When the climbing community shifted towards using assisted braking belay devices, Petzl led the way with the GRIGRI. Now, there are tons of assisted braking devices, yet the GRIGRI has still largely dominated the market. Clearly, Petzl got something right with the GRIGRI. However, no device is perfect, and it seems Petzl aimed to address the common GRIGRI concerns with the NEOX. Let’s get into the details:
GRIGRI
People have a lot to say about the GRIGRI, but there’s a reason it has had such success for so long. No other assisted braking device is as widely used as the GRIGRI; in fact, though many gyms are assisted braking only, there are gyms that are GRIGRI only. Why is it so loved? It’s reliable, versatile, and easy. Although it is assisted braking and not auto braking, it brakes so well that many use it as an auto breaking device (though they shouldn’t, of course). You know exactly how and when it will brake. If you run into trouble, just drop the device and keep a hand on the brake rope. That’s it. Its default is to brake; the easiest thing for this device to do is hold the rope.
While the GRIGRI is known for ground belaying, it can be used for TR/lead soloing, jumaring, top belaying, single line rappelling, and more. Moreover, it doesn’t take a mechanical engineering PhD to operate. It is easy to see how and why it works, and thus it is easy to determine its possible applications. For people new to belaying, the GRIGRI is incredibly easy to learn, and that lets them focus on belaying properly as opposed to being focused on how to use the device.
So, what could people possibly dislike about the GRIGRI? Many concerns about the GRIGRI are concerns about (cam) assisted braking devices in general, which is not up for debate in this review, as we are reviewing two cam assisted braking devices. Past that, the most common complaint is the feeding of slack. There was a time when climbers learned how to belay on non-assisted braking tube style devices, like Petzl’s REVERSO. These devices are friction assisted, whereas the GRIGRI is cam assisted. Trying to feed slack through the GRIGRI as you would the REVERSO is possible (ish), but incredibly difficult, so some found learning new belay technique too hard. Even so, without having a lot of experience with it, it is very easy to short-rope your climber with a GRIGRI, which of course has its own risks. Others complain about size/weight, but as an everyday climber, the reason I don’t send isn’t because of the couple extra grams on my harness, it’s because I’m not training at an elite level, and hence it is an easy concession to make for such a great device.
NEOX
The NEOX can do everything the GRIGRI can do. Every strength of the GRIGRI is a strength of the NEOX; they are nearly identical. Indeed, there is only one major difference: feeding slack.
Inside the NEOX, where the camming device is in the GRIGRI, is a wheel on the camming device. This allows the rope to slide much easier in and out of the device. Indeed, if you were to come from a device like the REVERSO, you would have a much easier time, as you can feed rope just as you are used to. Conversely, if you were to come from the GRIGRI, you would also have an easy time, as you can feed slack in the exact same manner as you would with a GRIGRI. The NEOX gives the user more freedom to belay how they choose, with the same benefits they’d have with the GRIGRI. Because it is so easy to feed slack, it can feel like the device won’t catch you; it feels like you’ll slip right through the device. However, it will catch you every time (lead, TR, top belay, etc.). Even more, it seems like it won’t have the same advantages as the GRIGRI in other settings, like jumaring or rappelling; it feels like it just won’t brake. Yet, it does. Even if you engage it very slowly. The NEOX can really do it all.
Although it seems perfect, the NEOX still falls short of the GRIGRI in some ways. First, since it is a little heavier, it sits a little strangely in a regular pear shaped carabiner while belaying. It tends to cross load pretty often, so I would recommend an anti cross-loading carabiner. Despite the ease of feeding in general, it will still lock as the GRIGRI does. However, it locks in a slightly more unpredictable way; in other words, when feeding a certain way with the GRIGRI, you know exactly how much pressure you need to disable the cam, but with the NEOX, it is harder to predict exactly how much the cam will engage, and hence how much pressure is needed. Next, I like to move the device with the climber’s side of the rope instead of holding (just to keep more space between my hands and the device). With the GRIGRI, I can move it wherever I want. With the NEOX, it will just feed out slack; to move the device around that way, it needs to be locked out.
Final Thoughts
Both the NEOX and GRIGRI are fantastic belay devices, and either would be a great choice. The most important deciding factor should be how you like to belay/how much you are willing to learn. Coming from a friction assisted device, you may find the NEOX easier. If you already love the GRIGRI, I see no reason to get a NEOX. Similarly, if you already have a NEOX, I see no reason to get a GRIGRI. Broadly, I would say anything the GRIGRI can do, the NEOX can do, perhaps even better, at the expense of being slightly less predictable. With enough experience on both devices, you would probably not notice much of a difference unless you are looking for it. Petzl knows how to make a belay device, and they stuck with what works!
Recommendation: All Levels
Specs (GRIGRI/NEOX): 175g/235g; compatible with 8.5-11mm ropes (both)
MSRP (GRIGRI/NEOX): $99.95/$149.95
thedihedral.com 