Berlin, I'll not be buying a Helix, or even looking at one, assuming it becomes available here. Here means France, by the way, where Brompton's are rarish too, and the big cities now provide bikes and scooters for their population, thus neatly halving the commuter bike market. That also has the advantage that the bikes can suit the city and its biking facilities. To me, that is a forward-thinking move, and it isn't only in France. Therefore, my feeling would be that, as with my Brompton, there will not be as many folding bikes on the roads in the future. Is that Helix bashing? I don't think so. So, a limited market in Europe, and an expensive bike, much as for the Brompton. Smaller towns, yes, might have a chance, but the problem there is that, and I include myself amongst them, there aren't many who wouldn't prefer their own road bike where the ride to work is >= 20km. Hills will always be the problem for any cyclist, and therefore weight, plus also speed, so little chance there and, given I nearly shook my self to bits on an unmade grassy track today, small wheeled bikes without much tread = a strain on the local health services.

So, the bikes the Helix will be up against are other folding bikes, and usually the market is nowhere near as big outside the cities as it is within. Folders by definition are part of the urban transport solution, and are intended for shorter journeys than the average road bike. You don't get the ride, but you do get the fold, so you can jump in a tram if it's raining, hire a taxi if you have refreshed yourself after a hard day's work etc. You can do as many do and put them on trains, aircraft etc more easily than you can a rigid frame bike, though trains in many countries are well equipped enough to render folding bikes irrelevant.. I've seen folding bikes on the back of caravans and boats, although much less so than normal size bikes.

I use the Brompton every day, but the Bianchi for the more distant shops because it is a faster, and a more comfortable ride. That said, I wish I'd discovered the Brompton when I was doing short term contracts throughout Europe, because folding small is what they are good at, plus it easier to convince hotels they won't damage their rooms, and, of course, easier to find parking spaces. That worries me somewhat about the Helix. It is late to market, and - had I not been ill for a couple of weeks and thoroughly bored I would never have even looked at this bike forum - is not widely known.

I have no idea how many Helix need to be sold to reach break even point. Certainly the designer/founder had it right regarding the size fold as being critical, but I wonder about that wheel size. Yes, big wheels are better than small, especially for poor road surfaces, but 24" on a folding bike does seem on the larger side of neutral. Anyway, good luck to them. Hopefully the bike doesn't need the hyperbole it receives from people who haven't even see it here.