There has been no better time than right now to buy a cube. From extremely well thought out designs and new innovations, to sheer quality, speedcubes have come a long way within just the last decade. New manufacturers have entered the game and there are a lot more options now to consider while buying a cube, to the point it is overwhelming.
With this blog article, I’m trying to make your decision as streamlined as possible so you can buy the best cube to get started. If you’ve ever opened a Puzzle Store’s website and have felt astounded by the choice you’re presented with, this article will help you. With this speed cube buying guide you will be able to buy a perfect cube for you.
Things to Consider Before Buying a Cube
1. Price
Let’s start with the obvious one, you’ve to set a budget before you start looking for puzzles. Flagship cubes cost over Rs. 2000 with a lot of the brands, while mid-range and budget cubes can be found within the range of Rs.1500 all the way down to even Rs. 200. If you’re an absolute novice, my personal suggestion would be to cap the budget to Rs. 1000. Despite the prices of cubes rising steadily, there are plenty of usable options within Rs. 1000. If you’re looking for the best of the best, then it’s good to have a budget of at least Rs.2500 to Rs.3000.
2. Magnets
Most cubes have magnets nowadays to assist with turning accuracy and have become the norm in the last 3 years. You’ve to decide if you want magnets in your cubes and if you do, depending on your budget, there are cubes with static magnets and also others that allow you to change the strength to your liking. I personally prefer cubes with medium magnetic strength and fortunately, my cube allows me to tweak it (MoYu WRM 2021) so I have the magnetic strength I prefer. This particular feature isn’t extremely important, but it’s there if you want it. So don’t feel like you’re missing out on a feature if you decide to buy a magnetic cube with static magnets. Maglev cubes are up and coming as well.
3. Stickered vs Stickerless Cubes
This one is fairly straightforward, ever since WCA decided to make sticker less cubes legal, the entire community has steadily shifted to using sticker less cubes as it is easy to maintain as you don’t have to worry about damaged stickers and adhesiveness. If you’re considering stickered cubes for any personal reason(s), you will usually have the option to do that.
4. Corner/Reverse corner-cutting
Depending on your turning accuracy, corner-cutting might be an important thing to consider while you’re looking for a cube. Corner cutting is the ability for a cube to do a turn while another layer is misaligned. You’ll find cube reviews on youtube determining the corner-cutting of a cube by offsetting the U layer by 45 degrees and trying to do an R (corner cut) and reducing the U layer offset and trying to do an R’(reverse corner cut). Most budget cubes are fairly limited when it comes to the ability to corner cut and are usually rigid but there are some cubes such as the RS3M and Yuxin Little Magic that have really solid corner-cutting ability for the price.
5. Speed
Most of the cubes are assigned with a certain speed-related adjective by the community. Usually, the faster cubes are attributed to being unstable while the slower cubes are attributed to being stable. Thus, depending on your preference, you can choose cubes. Fortunately, my cube also allows me to customize this by giving me the ability to change the compression of the springs. At a higher spring compression setting, the cube will become more stable but becomes slower, and at a lower spring compression setting, the cube will become less stable but becomes faster. Depending on your budget, you can decide if this is an important factor for you while you consider buying a Rubik’s cube. RS3M, a budget option, allows you to do exactly this while being a budget cube.
6. Size
The standard speed cube today is 55mm. If you prefer a cube with different dimensions for whatever reason, you can look for it. Unfortunately, a lot of the mini cubes have been discontinued so the options will be limited when you’re looking for both bigger and smaller sizes. YJ ZhiLong mini 3x3 M is a good mini cube, while QiYi Big Sail 3x3 is a much larger cube at 68mm.
7. Accessories
A lot of cubes, especially the flagship ones, come with a bunch of accessories from extra sets of springs and screws, magnets, spare parts, and even a screwdriver. Depending on your preference, you might feel that it is important. If you’re deciding to go for a budget cube, a lot of the time the cube is just going to come with a box and some instruction sheets.
8. Customized Cube/New Cube
You also have the option to buy cubes that are set up to be competitive right out of the box, screw tensioning is done as accurately as possible, the cube is well lubed and sometimes, non-magnetic cubes are also magnetized. This is an on-demand service available for an extra price. The Yuxin Little Magic Elite-M is a popular customized cube offered by Cabello.
9. Popularity, word of mouth
Last, but not least, the popularity of a cube should be something you should consider while buying a cube. If a cube in each price range has a good reputation in the community, it is a very safe option and you won’t go wrong buying that cube.
Where You can Buy Speed Cubes Online?
If you’re in India, Cubelelo is undoubtedly the best place to buy cubes for the most competitive prices and professional service.
Best Cubes To Buy
As far as 3x3 goes, my suggestions for a good budget cube would be MoYu RS3M 2020 (even the maglev version falls under Rs.999), Yuxin Little Magic. Among flagship cubes, my favorites are the MoYu WRM 2021 (my current main), Qiyi Valk 3M, and Qiyi Valk Elite. The YJ MGC is a good mid-range option you can consider buying.
Moyu WRM 2021
Best Cube to Buy for a Beginner
My suggestion usually doesn’t consider skill level, but if you’re just starting out and need a cube, I would suggest investing in a good budget magnetic cube. For the longest time, my main was the Yuxin Little Magic Elite-M even when new flagships kept appearing. Magnetic cubes are the new normal in cubing so it wouldn’t hurt to buy even the cheapest magnetic cubes on the market if you are on a tight budget.
Conclusion
I hope the 9 cube buying tips above would narrow down your options and help you buy your cube. There is a very popular and corny saying in the community - “it’s the cuber, not the cube”, and for good reason. If you’re looking to buy a cube that will magically make you faster, it probably wouldn’t. Look for what exactly you need in a cube and make a decision based on the criteria that are important to you.
-Vijay Kishore
