Victor C90 NitroLite Badminton Shoe Review - Cushioning For The Win?
- CKYew
- 2 days ago
- 5 min read
Running shoe stack heights are getting taller and taller - is badminton following the same trend? I have to say, I was genuinely surprised by the Victor C90 Nitrolite badminton shoe! With its thicker cushioning and taller stack height, it immediately caught my attention. But how does it feel on court? Let’s break it down!
Review Of Appearance & Materials Of Victor C90 NitroLite Badminton Shoes
Victor launched this C90 shoe as one of their premier flagship cushion-type badminton shoes with thicker and more supportive cushioning built into the shoe. At first glance, you actually see that the shoe is actually quite bulky.
It's definitely a big boy, and it does feel quite high, especially when badminton is such an explosive start-stop action sport. This does make me wonder - will we actually roll our ankles?
Victor also mentioned that they've increased their midsole thickness on the front of the shoe from 5 mm to 12 mm and from 17 mm to 23 mm in the rear. But that actually isn't as big or as tall as some of the more premier high-end running shoes that we’ve seen running around.
I believe the higher-end running shoes now have a stack height of about 40 mm. And so, 23 mm is not very tall, but it's actually fairly tall compared to other badminton shoes. It certainly looks bigger in photos as well. In person, it doesn't look as big, but still does look a bit bulky.
In terms of the additional looks from the side, we can see there's a carbon plate on the bottom and I'm also very impressed to see that there is a new and different design on the outsole.
This is the third Victor flagship shoe that I have reviewed. Previously the A970 Nitrolite, the VG2 Nitrolite, and now this C90. All three of them do have very different outsoles. The first two worked pretty well for me. So, it was actually quite surprising to see a new one, especially as I thought maybe manufacturers can save on tooling a little bit during the production process. Anyway, I'm very eager to try it!
The colour of the shoe is not my personal favourite. I do like purple, but I think there might be too much of it on the shoe. I do like the translucent, shiny bits on the side though! It looks a bit like a sequin dress or something.
Victor shoes so far have been pretty good in terms of durability from my own testing and this C90 shoe doesn't look like it will be any different!
Surprisingly, the shoe doesn't weigh as heavily as you think it does. This pair only comes in at 707 g, which is the lightest flagship Victor badminton shoe that I've tested so far. The A970 for me was 732 g, whereas the VG2 with the removable midsole was 797 g, close to 800 g.
So, personally, looks can be deceiving. It's not the lightest, but it's not the heaviest. This C90 Nitrolite also carries the same heel tab as the A970. Which means it also has the same issues where colours transfer onto the socks when playing with it.
At the time of recording, I've had more than 12 hours of playing time with this shoe. If you're worried about the comfort of the tab, don't worry. It's ultra-comfy! You don't actually feel it whilst you're on court. It just transfers onto your socks, so have black socks after!
As for the insoles, I do like them. They are similar insoles to the A970 in my opinion. I like Victor insoles because they're actually quite plushy and feel really nice. I like that there's a grippy top at the front, and then on the bottom is also quite sticky. This is good as it keeps your insole stuck onto the shoe.
I'm always happy to see brands doing new things and pushing the envelope, especially in terms of the designs and how they manufacture their products. What may work for you in this design might not suit you very well in another design. So, it's always good to see different designs going forward!
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Playing Feel & Performance Of Victor C90 NitroLite Badminton Shoes
Earlier, I mentioned that I had more than 12 hours of court time with the C90 Nitrolite, split across multiple weeks for this testing. As soon as I put on the shoe, I felt slightly taller, only slightly though. The cushioning is actually pretty plush and quite spongy.
I was worried about going over my ankle, but this never happened. I didn’t trip, nor did I feel it was exceptionally heavy. So, it's actually pretty cool!
I actually really like the shoe a lot. Victor shoes traditionally look a bit bulkier, from the A970, the VG2, as well as the C90 - but they all feel very well-made, with very premium materials.
The slightly taller stack height than usual - 23 mm at the back, 12 mm at the front - also means that there's a heel-to-toe drop of 11 mm. I personally did not feel anything excessive in terms of the heel-to-toe drop. Normally, in running shoes, you see differences from 5 mm to maybe even 8–10 mm, but this one was 11 mm. However, I did not feel anything unnatural at all.
I've also been wearing them on very warm days recently as we're now in the summer in Europe, and the sponginess feels absolutely perfect. There was a lot of sweat going through my feet, so the extra cushioning and material around the shoes soaked it up really well. Ventilation felt okay, absolutely no issues there too!
The outsoles were very impressive in my opinion, it feel grippy and I never had any issues there. Again, from the cushioning, there's a lot of bounce back, which is plush. If you don't really like very soft cushioning, this one doesn't feel too much of the soft side, and it doesn't feel like it will collapse anytime soon. On a scale of 1 to 10 in firmness, I’d say this is 7.5-8 out of 10. Medium to medium-firm, which I quite like.
Overall, this is a really nice shoe. I felt that it was quite premium in terms of feel. I did feel that the shoe did not wrap around my foot completely, so there was quite a lot of gap. If you have taller, wider feet, this C90 will fit you really well. I had a little bit of gap compared to my usual size, both on the sides and the top, which allowed for some movement. On one of my more intense training days, this caused my toes to be a bit more raw than usual, but absolutely fine otherwise.
If you're interested to learn more, you can also checkout the official announcement from Victor's official website here, or connect with them on social media here!
As always, let me know if you have any questions, don't forget to use my code 'CKYEW' for extra discounts, and I’ll see you in the next one!
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