POPStar Review

Yo-Yo Reviews
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I got my POPStar today ;D

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Specs: Weight: 66.50g
Width: 32.00mm
Diameter: 43.80mm
Gap Width: 4.25mm
Bearing: CBC SPEC, Size C

The POPStar looks like a tiny Hectic but is stated by YYF to be based off of the Protostar and RockStar profiles. The POPStar is a pocket sized yoyo priced at 26$ so please keep that in mind while reading. Anyways, without further ado, here’s my review for the POPStar by YoYoFactory.

First Impressions: When I got it I laughed a little seeing as it comes in a full sized box that doesn’t really have anything on it that says, “POPStar”, besides a small insert on the front. After I got it out of the box I was kind of shocked at how small it was, I mean I knew it was a pocket sized but since I’ve never played with one until now it took a while to get used to it, figuring out how to properly bind it and throw it. I had a ton of snags at first, but after a few hours it felt more natural to me and I started smiling like a little boy who just got a N64 for Christmas (references, references). So first impressions were uncomfortable and strange at first, and then extremely, extremely fun. I can’t think of anything else for first impressions so on to the next part!

Playability: FUN! FUN! FUN! There’s one word to describe the playability for you. It’s just simple fun, like riding a roller coaster or opening Christmas presents or something else fun if you don’t think either of those things are fun (what?!?!? who doesn’t like roller coasters and Christmas presents?). Here are the cold hard facts.
1.It’s balanced, but only to a certain degree. It WILL start tipping 3/4th’s of the way through a longer combo, but this wasn’t really a problem for me considering the fact that I just don’t see this yoyo as, “Main Throw”, material anyways.
2. It’s kinda vibey. It might just be mine but it definitely has a little something after it hits the end of the string and starts spinning. It’s no where near enough to affect playability but it’s there and some people like to complain. I actually kind of like it, considering I just like to kind of feel weather my yoyo is spinning or not down there and there’s just enough to do that without being bothersome. (bothersome? what am I, 70?)
3. Grinding. I’m not a real big grinder, in fact I barely ever do it, but, It works well enough for it and unless you really, really like grinding I don’t think you’ll be dissatisfied.
4. The bearing works. Nothing super special, nothing obscenely terrible. It just works.
5. The Pads are large bearing slim pads made by CBC. They, just like the bearing, work. Once again nothing special or bad, they get the job done. I prefer silicone so they’ll be coming out pretty soon anyways.
6. The shape feels nice in my hand and doesn’t hurt when it comes back, even at high speeds. String catches really aren’t that hard and I actually found it easier to maneuver through the string because of the small size, but, I know some people will simply not like it because of the size so there’s that.

Final Pros: It’s all metal, It’s 26$!!!, It’s fun, It’s awesome. Oh yeah and for the Americans out there, it’s USA made. (wow something not made in another country!)
Final Cons: Not the most balanced thing ever, and the very very minimal vibe may bother some people.

Famous Last Words: Like I said at the beginning, please remember the price point of this yoyo because it DOES matter. All in all this yoyo is really a gem, It’s the most fun I’ve had playing since I bought my first Freehand 2. For 26$ you can’t go wrong and hey, you can carry it in your pocket without leaving a huge indent in the side of your jeans later (XD). If you’ve never played with an undersized pick this one up (if you still can that is) you won’t be disappointed. So is this the best bang for your buck yoyo out there? It’s opinion but I say right next to the StarLite it definitely is. Tell me what you think if you have one or just comment on the review, either way.
Happy throwing! – Hadoe

2 Likes
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Nice review and is your starlight vibey

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My StarLite is actually quite smooth, or at least smoother than the POPStar, which is kind of surprising to me considering it’s a plastic. If I could only choose one I’d get the StarLite but that’s only because I really see pocket sized yoyo’s as kind of a novelty sort of thing, of course I’ve never played with something like a Campfire so that could change.

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I got a purple popstar and it plays extremely smooth and plays better than my dv888. I love it and it’s so cheep! pocket change is calling! lol. Everyone should get this yoyo instead of a yyj legacy !

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mine should be in the mail today and this makes me very anxious to get it. I might tackle the mail man when he gets here ;D

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Heh, I was this close to actually doing that the monday I got mine XD, you’ll enjoy it, I promise.

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Is your hand okay?

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Besides the size, how would you say the playability compares to the Yomega Maverick (aside from the odd bearing size and proprietary response pads)? Curious to try one of these guys out :slight_smile: The gap looks pretty generous and the fact that you can put your own silicone in it.

And besides grindability (is this a real word? lol) how does this hold up to a Duncan Metal Drifter? I’m asking these as they are all in the same neighborhood of prices…so I kind of see these as yo’s that are equivilant to each other, though from different manufacturers (like a Pepsi and a Coke).

Lastly, would you consider this more along the lines as a novelty yo or just a go-to yo?

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Ha, I thought someone might notice that. I hit my hand with a hammer putting some wood flooring in about a week ago, thanks for the concern though XD.

In all honesty I haven’t played with either of the throws you mentioned and I don’t think I ever will. I like my StarLite to much. Also I think I said something in my review about this not really being “main throw” material. I don’t believe this was meant to be a really a “go-to” yoyo in the first place, and I don’t see it as one. It’s more of a novelty thing and as i said before “FUN”.

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i got my popstar today!
its tilts alot, but other than that i love it.
its so different and fun :smiley:
they were out of blue, but in the additional notes column i asked for blue.
and i got a blue one today in the mail :]

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i personally love undersized throws. they make you so much more a better player. and for me the pOpstar is light years beyond novelty it is now my main throw. but you got to understand that 42- 44mm in diameter is the sweet spot for me. And while most hated the sHuriken i loved it.

so the fact that it’s smaller is going to be an issue for people who prefer a regular sized throw. and i don’t know how much this little guy will change that perception.

it does have a tendency to tilt. most small yo-yo have that which is why some people prefer larger ones, but it has a nice solid feel to it. it just feels wonderful in the hand. and yes it is vibey! ths is one area where the dingO trumps it somewhat since the dingO is smooth. no vibe. but the popstar feel more solid than the dingO and it’s like 2 mm smaller.

i hope yoyofactory can smooth this out on future releases of it because that (the vibing) and the tilting is the only thing that i can see that’s wrong with it.

seriously i have to thank Ben at yoyofactory for making this because it’s my new favorite yo-yo.

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A lot of mini yoyos tend to tilt when playing them (like my old dingo or my G.5), so I’m not surprised to hear that this does :stuck_out_tongue: Sounds like a fun little yoyo though, and Great review :wink:

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Getting mine in the mail maybe tomorrow. Thanks for the review.

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Double thanks everyone, I’m glad my review helped some of you :D.

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So is your hand better?

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after playing with the popstar, i no longer like the feel or shap of any of my yoyos! :frowning:

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is there any place that still has these in stock? I cannot find them! if not is there anything similar out there that is a good yo-yo? I’ve been really wanting a little yo-yo because I’m really short with little hands. ::slight_smile:
it looks really cool and I love the price!

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Yes my hand is better :slight_smile:

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It’s a tough life. XD

No place I know of has them in stock, you might put up a want to buy in the B/S/T threads, someone might sell you one. Although at the rate they sold out YYF is probably already making more, so I’d expect a restock before christmas (don’t hold me to that though, I’m not a YYF employ so I’m really just guessing).

1 Like
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I finally got one of these yo-yos…ordered it a week ago from YYE, left YYE later Wednesday and came in Xmas eve. (Wow, really fast shipping as I live on the west coast, and nothing like making a day with a really tragic start a bit better). All I can say is that I love this thing! Honestly it has not left my side all weekend. Very friendly to the pockets. I just need to adjust to the smaller size and width, and pay more attention to what I’m doing so that it doesn’t go out of control/spin out on me. Feels very solid, very smooth. To me, it feels much less of a novelty and more of just a small (fully functional) yo-yo.