I know another wheel question!

[Yellow Saddle]

If there is less friction from having better bearings then it will make ( an albeit small) difference. Also rotationaonel mass of wheelS may be different to straight mass of rider / bike combo, although the scientific jury is still out on this one I believe

Plus of course they look more bling!

Bearing friction is very well understood and can be calculated. The difference between a good and a bad bearing is less than one or two grams of resistance. Incidentally, a new bearing has more friction than an older one, which puts your theory wrt to these new wheels in jeopardy. Also, the jury isn't out on rotational mass, we've done these calculations right here on this here forum. A quick search should reveal that the jury was pretty stunned when the results came in.

 

[Nigelnaturist]

@Yellow Saddle I could show you data showing different average speeds over time on different wheel sets and how I am fastener on one set than the other. but I think the biggest factor is fitness.