each other so you don't have the chaos of current chinese share bike storage.

Just have to play the waiting game to see the full event.

DLBroox

It’s hideous!

GTizzy

This is the worst product teaser I've ever seen.

tds101 

I'm not feeling it either,...it's like a new reality video show "bananas gone bad",...

dahoneezz

What happened to Dahonleslie? All the questions for Dr. Hon ...

dahonleslie

Dr.Hon is too busy on the new product development( showed in this video), he may answer the questions later.

It is a totally new design and new folding mechanism which we spent a long time to develop. It can convert any bike ( MTB, road ebike etc) into very flat for easier storage and carrying.There will be no frame hinge which make the frame sturdier and looks better. Some of you are correct, we came up with a solution for sharing bike and we hope we can cooperate with more companies in various ways. Like to license this technology to OEM manufacturer or other brands. We do have different wheels size and an e-version for this model that you guys will see them very soon.

Yea, stay tuned with Dahon, you will never get bored. We noticed that there are some service problems( esp, in EU market) in past years. We will work them out. Trust us! Thank you all so much for your suggestions.

Bonzo Banana

Can't see it working as a MTB, I could be wrong but the design principles of it just don't look on face value that they would work. Also mountain bike riding is a seriously macho sport and these bikes will have a more cutesy/feminine appeal look. I'm getting a sort of 'hello kitty' and handlebar grip tassles vibe from the design especially with those crimped dropouts. It's more a fun, casual, relaxed rider type product I would of thought that doesn't take itself too seriously. Sort of product that could make a city seem more appealing if they adopted it as their share bikes but not a performance or off road design I would of thought. Can't disagree about not getting bored. It's going to be interesting to see the commercial reaction to it.

I've seen crimped dropouts on low cost steel chidren's bikes that have corroded with age, despite the bike having solid tyres and never needing the wheels removed so little wear or abrasion on them but water has got in and corroded them. I saw this on a bike at a recycling shop in Taunton I think not that long ago. Admittedly this was steel and these Dahon bikes could be aluminium but for me it shows that Dahon do not take product quality or lifespan seriously despite their higher pricing. If this was a bargain basement $100 bike people would be critical of crimped dropouts and I see no reason not to apply greater criticism here.

Looking at cheap sub $200 folding bikes on Amazon it looks like an even split with some having crimped dropouts on the front forks and others stamped dropouts but none of them have crimped dropouts for the rear dropouts, all are stamped as far as I can tell. Also looking at existing Dahon models none have crimped dropouts in the current lineup as far as I can tell. There also does seem to be a loose connection with weight capacity. Crimped dropouts and a lower rider weight capacity seem to be connected which I suppose is not surprisingly as previously it was mainly used on children's bikes.

To me it seems like the share bike market requires higher rider weight capacities not lower. I think the Santander share bikes in london have such a high weight capacity that they don't even mention any restriction. The cheap, weak construction of the bike shown would surely not be usable in many cities around the world. Bikes should have decent engineering first with innovation coming second.

dahoneezz

Looking at the Dr. Hon's video, I think there will be several models. Foldable electric scooter. Mountain bikes. Etc. the mountain bikes will look like mountain bikes not like a banana. They share the ability to fold flat. I think, that is what it will be.

Bonzo Banana

I think they will likely still look like a banana a bit as the design concept seems to rely on the seat tube and handlebar stem folding but the frame itself remaining a sort of wave, may even be more wavey as the bottom bracket will need to come lower for larger wheels. However extra reinforcing could mean extra welded parts to the frame. Also unsure how the front suspension will work, short travel possibly. Not expecting a serious mountain bike design to be honest.

dahoneezz

If they do banana mountain bike ... ...cuckoo .... someone better get the straightjackets ...

dahonleslie

The cost of this bike is lower as there will be less welding joint , but be sure it has no compromising on performance and stiffness. As the one-piece frame and the triangle design.

MJBikes99

The wave design looks interesting and the color is cute

Bonzo Banana

I would imagine it could be more of a light duty mountain bike with the advantage of easy transportation and storage. They did the Jetstream P8 that appears to be a rebranded fuji-ta Hanma 8. That was a light duty mountain bike. Something capable of off-road use without being competitive off road.






HANMA8 - Tianjin Fuji-ta Bicycle Co.,Ltd.

Bonzo Banana

https://buff.ly/2ql248X

The announcement is about 16 minutes in.

tds101 

There's no way to actually watch that video,...she's cute, but the video is horrible.

Bonzo Banana

Totally agree I tried the option to enable controls but they didn't appear. I let it play in the background while I did other things and when I came back to it the presentation was amateur at best although obviously I couldn't understand the language and english was only spoken occasionally. I gave up. This was the feed suggested on the Dahon facebook page believe it or not. Maybe a more professional edited video will turn up soon.

What I saw was not inspiring, neither the products themselves or the so called innovation. The storage is just a variation on the Brompton hire scheme which I doubt is that original there are probably earlier schemes with larger storage units by someone else. The Brompton video is about 4 years old.


Not a Dahon fan though. Don't see the innovation or value in their products but still very interested to see what they come up with.

dahoneezz

So what happened to the announcement? Maybe dahonleslie can post pics of the new bikes revealed at Beijing Bird's Nest stadium.