What is the best 2x2 speedcube?
The 2x2 is a smaller version of the regular 3x3 that actually was invented beforehand. The 2x2 was first patented by Larry D Nichols in 1970, 4 years before Erno Rubik invented the famous 3x3. The first 2x2 was held together simply by magnets with no internal mechanism, now 2x2s are lightly magnetic but also have an internal piece structure to stop them falling apart!
Modern 2x2s work in some respects as 3x3s without visible edges but there is one notable difference: there is a fixed piece, on some 2x2s this fixed piece is held in place by a ball core type mechanism itself while on others the edges have an extra hook which attaches them to the centre piece.
Important things to note:
Due to the fixed piece mechanism, it is very important that you do not ever corner twist the fixed piece, since that particular piece is fixed in place, the surrounding edges are not able to flex around when you attempt to twist the corner so if you try to force a twist you can easily snap or deform the corner piece stalk.
Best 2x2 overall:
Gan 251 M Pro: £24 The Gan 251 M Pro is a nice and fast 2x2 featuring adjustable magnet strength and core magnets. It is 51mm in size which is probably the most common size now and has excellent corner cutting ability, being able to make just about any cut. It is stable enough that many top cubers have been able to achieve great results with it. A version with much stronger core magnets is also available, as well as a version with no core magnets at all. |
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Best 2x2 (£17 and under):
YJ MGC 2x2 Elite: £16
The YJ MGC 2x2 Elite is another great 2x2, it is also 51mm and is very smooth and stable but not quite as fast as the Gan 251 series, it has an unusual centre-edge magnet design which is not seen in any other 2x2 currently.
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Best 2x2 (£10 and under):
The MoYu RS2M Evolution is a budget magnetic 2x2 that is nice and smooth, it doesn’t have exciting features like adjustable magnets but can still be solved very fast. It is a cheaper version of the WeiPo WRS which is a great contender for the £10-£17 category.
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Best 2x2 (£5 and under):
Meilong 2x2: £4
The MeiLong 2x2 is a basic non-magnetic 2x2 that still turns quite fast. The design is quite simple and I would recommend having some lubricant ready to speed it up as it might be quite slow out of the box.
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Highly commended:
DaYan TengYun V1: £16
The TengYun V1 is quite an old cube now but still impresses many cubers for its unusual quiet and hollow feeling, it is easily the quietest regular sized 2x2 on the market and still turns quite fast once you get used to the strange hollow feeling of it.
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QiYi MS (£7)
The QiYi MS 2x2 is another great 2x2 option that I feel I have to mention as there are quite a lot of speedcubers that prefer it to the RS2M Evolution. It has a nice smooth feeling to it making it an excellent budget option.
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Valk 2M (£?)
The Valk 2M is quite slow out of the box but with the right set-up can be excellent, it is still used by world record holder Zayn Khanani and many other top speedcubers. Unfortunately it is no longer in production and unlikely to ever be back in stock, if you can find one then you may really like it.
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