Mezzo unveil new curvier D9

The Mezzo folding bike, originally developed by bike design big-hitter Jon Whyte, has been given a Whyte bikes makeover for 2010. This time it's fellow designer Ian Alexander, the man responsible for many of the recent Whyte and Marin bikes, who's been doing the tinkering, and the result is a new, curvier D9.

The essential format of the Mezzo hasn't changed – you still get the single-piece main frame for stiffness and that slightly odd-looking stem and riser arrangement – but the new design has much smoother lines. The main frame has been given a makeover – it's gently curved now rather than being a flat beam – and the stays have also been redesigned to mimic the lines of some of Whyte's mountain bike range. The stem at the front has been through the pipe bender too, and the overall look of the bike is a lot less angular than the standard D9. The new bike also scores a V-brake at the rear to improve stopping.

Interestingly the new bike also features a Whyte head badge, which suggests that the Mezzo brand is likely to become a sub-brand of Whyte now that they're moving more into the urban market with their range of city bikes.

The new bike will come in graphite or blue and will retail for £825 with a SRAM Attack/Shimano Tiagra drivetrain, which is £100 more than the similarly specced standard D9. Clearly it takes a bit more time and effort to get that curvaceous look. The Hydroformed D10 will increase in price to £975 from July, and the hub-geared i4 will remain at £625.