Twisting Puzzles
Pocket Cube (2x2x2) Reviews

Pocket cubes tend to cost around £5 or 6 regardless of the brand.

Rubik's Ice Cube

The ice cube is a smaller version of the pocket cube made by Rubik's. It has transparent plastic cubies and translucent stickers through which the puzzle mechanism can be seen. It looks great.

The ice cube doesn't turn very quickly. The puzzle is robust and doesn't feel like it will fall apart on you. It sticks quite often, even when you solve it slowly. Once you know how to solve a pocket cube, you can't help but want to go quicker than this puzzle will let you.

Eastsheen 2x2x2

For ages, this was the only pocket cube that would allow you to turn at reasonable speed. There are black and white versions made. The puzzle is a good size and is fairly robust.

I still find that the Eastsheens lock up and seem to need more lining up than I can manage when I'm trying to solve quickly. For a long time, they were the best pocket cubes available and, when fed puzzle lubricant, they can be made to turn a little more freely.

Lanlan 2x2x2

The Lanlan pocket cube is about the same size as the Eastsheen. It has a slightly larger radius on the rounding of the corners and, if you pull two opposite faces away from one another, you can get access to the screws. The adjustability means that you can set the tension of the puzzle to your own preferences.

The Lanlan feels like it's held into its cube shape a little more than the Eastsheen. I find that the Lanlan is more forgiving when you are cornering and less likely to lock up in the middle of an algorithm.