Gear Review | The Petzl Neox
Rethinking Beginner Belaying
Hello climbers! Mateo here. As an avid gearhead, the release of a new model of a classic piece of gear is always an exciting time, but if you are like me, it can leave you wondering whether you should upgrade or stick to what you know! That’s why I’m sharing my personal experience with using the Petzl Neox, a new belaying device that can be used in place of the classic Grigri.
The prominence and ubiquity of Petzl’s Grigri across gyms in North America is an impressive feat for Petzl, and means that many climbers have learned to belay only with the Grigri. So why did Petzl release a new competing piece of gear?
The release of the Neox was due in part to Petzl’s focus on resolving issues with using the Grigri to lead climb belay, where the rope has to be fed quickly to a climber to avoid short-roping them (leaving them, sometimes literally, hanging.) The focus of the Neox being almost exclusively for lead climbers has perhaps discouraged new climbers from using the Neox, oftentimes citing worries about its ‘advanced’ nature, but after using the Neox since its release and comparing the changes in belaying mechanics, it’s my opinion that it may be simpler to use for beginners than its traditional counterpart.
2023 Petzl Distribution - Sam BIE
I have been using the Neox since its release in 2024, and it has been a pleasure to belay with. When lead belaying with a Grigri, the belayer has to ‘break’ the locking cam to allow the rope to feed through the device. For climbers used to using an ATC or for new climbers learning to lead belay, finding the cam with your thumb can take some time to get used to. Because of this, there is a risk of the belayer losing their break grip on the rope in the case of a sudden fall. In comparison, Neox’s design smooths out this step of the belay by taking away the need to manually break the cam with the thumb.
This improvement in belaying can also be felt in top rope belaying action, most notably that belaying feels significantly smoother and (in my opinion) simpler whether for lead or top rope climbing. For new belayers, a common issue is the unintended locking of the cam when pulling the rope through the Grigri, most often when the belayer’s hand movements do not complement each other. Having the Grigri lock while going through the belaying motions takes focus away from the climber as the belayer is trying to unlock the Grigri to keep pulling the rope through. We’ve all been there! With the Neox, the tension of the rope between the hands can be felt more easily, making an accidentally locking device less common and easier for the belayer to quickly fix.
Of course, there are some caveats to using the Neox vs. the Grigri. For one, it is the bulkier and heavier of the two belay devices (by about 60g). In addition, the design of the Neox leads it to sit in a lower position on the belay loop than the original Grigri. There is also a slight but noticeable increase in time before the cam’s catch action is engaged, and rapidly disengaging and engaging the cam causes the iconic Neox ‘click’ which can startle users not used to it. When lowering or releasing the climber, the Neox’s lever has less friction to work with, meaning there is less control over speed—which can take getting used to. Finally, there is a significant price difference with the Neox currently selling for around $150-200 while the classic Grigri retails for $130.
Despite these differences, I believe the Neox is a great belaying option for beginner and experienced climbers alike because of its smoother belaying motions and prevention of unwanted locking when belaying on lead or top rope!
Of course, if you have a Grigri, no need to rush out and buy a Neox too. But if you’re shopping for your first or a new belay device, I can personally recommend giving the Neox a chance!
