In the past few years I have had experiences with Shimano Ultegra Di2 and Dura Ace Di2, which are absolutely great. Reliable smooth shifting, comfortable levers, easy to press buttons, and solid crabkset. Definitely enjoyed both electronic groupsets. And in regards of Sram Red Etap, it is overall good to me. However, personally I never really found the shifting buttons or the levers comfortable to me. Crisp shifting tho, I like that kind of different feeling a lot for sure.
And now, comes a new electrnoic groupset to the list of groupsets I've used and enjoyed using. There aren't many reviews about this groupset so I thought it'd be great for those who are thinking of buying or not super certain about switching to electronic groupset. I would also compare FSA WE to Di2 and Etap occassionally.
Levers / Comfort
First of all, the levers are very comfortable and very beautiful indeed. There has never been any comfort problem staying on the hoods evlien on rides over 100km. And it is so easy to shift. All you have to do is to give it a light press and the gears shift. Plus the way to change gears is the same as Di2 or any shimano road groupset. To me this feature is awesome because when I am grinding big watts, I don't want to worry about the gears shifting or not. Etap's shifting isn't quite intuitive (you have to press hard on the buttons and you press both sides to shift your FD, single side to shift RD) to me since I have always been using Shimano. But, I bet for Sram fans, groupsets like FSA or Shimano won't suit your feelings at all.
Easy to install, and easy to index as long as you follow the manual. Have been using this same groupset for a while with 2000 km (w/ about 6,000 meters of elevation) in, I've not needed to re-adjust the rear derailleur yet. There is nothing to complain. On the app, you can also customize how fast you want your shifting to be. I set it at "fast" because when I sprint, I want the shfiting to be rock solid, otherwise I'd miss the chance to go out at the right moment. On climbs, yes, I have abused the groupset. Shifting 2 gears heavier while punching a hill and eventually getting a new PR on strava brought no shfiting issues to the rear derailleur at all. As I mentioned, I have not needed to re-adjust the shifitng yet.
The problem with the front derailleur tho is that you have to remember to turn it on before jumping on your bike and start riding. For either Di2 or Etap, you don't need to worry about this at all. Even tho this can be a good thing to remind yourself how much battery life you still have because the LED light shines blue when it's good, green when it is still good, and red when you have to charge it. However, Di2 and Etap are both more inuitive in this regard to me.
It is soooooooo beautiful, just freaking amazing, Also very light! I will put the weight specs down there. And as far as I can tell, FSA has definitely learned from their past lessons and improved their cranksets. This crankset is definitely stiff. Hammering 1200-1400 watts felt so freaking good.
It is a 11-28 cassette I am using, and it weighs 201 grams, which is 8 grams heavier than Dura Ace 11-28 cassette and quite a few grams heavier than Sram Red 11-30 cassette. So I think the cassette can be lighter even tho it is not heavy at all and looks good.
Once you've paired shifters with derailleurs and installed the groupset, you can customize your shifting through the app. Some people like the left/right lever to control the front/rear and some prefer the other way around. This app can just flip the setting right away. Also, it shows how much battery life you still have and you can adjust the shfiting speed as I mentioned above. And the functions are neatly displayed.
Weight
Levers: 309 grams/pair (claimed to be 308)
Front Derailleur: 162 grams (same as claimed)
Rear Derailleur: 216 grams (same as claimed)
52/36 X 172.5mm Crankset: 570 grams. (50/34 is claimed to be 534 grams. FYI, last generation K-Force 50/34 Crankset wighs 567 grams)
11-28 Cassette: 201 grams (claimed to be 257)
Pros / Cons
Pro:
1. Light/beautiful/comfortable
2. Reliable/solid shifitng
3. Intuitive shfiitng methods (but probably not for those who are used to Sram)
4. Simple installation
5. Good customizability w/ app
Con:
1. Cassette can be lighter
2. Requires user to manually turn on the groupset
