I find that it does combine the characteristics, but just as you'd expect, you don't get the full whack of each bike's characteristics.
The second part is right though, which is why I like it, and why I think more people would like and support 24s like mine if there was more means to.
It would appear that I'm the only person on the forum who owns and rides a because 24" exclusively. Anyone else who's had one seems to have sold theirs, and anyone remaining who has one doesn't pipe up about it.