Fox Transfer Neo Dropper Post Review | Robotic Excellence

Dropper posts have gotten to stretch their legs in the last few years, and the Transfer Neo is offered in 25mm increments between 100 and 200mm. Paired with the option of 30.9, 31.6, and 34.9mm diameters, it’s safe to say that there’s a perfect Transfer Neo for just about every rider out there. On the collar of the post, you’ll find the battery hanging off, which will nestle in the included charger any time it needs to get topped off. Riders who have used any AXS product will be very familiar with the little clip holding the battery in place as well as how the battery pops into the charger, but the battery itself is a different design and they are not compatible with each other. Inside the remote at the handlebars, you’ll find a very standard CR 2032 coin battery that should last about a year before needing to be replaced.

Installing any wireless component is about as easy as it gets, and the Transfer Neo is no different. You’ll just drop it in the frame, torque it down to your seatpost clamp spec, and you’re all set. Unfortunately, there isn’t any trick with installing the seat, and it’s as much of a hassle on this post as any other I’ve used. Pairing the system is quite simple, and you’ll use the Fox Neo App to pair your dropper post to the controller, and it’s just a couple of well timed button presses before you’re ready to ride. The app is generally easy to use, and houses information for your post, including how many actuations it’s performed, battery remaining, and the current mode it’s in.

The actuator has similar ergonomics to a standard dropper lever, but with 100% fewer cables

While most riders aren’t interested in logging into an app mid ride, that’s not necessary at all once the dropper post is installed and paired. You can ignore the app entirely if that’s your program, and frankly that’s how I treat the post 99% of the time. But it is pretty sweet that you can check on how many actuations the post has, which will tell you exactly how far along its service interval you are. Fox recommends getting the post serviced at 8000 actuations, which initially sounded like a small number to me when I heard it, but after living with this post for a couple months I’m still under a thousand. Another feature of the app is enabling “bike park mode”, which disables the post until you hit the lever four times rapidly, which I actually used a bunch while I was in Whistler after bumping the actuator midair.

There's also a Transport Mode, which disables the "Shake to Wake" function, saving your battery life on a long road trip. On the few long road trips I took with this post installed, I still preferred to completely remove the battery and install the included plastic spacers to remove any chance of draining the battery or somehow losing it on the road. Another feature that I discovered out of necessity was using the app instead of the remote to activate the dropper post. We received pre production posts that didn't have a fully charged coin battery in the remote, and it died on me while the post was extended in the bike park. Luckily I was able to activate the post in the app to defuse the situation, but don't worry, your controller will have a completely charged battery when you get it.

One of the most tangible differences of the electronically actuated dropper post is just how much easier it is to press a button than push a lever that has a bunch of friction in it. Like I said, I accidentally hit the button more than once while up in the air at the bike park because it's way more of a hair trigger actuation than the alternative. Getting a quick dropper press is much easier than before, and there’s no perceivable delay between pressing the button and the dropper moving. Fox told us it uses a pared down version of Bluetooth communication that takes just 3ms to transmit a signal and activate the dropper post, which makes the post feel like it activates instantly. The only negative I’ve noticed with the binary on off feeling of the lever is losing the half press where the post comes up slowly so I can carefully get the post half way up for a technical climb. That being said, I’ve since gotten used to it and a quick well executed press accomplishes the same goal, but it’s taken a bit of learning to perfect.

The Fox Transfer Neo cements itself as the best wireless dropper post available right now, and while it might not be for everyone, early adopters of the wireless dropper posts will be thrilled to have this option. Its incredibly light lever throw is fantastic, and offers the most premium dropper post experience I’ve had the pleasure of getting dirty. I expect the Transfer Neo to be specced on high end OEM builds, and I hope that it gains aftermarket popularity with how much I’ve enjoyed this piece of bike tech.

Got questions? Feel free to shoot us an email or give us a call!

360-306-8827

sales@thelostco.com