JasonVan, ns9900 is really targeted for the commoners...heck yeah, yy still needs lcw et at to hawk their wares, thus no switch from them. i would be inclined to think that sooner some of the top guys and gals would be using zs in due course. let's see. give a 90 days from 19SEP09 (thay'll be about 120 days for them pros). MetalOrange
Agreed. We are getting , and will continue to get, some lame excuses why the pro's don't change. Heck, maybe these guys just don't want to use this racket. A simple logical explanation.
Should have stayed with my Carb21. Gone thru A700, AS10, A900P, N9900, AS10, ASZs and A900P(in that order). Boy, we, sure, are lemmings!!!:crying::crying:
I wouldn't say 9900 are for the commoners, Yonex markets all their highend rackets saying pro's use them... AT900's(the fire and ice), AS 7(I think some of the Koreans use them before they switch to Victor), AS 9(For the ladies players), AS10(Bao, Gade etc)... Heck, Taufik was using the ZS and than switched back during the JO... Other than the Japanese players, who else is consistently using the AZ(Japanese people are extremely patriotic and will use products manufactured by their own companies)? In the end, if no other professionals use the AZ, than would you say the AZ are marketed for the commoners just like the 9900 than?
Jasonvan, well there you said it, "yy markets all their highend rackets saying pro's use them...", so the key word is: market! relax, the jury is still out there. just give it proper amount of time. i'm sure they'll figure either to spoon feed some select guy or come up with a revamp racket. however, there will always be a niche for racquets at different skills-set levels. ns9900 is a very very good racket for me and i hv stated repeatedly, arc zs is now my number 1 and ns9900 is my number 1.1 speaking of which, i still stick to my game of points construction even though i am wielding a smashing pumpkin racquet in zs! all i can say in the meantime is it's too early to call, somebody might as well start a thread voting like the: do you prefer Oval or Iso? this time: Do you like Arc ZS or not? Metalorange
Yonex does not actually pressure players to use the new rackets even thou Yonex would like them to (as I have talked to a pro player about this). This is because if it is going to affect performance in game play which is not positive, they would not make the switch after trying it out. Yonex would not want the player to under perform for being forced to use a racket they are not confortable using.
Yonex Japan marketing and strategy team has even state that themselves when launching the racket : "NS9900 is the BEST racket for the social players...." Hence this is THE ONLY reason why NO pros use it and why it is targeted for commeners. But does that make it a lousy racket? No. And just because no pro use/endorse it means nobody should buy it? Come on, we are smart enough to decide that. As i always said, it takes time , based on your skills, experience, play style to find your own THE ONE racket for yourself. Cheers.
If you go to the Yonex USA sites, you can clearly see the NS9900 with a picture of LCW doing a push shot... So if it's just for social players, why put the picture of LCW there, oh I know, to make us "THINK" that a pro use it and therefore it's an awesome racket... I have various Yonex rackets myself, what I'm saying is, they market their rackets by saying Pro's use them... But sometimes it backfires...
EXACTLY. They just "borrow" Pro to promote the rackets. Even though LCW promote NS9900, u can never see any posters, advertisement anywhere in the world that says "NS9900, Racket used by XXX (pro players)...". Unlike AT700, AT900P, AT900T and now Arc ZS where there ARE Pro using and Endorse it. It is all advertising gimmick. If you are a tennis fan, i am not sure if you notice Rafael Nadal "Driving" a Hyundai Car (Korean make anyway) in Hyundai advertisements and websites. So, does that means Rafa OWNS a Hyundai car??? Same analogy applies here, moreover this is CONFIRMED by Yonex JP HQ marketing team themselves dude. (that NS9900 is to be Yonex's BEST social player rackets, and it's for Yonex to "capture" MORE social player markets.) I rest my case.
ohh i didnt know no pro players use NS9900! i thought some of the yonex-sponsored doubles players use it! wow im quite surprised
I guess LCW sometimes socialize with friends too. When he just socials, he can use a social racket.. Just like bus driver drive a car too.
focus on this? EXCLUSIVE NEWS - Tan Boon Heong becomes World's Fastest Smasher EXCLUSIVE NEWS - Tan Boon Heong becomes World's Fastest Smasher Malaysia's Tan Boon Heong has become the world's fastest smasher, with a speed clocked at 421 km/h, breaking the previous record set by Japan's Naoko Kawamae at 414 km/h. The tests were done two weeks ago and results were kept secret by the Yonex staff until today, October 22nd. This news is exclusive to Badzine. The speed tests were done during the recently held Yonex Japan Open where Tan Boon Heong but also Markis Kido, Nova Widianto and Koo Kien Keat tried both the new Arc Saber Z-slash and their luck in breaking Kawamae's record. It was Badzine who first told Tan about the good news - and the latter was surprised, and proud. "It really motivates me to know that I hold such a prestigious record. I have been working extra time on my smash and it is rewarding to see that it's paid off. But it's not enough to be a good badminton player," said the soft-spoken Malaysian. It was just two weeks ago that the previous world record of 332 km/h - set by Fu Haifeng during an actual match in 2005 - had been surpassed by Japan's Kawamae. The shuttler from Tokyo didn't get to enjoy the fame for long... During the session of tests in Tokyo, Tan Boon Heong was not the only one trying out the new racket in front of the radar: Markis Kido, Nova Widianto, Koo Kien Keat also tried their hands, but none of them beat Tan's speed of 421 km/h.
tckang, I second that. An interesting play I saw the other day. 2 very good female players wielding 2 ZSes are up against their male coach flicking with his LN N90. They were playing solid badminton until my time was up so I left. Anyways, at the back of my mind I thought of approaching them to chat them up during their break regarding their respective takes on their racquets but they were having a great time that I decided against it. MetalOrange P.S.. Still love N55 more than anything else out there thus far? How about ZS vs N55 in your personal assessment?
Hehehehe Well "Evil empire" corrupted my weak mine into getting a Arc Z myself. Top on that, i also got a Zelm Trixon 8, which is now my No.1 ,LN55 has drop to No.2, and Arc Z still at No.3. (coz i have no No.4 ) Maybe a AT900T will complete my family of four. Still not willing to give up on Arc Z. Let me use it for another few sessions before drawing down the curtains for a Arc Z vs Zelm Trixon 8 vs LN N55 review. Stay tuned. Strictly personal rankings. tckang is not responsible for any inconsistence, complains, feedbacks on the above ranking.