HNDRD (Hundred) Battle 900 Badminton Racket Review - Mind Blown!
- CKYew
- Jul 31
- 6 min read
When I first saw how much these HNDRD Battle 900 badminton rackets cost, it completely blew my mind! This racket is part of HNDRD's current range of flagship rackets, and is branded as a head-heavy racket. To have a top-end racket cost only £129 ($174) is seriously impressive, so let's see how it performs!
Full transparency, my video review on YouTube was sponsored by HNDRD. They wanted me to tell you guys that you can now purchase HNDRD equipment in the UK as well as the USA. In the UK, you can buy Hundred equipment from Central Sports, who have been a long-time partner of the channel. Remember to use my ‘CKYEW’ code to get additional discounts! And within the US, you can get HNDRD equipment from Joy Badminton as well as Badminton Warehouse. However, HNDRD did not have any input or say in how I tested and reviewed the Battle 900. They also did not get to see the review before it was published. So honest opinions only here, and let’s get into it!
Review Of Appearance & Materials Of HNDRD Battle 900 Badminton Racket
The Battle 900 has already been in the market for some time actually, especially on the professional circuit. It is currently used by Line Kjaesfeldt, the current European Champion in women's singles, and Mads Christophersen, who’s the current Dutch Open winner. Line plays with the white version while Mads plays with the black one. How do I know Line and Mads played with these Battle 900 rackets? We actually found out when our team shot the official announcement photographs for them last year!
The Battle 900 in white is a matte-finished racket whilst the black version is glossy. Both rackets carry gold decals depicting a dragon or a phoenix on both the shaft and the racket frame. I actually love the white one a lot, especially because it pops. And because the white version has a matte finish, you can actually feel the details when you're rubbing your hands across the frame as well as the shaft a little bit more than the black one.
I've been playing with these rackets for a little while now, in both singles and doubles, and in training and matches too. And so far, I've had some clashes on court and the decals and paint job seemed to have no issues at all. If there was one little gripe, the “never retreat” decal at the very top of the racket doesn’t look very straight. So if you're an OCD type of person, look away!
Specifications & Measurements Of HNDRD Battle 900 Badminton Racket
In terms of specifications, the 900 has a frame height of 23.3 cm and a frame width of 18 cm. I was actually quite surprised by these as these numbers represent a compact frame . I have been playing with these for weeks before I even measured them, at the time I did not even realise or feel that they were a compact frame. The frame is also fully recessed across all grommets with a thickness of 9.9 mm. For the shaft, I measured it at 6.7 mm with a length of 22 1/2 cm which ties it the longest badminton shaft that I've measured on this channel. The only other 2 rackets with a 22.5 cm shaft are the Li Ning 3D Calibar 900C and Li Ning Tectonic 7I.
Generally, badminton rackets with longer shafts do mean that they tend to be a bit more whippy and flexible. And on the racket cone of these battle 900s, they do state that they are flexible. I actually would not consider the Battle 900 as flexible but that’s actually a good thing and I'll explain a little bit more when we get to the performance section later.
The cone also states that it can handle up to 34 lbs of tension, but for me, I had it strung with my usual setup of Yonex Aerobite (UK here) at 27 lbs x 29 lbs. Additionally, here are some measurements for the Battle 900's swing weight (these testing models were in 4U weight):
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Playing Feel & Performance Of HNDRD Battle 900 Badminton Racket
So a quick recap, this is a head-heavy, compact frame badminton racket. It already sounds like an aggressive attacking badminton racket. I mentioned the flexibility of the long shaft earlier on. In terms of feel, this racket does not feel like a flexible racket. In fact, it does have a pretty medium to medium-stiff hitting feeling which is very pleasant.
When you connect with a shuttle, it doesn't feel spongy at all. The shaft, paired with the head heaviness from the frame does feel slightly whippy when you’re playing super sharp shots such as fast counter drives, but that doesn't mean it is flexible.
And because of the headweight, it was incredibly easy for me to generate power. Overhead shots were really easy, clears, drops, smashes, you name it, anything that's overhead, easy. But I did find myself having some timing issues as I continued testing it, especially with finer shots that require better timing. For me, these were under-pressure defensive pushes, shots where you're taking the shuttle under the tape of the net, and generally technically more demanding shots.
Obviously, I now understand why, especially after measuring the racket! Personally, the smaller frame demands a little bit better precision in terms of connection with the shuttle as anything that is off the sweet spot will tend to slide or die a little bit.
I found that to maximise this racket’s potential, try and focus on prepping a little bit earlier, make sure you have your racket carriage in the right place and relax. Let your fingers lead your grip timing and just go. You will adapt to the timing that it requires, and things will start to flow.
Is The HNDRD Battle 900 Badminton Racket Good Value For Money?
The real surprise of this was when I found out how much these rackets cost. I didn't even realise the pricing sticker was there on the racket during the very first time I was gripping it. I just wanted to jump on court in my training session, and hence just quickly gripped it without even looking and off I went! It was only when I was researching for this video and filming the b-roll segments of the racket when I realised the price tag was there when I took off the grip!
Generally, I do not pay much attention to how much rackets cost as I tend to cover only the high-end, flagship model rackets, and they’re all around the same price globally. But with racket pricing, especially for flagship models nowadays reaching over £200 a racket, and if you're in the States, above $250.
That's why it blew my mind when I learnt that you can get the Battle 900 for around £130 in the UK and $150 in the US. In Malaysia, I was able to find the Battle 900 online for RM400. And in Malaysia, when it's half of what you pay for a flagship racket from Yonex, Victor or Li Ning, this has a huge impact!
We are now in territories where you can get three rackets for the price of two over in Europe and the US, whilst you can get up to four rackets for the price of two in Asia and so it's impossible for me to look away from this from a value standpoint.
In all honesty, is the Battle 900 the best racket that I've ever played with, especially for its category - head-heavy, compact frame segment? No. Is the looks and finishing of the Battle 900 on par with the rest of the big players? It’s got room to improve, but it’s at a good level already so yes. But in terms of performance, is it a third or 50% behind other leading manufacturers? No, not even close.
The Battle 900 is a few percent behind in terms of ultimate performance and feel but more than makes up for it big time due to its significantly cheaper cost. And with badminton getting more and more expensive, due to trade wars, cost of living, hall rentals, shuttle prices, etc, every little bit that we can save in terms of cost as players and consumers adds up.
For a brand that is committed to producing flagship rackets at significantly cheaper costs, I would recommend everyone to give them a try if you're looking to switch it up. We all know that the last few % of perfection is incredibly hard to achieve due to diminishing returns, but I’m very excited for whats the come from HNDRD in the future.
Lastly, if you’re looking to buy direct from HNDRD’s stores globally, you can also use my code ‘CKYEW’ for a bit of extra discounts! I look forward to hearing from all of you regarding your experience with HNDRD, and with that said, I'll see you in the next one!
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