Why don't they get popular? I think a lot has to do with ridicule from the bicycle enthusiast community.

I have a noseless ISM Comfort saddle which I love. Different to these two, but in many ways the same - designed to make you sit on the sit bones and nothing else. I have no issues with "control", in fact I feel like I sit better on it then a normal saddle, and I can control the bike through my bottom just fine if needed. Yes, it does feel different, and yes, you need to ride a few times on them and get them setup right before they make sense. This is the first time I have ever admitted to owning one in a forum though - I've watched other people posting in forums, and this thread is a good case in point, where as soon as you promote something which is a bit out of the norm, the critics come out. Most of who have never tried the products in question, but regardless they believe they know better.

The result is that people who do use these sorts of products don't post about them much. And most probably aren't forum dwellers anyway - they tend to be people who ride for enjoyment, and don't get involved in the on-line communities much. They are currently niche products, and you can't expect a LBS to stock them all, so they do tend to get limited shop time as well, which also holds them back. But it is amazing how many of them there are, and most of the companies have been around a while now and still surviving. If they were as bad as people made out, they wouldn't still be in business.

Everyone who has tried my bike has liked it. They aren't for everyone, but if people gave them a decent go, there would be a lot more of them out there then there are now.