I had checked this unit way back when it was released , and later on today I had the chance to use the Boss GT-1 with the Boss Tone Studio . Here's my short rating specific to the points I listed, do put your comment Below this article if you want to know more.
1 .Build and Size : 7.5/10
This is small, some might find it look like a cute toy as this is made of plastic, sturdy enough to take your pressure of feet, but not sure how long it will go. It is light.
2. power: 9/10
Comes with the Boss PSA power supply, can be powered with 4 AA size batteries.
3. Display and Top Buttons: 7/10
The Display could have been better and bigger, the knobs look way bigger which could be downsized . The Fx block edit switches are pretty straight forward . Nothing much of new there when this was released.
4. USB and Boss Tone Studio Software: 7.5/10
The USB cable is not supplied with the box. You have to buy one if you want to use it and I would be happier if one was inside the box . It can be used to connect with the Boss Tone Studio Software which is downloadable from their website. I used the software to take full advantage of using all parameters and fx/amp models this unit has.
The Software is much much faster and convenient to make and edit your own tones. I found no lag while turning the knobs or parameters in any FX while editing. But Storing user patches from pc command takes a bit longer to be written on the unit, about 7-10 seconds which can be confusing at times.
5. Sound Quality : 7/10
The Time based FX are really nice. Boss has been always leading on this section. They kept the chorus, delays and reverbs pretty much close to real relative to their pedals.
The amp models, Well I dialed a lot of them, The 5150 , Rectifier Sounded ok to me. Rest I could not carry on editing because they simply did not catch my ears. The EQ on the pre amps work very effectively or even sometimes more effective then the real ones!
I also tried the eq on the fx block like the boss eq, I myself own a Boss GE 7 eq, but the one I dialed on this was not really doing much of job for TONE re shaping.
6. Extras : 8/10
It was a good idea to put on the CONTROL button , it gets you the access to control stuff like delay time TAP tempo for example. Also adding the Expression pedal which is assignable to volume or wah etc is good for this size of this pedal.
Final Verdict:
There are lots of other units which are out there now such as Zoom g5n / mooer GE 200 / Nux MG 30 /HoTone Ampero which gives better Sound options at least for me. If you are a long time boss user, you will just go for it. If you are a first time buyer, check out other options.