I spent more time on the Neo yesterday and it was awesome. I met two cycling friends and we did a 15 mile loop in metro Atlanta. For comparison purposes, I typically ride an aluminum road bike with carbon forks that weighs around 19 pounds. The roads aren't the best. The Neo is SOOO much smoother and offers such a plush ride compared to my road bike (a lot of which has to do with the 23c tires on my road bike compared to the Neo's 32c size). The added weight is obviously very noticeable, but it really is a manageable package to pedal un-assisted. So my thoughts and limited observations have more relevance, I weigh about 165 pounds and am 5'11".
FIT AND FEEL
The bike feels awesome. The geometry and sloping top tube design should make it fit a wide range of riders. My wife is 5'4" and with the seat as far down as it would go, the bike was still a little too big for her (but she was still able to ride it up and down the street). She's not that much of a bike person but liked it far more than any bike she had ridden and enjoyed the throttle, too. Boost mode scared her though and she would only ride in standard. Sorry, that was somewhat of a tangent.
So, back to the fit and feel. It is a much more upright riding position than my road bike and very comfortable. The suspension fork, wider tires, and carbon frame make for a very comfortable, but still responsive ride. Despite the weight the bike is still super nimble and agile. It also looks great with the matte black finish.
POWER
Since it was my first day on the bike I went through the different modes quite a bit. I'd say I used about 30% boost (highest), 30% standard (second lowest), 20% eco, 10% pedaling without assistance, 5% throttle and 5% sport (second highest). You can hear the motor when it kicks on, but it's not too loud or annoying by any means.
The power is awesome. It makes the 30 gears really overkill as you just leave the front derailer in the big ring and regardless of the power setting it just GOES. In the highest setting it's just nasty (in a great, great way). You just pedal a few times and boom, 20mph. At one point I had to navigate through some traffic and boost mode was too much (again, I was in the big ring) so I dropped it down to eco and it was much easier to weave my way around. That said, I found that even the eco mode provided plenty of power and made hills a breeze. I used the throttle more as a newness thing as the pedal assist is plenty so I can see myself hardly using it, but who knows. It is fun and nifty and 20mph is no slouch, which it quickly reached in throttle mode on flatish ground. Going up hills that I previously mightily struggled to break 10mph I had it in the big ring and was churning up at around 18mph or so with minimal effort. I think I'll probably use standard or eco the most, unless I need to get somewhere fast in which case it'll be boost.
So in summary regarding power, to me it feels like there is plenty and best of all you definitely still feel like you're riding a bike. I used eco and hammered up some hills that at the top I was huffing just (well, almost) as much as I did on my road bike. That said, I could have used more power or a smaller gear and made it easier, so it's all on you and is very versatile. And don't even ask about my friends even remotely keeping up. It's apples and oranges speed wise going up hills.
BRAKES
With it's hydraulic disc brakes the Neo stops quickly and surely. Total confidence inspiring, which is important since we are slowing down from high speeds.
GRIPES
Not much at this point. My biggest one would be that you have to remove the battery to charge it - on frame charging would be so much easier. Part of this is because the charging port is on the bottom, so you have to lay the battery on the side and didn't I mention the matte black finish looks awesome? It just seems like it'll get scratched up. The fan from the brick in the charger is somewhat loud, but I leave it in the garage so I don't care.
The pedals kind of suck. I'll probably replace them, but keeping in the commuter spirit of this bike will still go with some type of platform. Besides, everything else on the bike is silver so some black pedals were in order anyway.
At one point when I put it in throttle mode the throttle wouldn't kick on. Turning off/on the LCD cured this.
MISC
Hmmmm...... I swear I had a lot more to say, but now it's slipping my mind. Here are some misc thoughts:
The LCD and the info it provides are pretty cool. I need to figure out how to use it (like reset the trip info). The little pouch that comes with it is also a nice touch. I hope I don't forget to take my LCD off.
The fastest I went was down a huge hill, where I think due to the added weight of the bike I blew past my friends (no pedaling needed). I hit around 35mph on the hill. On regular/flat roads with boost mode I would reach 2... d'oh I really don't remember, sorry :/. I don't want to provide wrong info, but IIRC it was around 27-28 and pedaling a good bit myself obviously. I'll update this with correct info.
Ok, my wife just said, "are you still typing your review?!" so it's time to end this. I'll be happy to answer any questions anyone might have.
Last thing: Again, this was my first experience with ANY ebike, so I'm sure I would have been more or less just as excited with any of the other ebikes that many of us on here were/are considering. They're just awesome machines. That said, I do think the look, fit and finish, purpose, and feel of the Carbon is certainly top notch and I'm quite pleased with the purchase.
