Focus Planet 1.0 (2014)

Gravitate towards this flat bar flyer!

Pros

- Excellent frame quality
- Good Shifting components
- Specific commuting geometry

Cons

- Lack of pannier / spray mounts
- No Internal Cabling

Review

Who says the commute to work has to be boring!?

Who says that all flat bar road bikes were created equal!?

Focus have an excellent habit of delivering some truly beautiful bikes. The Focus Planet 1.0 has the gravitational pull of a small orbiting body and we just couldn't stay away from it! The lines and visual appeal are enticing to say the least. This is one flat bar commuter bike we just have to get our hands on.

Now before you raise your fists and say "not all flat bar road bikes are for commuting!" - let's just point out an interesting detail. Focus have designed this bike especially for commuting with an altered frame geometry to better suit scenarios faced by city commuters. Now that's engineering! A slightly longer wheelbase and more relaxed fork angles make this bike better able to steer at slower speeds. Speeds you might encounter when weaving through pedestrians, rolling up to a red light, or even riding between cars in peak hour traffic.

The pure carbon fiber frame and fork combo has been shaped into quite a visually appealing bike. This along with a bold paint job will turn heads as you roll up to the office, hat on backwards and pants rolled up to your knees. An interesting point is the cable routing which all goes via the top tube, presumably to avoid problems with built up road grime from daily urban riding. It does create a slightly cluttered visual. Perhaps this could have been avoided with some internal routing...

Before we avoid the obvious, let's look at those disc brakes (not very common on a flat bar road bike). Tektro HDC 300 brakes offer the stopping power you'll need when riding in the chaos of a city. Being hydraulic brakes, you'll be riding problem-free for months and months on end. The associated parts of the groupset are all SRAM components; such as the SRAM Apex rear derailleur and SRAM X7 front shifter. To keep quality at a consistently high level, Focus have fitted an FSA front crankset with compact chainrings: 50/34.

As far as the contact points of the bike go, it seems uniformity is the way to go with this German founded company. Their in-house brand of Concept EX components are featured throughout the bike, from handlebars to stem, through to seatpost and even wheels. At least you know the quality is consistent throughout the entire bike. A pair of Continental Urban Focus tires keep all things German, and keep you rolling for many happy miles.

There are better value bikes out there, but not as many are so specifically designed for the purpose of getting to work in the city, and not so many look as good as the Planet 1.0 either.