Logic's Sneaker Review: The Nike Kobe 8 System

Logic here, with another one of my sneaker reviews.  This time around, I'll be featuring the Nike Kobe 8 System. This basketball shoe is designed to be lightweight, and well suited for guards. With that said, let's get right to it. 

  

Materials - Most of the shoe is made of Engineered Mesh; a reinforced textile material that's built to be durable as well as breathable. This material allows enough heat to escape without having to put a lot of perforations. It also keeps its form well enough so it won't get torn apart when performing those quick cuts and lateral movements in-game.

Traction - The traction of the Kobe 8's works perfectly when used on hardwood.  There's absolutely no slippage on these, even if the court's a little dusty.  I can't say the same about its performance on outdoor courts though.  They still grip the floor quite nicely on those rubberized outdoor courts but you'll experience some slipping when you start using these on dusty cement courts. Another thing to note is that the traction pattern on these shoes is a little shallow so they might wear out quicker than most shoes when used outdoors.

Cushion - These shoes are equipped with a full length Lunarlon foam insert. The Lunarlon foam provides low profile cushioning that gives you good court feel without sacrificing impact protection.  This kind of cushioning setup is actually one of my personal favorites because it's able to protect your knees from impact without being too plushy. You might encounter some "sinking" issues after a really long while of use though.  I've had these for a little over a year now and I'm starting to notice that the part under my heel and the ball of my foot sort of got pressed down. This might only be an issue for bigger and heavier people but I can't be sure because most of the people I know that have Kobe 8's are smaller, lighter guards. I don't feel that it affects the impact absorption that much; the shoe just ends up feeling a little looser on those specific parts where the Lunarlon sinks.

Support - If there was one aspect of the shoe that really surprised me (in a good way), this would be it. The Kobe 8 provides really good support for a shoe that's cut this low.  The carbon fiber shank that's placed under the midfoot until the side of the foot arch wraps around those parts of your foot so that you won't feel any dead space in that area.  The TPU heel counter also helps provide support.  It's able to keep your heel in place so it won't lift off the bottom of the shoe. Heel lockdown could be an issue on some low-top basketball shoes but not on this one. It's especially good for when you push off the ball of your foot; the heel counter keeps your heel down so the shoe stays with your foot, not the floor.



Fit - The fit is also one of the highlights of the shoe (for me, at least) because it works well for all sorts of foot shapes. I personally have slightly wide feet with a high arch so some shoes don't fit well because they really squeeze the side of my feet. The Kobe 8 provides an adaptive kind of fit which comes from the Engineered Mesh that's used for the shoe upper and the the way the shoelaces are placed.  The flexible mesh allows the shoe laces to pull the sides together to really make it wrap around your feet. The flexibility of the upper also makes it follow the contour of your foot so it gets rid of all that dead space around that would allow unwanted movement within the shoe.



Overall - The Nike Kobe 8 is a well fitting, adequately supportive shoe that's designed more for guards.  I wouldn't recommend these if you plan to play on rough outdoor courts all the time due to durability issues with the shoe's outsole but they'll work flawlessly when used on hardwood.

So that's it for my review.  Make sure you tune in for the next one. Thanks for reading! And feel free to leave your comments below.

Logic's Sneaker Review: The Nike Zoom Hyperfuse 2012

This section's dedicated to basketball junkies (like myself) and sneakerheads alike. We all know that it would suck to have spent your savings on shoes that won't last long or would cause discomfort in-game, so I'm doing these reviews to help basketball players of all skill levels decide on what works and what hurts when it comes to basketball shoes; especially those who are on a tight budget. So without further ado, let's get this thing started.



Today's review features the Nike Zoom Hyperfuse 2012.

Materials - The entire shoe upper is made of hyperfuse. Hyperfuse is made up of three different layers of materials (mesh, thermoplastic polyurethane or TPU, synthetics) melded together using heat. This makes the shoe quite durable. I've had this shoe for a couple of years now, and as you can see, everything's still intact.  The way the upper is made also makes the shoe well ventilated. Your feet won't get too hot in these even if you play for hours; I especially like these because it lets enough heat escape so I don't get blisters.

 Traction - The shoe grips fine on all the surfaces I've played on - hardwood, cement court with rubberized paint, rough pavement, and asphalt court. I haven't had any slippage problems with these even on those dusty outdoor courts (that's saying a lot, given that I've almost burned the outsole out). I use these outdoor most of the time and I gotta say, these outsoles last longer than most other basketball shoes I've had. Having worn out outsoles is mainly a concern for those who play ball outside but shouldn't really be an issue if you play on hardwood courts all the time.

Cushion  - The Zoom Hyperfuse 2012 is equipped with zoom air cushioning at the forefoot.  I find that adequate since it's able to absorb most of the impact during landing. It's also very responsive, so when you push off the ball of your foot, it won't sink in too much and make you feel sluggish. As for the heel cushioning, I guess it's just rubber and foam down there; but it gets the job done.  I also want to mention that the insole of the shoe is quite thick and plush so that also helps protect your knees from too much impact. 

Support - Most of the support comes from the rigidity of the material used on the part of the upper that wraps around your ankle and your heel. It somewhat restricts the movement of your ankle so it doesn't roll; I see this as a pro rather than a con but for those of you who'd like to have a wider range of motion in the ankle area, all you have to do is remove the shoelace from the topmost eyelet and this shoe will play like a low-top shoe with a little extra support; this will give you the extra range of motion you need for hard cuts and crossovers.  The wings on the outer part of the outsole also help prevent unwanted motion, as well  as add some stability to your landings after you jump.

Fit - The shoe fits kinda snug from the heel until the midfoot but is a little wide in the toe area. This is considering that my feet are a bit wider that most people with the same shoe size as me. Whether this kind of fit is good or bad all depends on the preference of the one wearing the shoe. I personally go for shoes that hug my midfoot tightly and have toeboxes that are a little wide, so this shoe's fit works for me.

Overall: The Nike Zoom Hyperfuse 2012 is a pretty solid indoor-outdoor hoop shoe.  At first glance, it looks to be more of a bigman shoe due to the really supportive collar, but minor adjustments can be made to make this shoe suited for guards. It's durable enough to last long when playing outdoors (especially the outsole) and at the same time, doesn't sacrifice the overall flexibility of the shoe so it's still able to flex where it's supposed to, and stay steady where it needs to.  

That concludes the first edition of my sneaker review.  Check back soon for more of my reviews. Feel free to leave your comments below. Thanks for reading!