Oh pinkbike...
I love their exclusives, like the Fox and Marzocchi fork stuff recently. I really enjoy product reviews and previews. I'm able to find out info on stuff that hasn't been reviewed on RM or elsewhere. I agree with Udi, the photos can be a godsend when I'm looking for weird stuff. Just recently I was looking for photos of Kali kneepads to check for fit, and pinkbike had a few that I could judge against. Same with weird bikes whenever I come up with a crazy idea (like converting a bike to a 29er). I don't bother with the forums as the discussions are by and large useless with no significant conclusions to be drawn, besides everybody go home and stop dropping off of ladders in your backyard.
I have a hard time with RC and some of the other reviewers. RC comes from a "I ride trailbikes in the SoCal desert" background, so it's hard to take his reviews seriously. That was always a problem I had with MBA in general, and though he's trying to break free, I still see it from time to time. He occasionally likes some really weird **** that doesn't make sense unless you're riding dust and hardpack, like the southwestern desert. Some of the other guys do better, but his "regionality" is especially glaring.
Sicklines is one of my favorites. They have some excellent, reasonably unbiased reviews and I wish the site got more press/references than it does. It has a US, grassroots feel/focus to it, and I love that, compared with the all-WC Vital and BC based NSMB. Great weight collections too.
I'm not a fan of vital. Their slideshows are great, and they occasionally have neat features, but the site is confounding from a usability standpoint. I like pinkbike's layout- you head to the mainpage and everything is there, even if it's videos I don't want to watch, or product reviews I'm not interested in, I just scroll on down till I see something I like. Plus, vital seems to be the collector for holier-than-thou fanboys.
I love RM, and it's the community that makes it worthwhile. Even the fanboys get taken down a peg here, and you can generally ask questions without immediately getting called a moron or being told to buy [whatever is the popular product right now]. Virtually everything on here is user opinion from people who have actually used the product.
The one thing I would like to see from the main page is more unfavorable reviews. I know that sounds silly, but I hate reading every review and having it be favorable, with love and bro-hugs all around at the end of it. Face it, every once in a while, a product sucks, or maybe it at least has downfalls. I don't feel like I've read a review that has concluded with "By and large, this ______ disappoints, and is not worth the notoriety/price." I also like the blurb-reviews that PB has been doing recently, with small, short reviews about products the writer likes or is disappointed with. I'm sure the reviewers @ bike have their favorite set of tires or knee pads, or grips...once in a while, have them write a review about why they use those products. When I go to buy x or y, I'm more inclined to try out or avoid something that's been reviewed. Another thing that would be great is reporting on races and events that are otherwise uncovered. The DH WC sees a **** load of press....RM doesn't need yet another reporter providing half-assed covereage, but I'd love to see articles on local races, like the GRT or NEMBAfest or similar, and I LOVE reading articles like this: http://www.pinkbike.com/news/BC-Cup-racers-are-running-2011.html.
I love their exclusives, like the Fox and Marzocchi fork stuff recently. I really enjoy product reviews and previews. I'm able to find out info on stuff that hasn't been reviewed on RM or elsewhere. I agree with Udi, the photos can be a godsend when I'm looking for weird stuff. Just recently I was looking for photos of Kali kneepads to check for fit, and pinkbike had a few that I could judge against. Same with weird bikes whenever I come up with a crazy idea (like converting a bike to a 29er). I don't bother with the forums as the discussions are by and large useless with no significant conclusions to be drawn, besides everybody go home and stop dropping off of ladders in your backyard.
I have a hard time with RC and some of the other reviewers. RC comes from a "I ride trailbikes in the SoCal desert" background, so it's hard to take his reviews seriously. That was always a problem I had with MBA in general, and though he's trying to break free, I still see it from time to time. He occasionally likes some really weird **** that doesn't make sense unless you're riding dust and hardpack, like the southwestern desert. Some of the other guys do better, but his "regionality" is especially glaring.
Sicklines is one of my favorites. They have some excellent, reasonably unbiased reviews and I wish the site got more press/references than it does. It has a US, grassroots feel/focus to it, and I love that, compared with the all-WC Vital and BC based NSMB. Great weight collections too.
I'm not a fan of vital. Their slideshows are great, and they occasionally have neat features, but the site is confounding from a usability standpoint. I like pinkbike's layout- you head to the mainpage and everything is there, even if it's videos I don't want to watch, or product reviews I'm not interested in, I just scroll on down till I see something I like. Plus, vital seems to be the collector for holier-than-thou fanboys.
I love RM, and it's the community that makes it worthwhile. Even the fanboys get taken down a peg here, and you can generally ask questions without immediately getting called a moron or being told to buy [whatever is the popular product right now]. Virtually everything on here is user opinion from people who have actually used the product.
The one thing I would like to see from the main page is more unfavorable reviews. I know that sounds silly, but I hate reading every review and having it be favorable, with love and bro-hugs all around at the end of it. Face it, every once in a while, a product sucks, or maybe it at least has downfalls. I don't feel like I've read a review that has concluded with "By and large, this ______ disappoints, and is not worth the notoriety/price." I also like the blurb-reviews that PB has been doing recently, with small, short reviews about products the writer likes or is disappointed with. I'm sure the reviewers @ bike have their favorite set of tires or knee pads, or grips...once in a while, have them write a review about why they use those products. When I go to buy x or y, I'm more inclined to try out or avoid something that's been reviewed. Another thing that would be great is reporting on races and events that are otherwise uncovered. The DH WC sees a **** load of press....RM doesn't need yet another reporter providing half-assed covereage, but I'd love to see articles on local races, like the GRT or NEMBAfest or similar, and I LOVE reading articles like this: http://www.pinkbike.com/news/BC-Cup-racers-are-running-2011.html.
