Balios Travel Folding Umbrella with Real Wood Handle Auto Open Close Vented Windproof Canopy - Designed in UK

Expected solid quality for good price

UPDATE: after posting my review, I was immediately contacted by the company. Even though the umbrella I purchased was beyond the return window, I was offered a completely acceptable resolution. The company representative could not have been more courteous. Although I was disappointed enough to initially post a one star review, I’ve revised it based on the company’s excellent customer service. The faulty umbrella may have been a fluke, I’m going to give them another chance. FIRST REVIEW (One star) Ordered this umbrella as a Christmas gift for my husband. Looks great, opened beautifully ONE time. After difficulty, it was closed and now wont reopen. It doesnt rain that often in Central Texas, so the problem wasnt discovered immediately after Christmas. The window for return closed 2 weeks ago. Ugh.

Best umbrella I have ever owned! I know that sounds strange to talk that way about an umbrella, but this is a really great piece of rain-protecting gear. I bought it for a trip to NYC and, luckily for this review, it rained, snowed and was windy the whole time. This umbrella was amazing! I have been using it as my go-to umbrella ever since and it has been put to the test (wind-wise) several times. Heres the rundown: Pros: Easy to open - the button works great! Really slick, actually. Makes you look like a real baller. Easy to close - again, just hit the button. Closes right up. Very James Bond. Real pro-style. Keeps rain off of your head - LOL right? I mean, it is an umbrella. But, for a small umbrella, it really does a great job of keeping a wide swath of rain off of your melon and body. Wind resistant - I should have put this first. I have used this thing in sustained winds of 40 mph and it didnt flinch. Gusts up to 60 mph and it didnt even think about going inside-out. .Rock solid in the wind. Buy it just for this fact alone. Wood handle - It really sets off this umbrella. Really makes you look like a player. Seriously. If I wasnt married, I am pretty sure I could have gotten several dates just based on the wood handle of this umbrella alone. Cons: None. It is the best umbrella on the planet. It may actually change your life. Pick one up now.

So Extremely Nice!

The best umbrella I ever had was a London Fog, which got me through two years of living--and daily walking--in rainy Ireland. Ive only owned cheap umbrellas since then, and you get what you pay for, or in other words they were broken in a flash and un-memorable. I havent had this one for long enough yet to know if its going to last and last, but it feels very sturdy and its nicely made. I think its going to last as long or longer than my last nice umbrella. (We had a really wet spring and I didnt purchase this until after the wet season, so I havent truly put it to the test yet--my loss!) It also has wind vents so the wind cant blow the umbrella inside-out. Its a little on the heavy side for traveling, but thats because it is made of sturdy materials. Nice umbrella.

Great umbrella! It fits nicely in my back back, and when I need it, it flips open with a push of a button. I love that feature. I also keep one in the car. It fits nicely in the pocket behind the driver’s seat, and it’s great when you need to get out of the car. You can open the door, use one hand to open the umbrella outside of the car before you get of of the car and thereby minimize getting wet. It is also very sturdy, comfortable to hold and has a nice wooden handle. The only thing I wish was different is the rope for easy carrying. This thin rope is attached to the case and not to the umbrella itself. In previous brands I have owned, this rope has been attached to the umbrella itself, and I find that more convenient in case I want to carry the umbrella without its case. But this is not a big deal for me. The benefits far outweigh this minor isssue. The Brits have done a great job in designing this classy, sturdy umbrella. Absolutely top notch, I’d say. Cherio!

A very well made product. A tad on the heavy side and a little longer than makes for easy packing into a purse but excellent performance -- would work well even in heavy wind and rain. And the open/close feature is very good -- helpful with arthritic hands.

the umbrella mechanism broke after only a few uses of 1 of 2 ordered. Contacted Mercury the seller. they responded contact the company. contacted the company and they responded message received. And that was it. No phone # available. Been 3-4 months now and nothing.

Ive used this umbrella for just over a month, and I couldnt be happier with it. This is one of the best umbrellas Ive purchased! Not only does it look great with the wooden handle, but the automatic open/close feature also works really well. The vented canopy is great for windy conditions, and my canopy has never flipped. The canopy size is perfect for me. Large enough even to share with another person in light rain. For those who commented that its difficult to put the umbrella back into its storage sleeve...Im not sure what youre doing wrong, but Im able to put mine back in the sleeve with ease. The wooden grip is surprisingly comfortable! I have slightly larger hands, and the handle still fits my grip really well. That said, the only (minor) downside about this model is that it does not have a strap on the umbrella. Although the umbrella handles higher winds nicely, I still felt as though the umbrella could fly out of my grip if a strong gust hit it. I cant take off stars for that because I knew the umbrella didnt have an attached strap when I purchased it. For those who think this is a dealbreaker, check out the other Balios models with strap.

Im leaving a five star review because the first umbrella I received had a few issues but amazon sent me another one that seems just fine. However the 5 stars largely goes to the customer service. The company doesnt want you to have any faulty products and if there ever is any issue, they will solve the problem to ensure that you are satisfied. Im glad that they are very responsive to customer feedback and are happy to make things right! Below was my initial reviews of the product before I got my replacement, which works as expected. I just got this umbrella in the mail and it looks great! I love the craftsmanship and wooden handle. However, after checking out the product, I went to place it back inside the included sleeve and as Im zipping it closed the zipper broke RIGHT off! I didnt even pull that hard. I was surprised that this happened on my first time packing it away. Amazon isnt able to send me a replacement sleeve by itself Im going to have to get a whole new set and send back the one with the broken zipper. Other than that issue, it seems to be a quality umbrella, I havent had a chance to use it and get a sense of its sturdiness since I just got it. But the sleeve quality is not so good. Maybe mine was just a bad make, hopefully the manufacturers can improve on the sleeve quality. UPDATE: I added the third photo after playing around with it a bit more. Its already broken on me. Initially I thought the zipper itself on the sleeve was the only issue. But now the umbrella has already shown a big sign of unreliability.