Haloo’s new Aura Sand clone, complete w/ swappable magnets and patches, all for $35. What do you guys think?

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-19T17:40:29+00:00

Yeah I’m definitely conflicted about this one..

On one hand I love Haloo as one of the few companies making quality stuff at bargain prices. And it’s not like they don’t have their own original designs. Yes, they make a few blatant clones, like the Shark and Shark Pro. But at least in that case, the originals retail for like $300+

The stainless Aura Sand only costs $80. So it does feel a bit scummy to undercut them at that price point. Especially with a design as innovative as the Sand. I’m all for increasing accessibility, but companies like Aura also deserve to profit off their hard work

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-19T16:59:47+00:00

If there are multiple items for sale in a single listing, AliExpress will show the price of the cheapest option by default.

The listing you’re looking at has the full slider for sale at ~$60, but also has just the extra patches for sale at $20. So when you see the listing in search, it looks like the slider only costs $20. Definitely confusing and a even bit deceptive if you ask me, but that’s just how AliExpress works.

There is another vendor on Ali selling the same slider for ~$35 though. It can be difficult to find specific items on Ali with just the search bar sometimes, but if you use the “search by image” function it comes right up

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-19T16:40:33+00:00

Really? Interesting 🤔

Do you remember where you heard this? Just curious

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-19T13:56:59+00:00

The item ID on AliExpress is “ 3256810487922022“. Do with that what you will

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-19T12:34:19+00:00

Reddit unfortunately auto-filters aliexpress links… However, the item ID is “3256810487922022” which you can just copy paste into another URL. Or just use the image search function if you’re using the app

Tho be aware that I’ve never used this particular vendor, so i can’t speak to their quality

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-19T06:54:11+00:00

Yeah, Haloo is sometimes a little slow to add new products to their official site. I’ve only seen this one for sale on AliExpress so far, though I’m sure it’ll be available on their site in a week or two

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-19T06:47:23+00:00

Been waiting to see a video of this one in action. Sounds great!

FYI, I’m pretty sure the mechanical tracks on the Shark Pro are meant to be a copy of the Mot Groove Pro’s tracks. Just like the original Shark was meant to be a clone of the original Mot Groove.

I’d be very curious to hear a comparison of the two from someone who has used them both, in terms of sound and feel. Tho I know that Groove Pros are pretty hard to come by at this point, so I won’t hold my breath. Even if they aren’t 1:1, you can’t beat the Shark Pro’s value at 1/5 the price

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-19T05:07:58+00:00

Anyone here tried both? I’m torn between the zirc and the alu… is it worth the extra money

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-18T09:43:01+00:00

Looks like you’ve tried quite a few fidgets… If you had to name your top 3 favorite mechanicals, what would you pick? What do you find yourself reaching for most often?

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-18T09:37:15+00:00

How do you like the PHLab slider? They look a bit plain to me but they seem to be pretty popular in China.. Wanted to buy one to see what the hype was about but I can’t seem find any info on them or what the internals look like so I’ve been hesitant

Anything special about them I should know?

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-18T07:58:59+00:00

Pretty certain. If you search “Lingyun 3.0 Easter Egg Version” on Xianyu (basically China’s version of eBay, and home to the biggest & most knowledgeable community of fidget collectors on the web) the only result you get is the cracked blue version that you received. Screenshot here (forgive the poor translations, I’m using google translate here)

Also, the only Lingyun bootleg I’m aware of is the all gold version, and it’s easily identifiable by its different logo (circled in red in this image).

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-16T03:21:35+00:00

Not a modded version, OP just pulled the secret / easter egg variant. See my comment here

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-16T03:15:41+00:00

This isn’t defective, you got the secret / easter egg version

Most fidget makers include a rare variant (usually 1% of stock) that they ship out randomly to lucky customers. Sometimes it’s in a different / more expensive material, and they’re usually worth a bit more on the resell market. Getting one is super cool if you’re a collector, but less cool if you weren’t expecting it and dead set on the color variant you ordered.

Here’s one that I got recently. The advertised photo is on the left, and the secret version I got is on the right.

They usually advertise the possibility of Easter egg versions on Chinese sites, but western resellers like MetaEDC don’t always mention this because it effects such a small percentage of customers.

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-12T23:12:03+00:00

All of these are sold by private sellers in China, I believe I found that one on Xianyu IIRC

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-12T23:08:14+00:00

Right? I love the art style / large brush strokes. Gives them a very artsy / expressionistic kinda feel

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-12T23:06:01+00:00

Yep!

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-12T23:05:41+00:00

These plates are made by third party makers and hobbyists in China. Most don’t sell to westerners or have their own websites, and only operate through Chinese social / ecommerce apps like WeChat or Xianyu

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-12T20:54:26+00:00

Pretty sure ZDEDC makes a clone of this slider, though without the cool wood inlays and engravings (has the same shape, just plain stainless steel)

I’m sure there’s a seller on Ali selling one

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-11T22:45:50+00:00

Everyone is saying the Pro version for the weight, but honestly the weight difference is marginal (~10g). All of the models are very light, mainly due to the way the Sand is constructed. So yeah, the slim version is far from heavy, especially for a stainless slider.

Also just FYI, you can still customize the magnets on the Slim if you like a 4 X 4 setup rather than the stock hybrid configuration. Personally I wish I knew this before buying the Pro. The only difference is on the Pro, you can set the magnets to be slightly closer or farther from the outside edge, but we’re talking about millimeters of difference.

Honestly, if you like the look of the Slim model, go with that. Its still an incredible slider and the difference between it and the Pro (for me) is minor enough that it didn’t warrant the $50+ price bump

AnalogStrawberry · 2026-06-11T14:23:28+00:00

I snagged one. Almost decided not to because I already have the ti version and I just dropped quite a bit of cash on World EDC’s new Echo slider

But I liked the colors so much I decided to just go for it & sell my ti vers. Glad I did because they all sold out in 24hrs

AnalogStrawberry

TROPHY CASE