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Product Overview
Overall
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Comfort
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Durability
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Stability
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Breathability
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Weight
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Fit and Size
Pros
- Lightweight
- Good cushioning
- Stable
Cons
- Needs improvement with the design
- Too narrow for wider feet
The Nike Zoom Cage 3 was inspired by the king of clay, Rafael Nadal. It is an updated version of the Cage 2 with durability, comfort and lightweight at its core.
In this post, I would analysis the changes that Nike has made to the shoe and why it’s very popular. If you are ready let’s start with design.
Table of Contents
Design
In terms of design or the looks of the shoe, it may not be attractive compared to other tennis shoes such as Nike Air Zoom Vapor X Knit. The Cage 3 looks dull and unattractive in terms of appearance.
Fit
This shoe can be a little challenging to slip your feet inside them due to the updated bootie construction. If you have a small or narrow fit I think you would find it a little easier to slip your feet through.
Although the majority of the time, wearing the shoe for the first time can be very difficult and uncomfortable.
However, once you wear it and play with it for some time, your feet gets used to it and becomes more comfortable.
Also, the breaking in may require minimal time compared to the previous model.
As a top recommendation, it’s better to choose a size that is bigger than your normal foot so that your feet have more room.
Lastly, in terms of comfort, an inner sleeve is inside of the shoe to wrap your foot for a snug fit.
Cushioning
This shoe does very well in terms of cushioning. An Air Zoom unit is placed at the heel section to provide you with excellent responsive cushioning.
In addition, the use of moulded external heel clip helps to shape and secure your heels over time. This is super helpful if you are going to play long and intense matches.
And you wouldn’t have many issues when sliding on the court compared to the old version. Adding onto the cushioning and comfort, there has been an increased padding around the ankle collar.
Outsole and Insole
The outsole comes with a modified herringbone which provides excellent traction and grip.
This can make sliding comfortable to do especially on hard court surfaces.
The downside to that is how it can be very sticky on the court surface.
However, the use of XDR outsole has been removed in areas where you don’t need it to keep the shoe lightweight.
The shoe comes with a removable insole which is helpful if you want to replace it in the future.
Midfoot
The midfoot of the shoe comes with external TPU shank to provide you with lightweight and stability. This allows you to gravity on the court with ease and move quickly.
Weight
As I mentioned earlier this shoe is lightweight. It weighs 13 oz which is very impressive from Nike.
Breathability
In terms of breathability, Nike did a great job with the shoe compared with the old version. It has less rubber on the outside of the shoe, allowing the mesh to breathe much more freely.
In addition, the use of the inner liner of the shoe is good at absorbing less heat, this way your feet doesn’t get too hot.
Colour Options
There are varieties of colours to choose from for both men and women.
Final Thoughts!!
In conclusion, it’s obvious that Nike has made a lot of changes to the previous version. This includes lightweight, comfort, outsole and others. However, it’s also obvious that Nike still needs to improve certain areas of the shoe such as the fit, design and so on.
If Nike manages to improve on these little changes in the future, the shoe would be amazing for all different players and would fit them perfectly.
