I wanted to review an introduction priced yoyo and I wanted to start with something that would let me test out something new as well as something that felt familiar. I decided to choose the YoYoFactory ONEstar because I had used one before and I wanted my own that I could test out. There are 6 different color choices and two different options of bearings (bearing types are attached to specific color choices). You can also choose the Paul Han signature ONEstar that has the same shape but comes in pink or baby blue with zebra-print caps for the same price. I chose the white/black marble with the center trac bearing to test out the Center Trac and put it against the YoYoFactory SPEC bearing.
Price:
$14.99 USD
Colors:
Solid Black (Center Trac)
White/Black Marble (Center Trac)
White
Lime-Green
Blue-White Marble
Red
Specs
Diameter: 55.25 mm / 2.18 inches
Width: 43.5 mm / 1.71 inches
Weight: 62.2 grams
Bearing Size: CBC SPEC Bearing
Size C (.250 x .500 x .187)
Response: CBC “Slim Pad” Size 19mm OD
This yoyo was created to be a high-quality yoyo for a beginner’s price-range. The ONEstar is a plastic yoyo that is shaped to feel and perform like YoYoFactory’s SuperNova, Genesis or other competition yoyos without committing to the high-end yoyo prices.
I’m going to preface this review by stating that even though YoYoFactory make some of my favorite yoyos, I am coming to this review completely unbiased. I tested this yoyo in particular against multiple yoyos from YoYoFactory as well as many other brand’s yoyos in the same price range as well as similar materials. I really enjoyed testing out this yoyo and having the rare chance to have no fear about banging this yoyo and accidentally dinging it or chipping the paint.
The ONEstar arrived in the typical YoYoFactory packaging, as you can see from the picture above, which looks great compared to many other companies. I was expecting this packaging because I have multiple YoYoFactory yoyos and all of their packaging is pretty much the same, only being set apart by a few color changes and wording. Knowing that I was going to be getting this same excellent packaging, I was able to put the flashiness aside and really get down the the “nitty gritty” about this yoyo. The color was not quite like pictures showed online. As you can see from above, the white/black marble was more of a blue/gray/purple marble but the Logo on the sticker was very bright. I still really enjoy how it looks and am satisfied with my color choice.
First of all, if you already own yoyos such as the SuperNova or Genesis, then I don’t need to tell you much about the shape of this yoyo. If you are new to this shape and style and you are use to using the classic butterfly shape, then the shape of this yoyo is going to feel extremely foreign to you. It has a very wide gap that provides landing string tricks much easier than your everyday run-of-the-mill yoyo. It takes a little bit of time to get use to the way that it feels in your hands but after an hour or so of using it, it becomes very natural feeling and makes complex tricks much easier to learn.
The overall construction of this yoyo is very sturdy. I allowed a few children to test it out to teach them how to play with a yoyo along with testing out the durability of this yoyo; and I must admit, I am pretty impressed. They played with it over the sidewalk, which as most of you probably know, is extremely course. After they spent about 5 minutes smashing it into the ground, I decided to throw in the towel and stop watching my new toy being manhandled. To my surprise, there were only two very small chips in the plastic and I only noticed them because I was hunting for damage and rubbing the rims. The axle is also very long which is a very good thing. Typically in YoYoFactory yoyos, the axle is very short and have a tendency to strip or snap during use. These are some very good features because beginners have a tendency to slam yoyos down on pavement and overall give their throws a fair beating. This yoyo is definitely made of some very high-quality materials that can take a beating and still walk away fairly unscathed.
The bearing is one thing that I was very excited to test out. I have tried YoYoFactory’s SPEC bearing, One Drop’s 10-ball, and C3YoYoDesign’s size c bearing in the past and I was excited to try something with this concave shape. At first glance, you can’t really tell that there is much of a change at all. When you have the yoyo apart, it is very noticeable that the bearing is flared on the ends but when the yoyo is assembled, there is little change. The flares appear to almost happen too late and they end up inside the yoyo and not really playing a role in the play. After you throw the yoyo and test it out, you can definitely see the difference when comparing it to other “flat” bearings. The string is very subtly pushed toward the center of the bearing, which makes learning string tricks where a lot of string is put into the gap of the yoyo much easier. This yoyo actually came with a very thick string that would normally cause some problems but didn’t. This is a great feature for new players because it allows them to learn certain tricks and not have the yoyo bind and bite them in the knuckles.
I tested this yoyo against another plastic yoyo because that seemed like the only fair way to compare the play and sleep times. The YoYoFactory ONEstar compared to the YoYoFactory Grind Machine seems like an easy comparison right? One YoYoFactory product against another but one is in a slightly higher price-range (Grind Machine). First off, the Grind Machine has the YoYoFactory SPEC bearing in it and the ONEstar has the YoYoFactory Center Trac bearing. The Grind Machine is just slightly heavier but this small amount feels like a ton when actually holding the two. While testing the sleep times I noticed that the ONEstar actually would sleep at the bottom of the string for almost a minute longer on average (out of 30+ throws). This really surprised me because the Grind Machine was so much heavier. This could have been mildly biased though because the ONEstar feels so much like my personal favorite yoyo (SuperNova) but I think this is mainly because the concave bearing helps keep the string off of the walls. The shapes vary wildly because the Grind Machine has more of the classic butterfly shape and (as we covered previously) the ONEstar has the more profiled “H-Shape.” I did notice that when performing the exact same tricks with the Grind Machine, it tended to lose speed at a faster rate than the ONEstar. The Grind Machine, even though it costs more, was very easily outplayed by the ONEstar which is half the price.
In a typical fashion, for all of the people too lazy to read the rest of the review, here is a list of the pros and cons:
Pros :
- Large selection of colors and even allows the choice of bearing type
- Outplays yoyos at a higher price-range even by the same company
- Feels and plays very similarly to high-end yoyos without the pricetag
- Durable to the point that learning isn’t discouraged by dings
- Perfect for anyone either looking for a yoyo to take around with them or looking to learn.
- Similar shape to higher-end yoyos allowing for any play-style
Cons
- Color was not quite the same as online
- Bearing choice is allocated to color
- Very light
- Center Trac bearing flares a little bit too late but still works
- Shape takes time to get use to if not familiar
With everything said, I really enjoy this yoyo. I think it is very difficult to make a yoyo that is not fun to play with but they really nailed it with this one. It plays great, feels amazing and works better than yoyos in higher price ranges. Easily a good choice for anyone looking to get into 1A, 3A, or 5A and they don’t want to dump a bunch of money into skill-toys. This yoyo plays extremely well and is perfect for anyone looking for a yoyo to get into intermediate-advanced tricks or as a yoyo to carry around and not have a metal yoyo in their pocket. I am extremely happy to have the ONEstar in my collection and I would highly suggest it to anyone looking for a yoyo under $20.00.
-Andre