Vapor pro 3

Just got these in the mail today and took them out for a spin, granted just a hour on the ball machine but immediately putting them on foot they felt like an upgrade over the 2s. The 3s have a nice, soft mesh upper that has no real break in needed. I was able to feel the cushion under my foot, feels more plush than responsive.

Fit is true to size but it is very accommodating both in width and length, not to that I would go down a size but if you are wide footer these might be a great fit for you.

Lockdown and heel security is good. Traditional lacing system, use the extra eyelet and you will be completely locked down.

Quick performance notes based off just a hour on the ball machine - the midsole is more geared towards impact protection and than responsiveness. Feels like there's some adequate arch support, it was bothering my feet which are very flat so if you need arch support it should be noticeable. The shoe feels kinda bulky particularly in the back. I don't really have any thoughts on lateral support, again it was only a hour with the ball machine will need to use these in matches/clinics to get a full experience. These feel like more of an all around type shoe than a speed focus kinda shoe. Based off what we've seen and read about the Vapor 12s those will be more like your high end sports car that can zip around, stop on a dime and make sharp, explosive movements. These Pro 3s feel like more of the side size sedans with cargo space in the back. You can still go fast, especially straight line speed but lacking the acceleration and nimbleness to make quick, tight movements.
 
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Laced mine up today. Big 9.5/X/VP1 user. Hated the VP2s because the lateral movement, specifically on cut backs, felt like I was running on blocks with nothing keeping my foot in place.

The first 15 minutes was alright, obviously more cushioning than the VP1s, but something was pinching a nerve just off to the outer side of my left Achilles. Not the best start.

Was able to put them on for another 40 minutes with no pinching, luckily. I could be completely wrong, but they felt a little lower to the ground than the VP2s, which gave me a bit more confidence to trust in my movement. The upper, as mentioned, definitely needs a break-in, but it wasn't an issue. The top, outer eyelet dug into my ankles on both sides which was much more noticeable of an issue.

The shoe plays basically identical to the VP2 with a tad more lateral stability. Going to be slightly slower than the traditional Vapor shoes. Certainly a few balls that I felt I'd have gotten a cleaner shot off if I was wearing the VP1s, but I didn't hate these and would be alright using them if the V12s weren't around the corner. Obviously didn't put them through any massive testing so I can't comment on the eventual wear of the outsole and drag guards.
 
Zinge said:
The shoe plays basically identical to the VP2 with a tad more lateral stability. Going to be slightly slower than the traditional Vapor shoes. Certainly a few balls that I felt I'd have gotten a cleaner shot off if I was wearing the VP1s, but I didn't hate these and would be alright using them if the V12s weren't around the corner. Obviously didn't put them through any massive testing so I can't comment on the eventual wear of the outsole and drag guards.
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Sounds about right. Thanks for confirming what a lot of us suspected. Now we await the v12
 
Jack Draper wearing the red colorway
IMG-8275.jpg
 
Mretman said:
It’s interesting how many people hate on the VP1 when it was one of the most popular shoes ever on the tour. Long after the rest of us could only get the VP2 many pros were still wearing them. Alcaraz is still using his hybrid which looks to me to be the same shoe with some cosmetic changes,

I’ve owned every version of this line and while the durability of the VP1 was a real problem it may have been the best tennis shoe Nike ever made in my opinion. It is very light with great stability and maneuverability. I wouldn’t wear it all day but on court it is a fantastic shoe and I for one would love to get my hands on more pairs.
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It is subjective because of their upper and shape it only worked if your foot was already the right long narrow shape.

I used almost every vapor since the vapor 5 in 2008 and the Vapor pro is when I quit nike.

The lacing system was not adjustable at all, the tupperware like upper crushed my toes from both big toe and pinky toe side. They were way longer and more narrow at the same size so sizing up was not an option because then tripping becomes a hazard with way too long of a toe box.

The pro 1 was like an extreme cost down of the 9/9.5/X with nearly every good feature removed. I mean look at the thin useless tongue on it too. Feds had the tongue extra beefed and longer and the second he left they made the shoe so much worse
 
volleynets said:
It is subjective because of their upper and shape it only worked if your foot was already the right long narrow shape.

I used almost every vapor since the vapor 5 in 2008 and the Vapor pro is when I quit nike.

The lacing system was not adjustable at all, the tupperware like upper crushed my toes from both big toe and pinky toe side. They were way longer and more narrow at the same size so sizing up was not an option because then tripping becomes a hazard with way too long of a toe box.

The pro 1 was like an extreme cost down of the 9/9.5/X with nearly every good feature removed. I mean look at the thin useless tongue on it too. Feds had the tongue extra beefed and longer and the second he left they made the shoe so much worse
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The vapor X -> vapor pro 1 takedown eerily similar to the vp2 -> vp3 takedown - where some of the best features of the shoe simply removed and not replaced with a better alternative
 
Got my pair in today. There is not much to say. They feel slighlty more comfortable than the Vapor Pro 2 (probably due to the improved material on the uppers) but the 3 is about 25 grams heavier… I have not tried them on court yet. If they play the same as the 2, there is zero reason to buy them over the 2 besides the better design. 25 grams heavier seems like a pretty aweful change. Was hoping they would TRIM some weight, not add.
 
GarrettHarrington said:
Got my pair in today. There is not much to say. They feel slighlty more comfortable than the Vapor Pro 2 (probably due to the improved material on the uppers) but the 3 is about 25 grams heavier… I have not tried them on court yet. If they play the same as the 2, there is zero reason to buy them over the 2 besides the better design. 25 grams heavier seems like a pretty aweful change. Was hoping they would TRIM some weight, not add.
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So theyve marketed these as being lighter than the VP2. I wonder if it has to do with your outsole being worn down on the 2. Regardless, +25g heavier is an awful result, totally agree

It's a shame these look so nice, hope they redeem themselves on court for you
 
gino said:
So theyve marketed these as being lighter than the VP2. I wonder if it has to do with your outsole being worn down on the 2. Regardless, +25g heavier is an awful result, totally agree

It's a shame these look so nice, hope they redeem themselves on court for you
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I thought about that, and didn’t think you could shave 25 grams of sole while the shoe still has 40% of its life. Also, maybe the sweat absorbtion could counter this, and add bit of weight.

But I tested your theory with a few other shoes I had.

A well used Cage 3 is also about 25 grams lighter than a brand new Cage 3

A well used Courtballistec 4.3 is about 20 grams lighter than a brand new one.

So, you might be exactly right about a shoe possible losing 30+ grams throughout it’s life! Still waiting to get “official” weights from Tennis Sites to see what they found as comparison to the Pro 2
 
GarrettHarrington said:
I thought about that, and didn’t think you could shave 25 grams of sole while the shoe still has 40% of its life. Also, maybe the sweat absorbtion could counter this, and add bit of weight.

But I tested your theory with a few other shoes I had.

A well used Cage 3 is also about 25 grams lighter than a brand new Cage 3

A well used Courtballistec 4.3 is about 20 grams lighter than a brand new one.

So, you might be exactly right about a shoe possible losing 30+ grams throughout it’s life! Still waiting to get “official” weights from Tennis Sites to see what they found as comparison to the Pro 2
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That’s funny it checks out. I need to try it with some old and NOS vapors I have lying around. Regardless bummed they didn’t really upgrade this shoe. For the record I love the style of zoom bag they put in. The zoom hex is awesome but really only works for one single pressure point. I have 3 of them in my favorite golf shoe (zoom infinity tour) - two in the forefoot and one in the heel. That’s for a spot where you don’t run… any when you walk it’s mostly on a soft surface… Nike not putting more midsole tech into this vapor is a bummer but at the price maybe that’s okay
 
gino said:
The vapor X -> vapor pro 1 takedown eerily similar to the vp2 -> vp3 takedown - where some of the best features of the shoe simply removed and not replaced with a better alternative
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Why is the vp3 a takedown of vp2? The uppers look different but they don’t look like they have less technology or lost anything.
 
I kinda liked playing in these or at least didn't dislike them. Played some tie breakers along with some rallying for about 2 hours and I think they are a solid but unspectacular shoe. I would say the best asset of the shoe is the lockdown, despite the roomy fit in the front I never had any stability issues with this shoe because of the supreme lockdown. The tongue could use some extra padding as the laces really pinch and dig when they are synched in tight. Eventually the irritation wore off - took about 90 minutes total or so for the shoe to break in and take to my feet. Midsole is kinda meh, I can feel the zoom in forefoot but it's very very very subdued and lacks any spring or energy return. Still I like that it is low profile and got a good bit of court feel. There's nothing special about the shoe, I didn't ever once feel like the shoe was propelling me or making me feel faster any way but I also never felt like the shoe was getting in my way or felt clunky. They don't offer anything in the way of comfort but after a slight break in period they don't feel uncomfortable unlike the previous model and with the upgraded lockdown they feel like a marginal upgrade of the 2s. They get the job done and they're fine. Adequate but hardly impressive.
 
volleynets said:
Why is the vp3 a takedown of vp2? The uppers look different but they don’t look like they have less technology or lost anything.
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mainly the cushion layup. watch the foot doc zach vid, they removed the zoom bag that fit 1:1 with the outsole casing for one that is maybe 1/3 of the size. Zoom hex is really good, but the window/slot it sits in needs to match the same dimensions as the zoom bag itself. otherwise uneven pressure will be applied to the zoom bag and it will rupture. i imagine we will see a lot of this. foot doc zach also claimed that a lot of ppl with forefoot injury loved the VP2 because of the large forefoot zoom bag. id imagine that those ppl are really disappointed right now. the upper is fine, actually a nice revision functionally and stylistically. leaving the outsole the exact same is another net neutral design move. kinda shocking tbh, but maybe they planned to use that outsole for the v12 and pivoted, so they have to use it for the VP3

LiamMiguel said:
I thought they lost a chunk of a Zoom unit and the rest is just EVA? Lost its bounce more than anything.
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yup pretty much. in addition they didnt retool the outsole, which sucks, so thats another miss
 
gino said:
a lot of ppl with forefoot injury loved the VP2 because of the large forefoot zoom bag. id imagine that those ppl are really disappointed right now.
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That's me! I don't have any injury right now, but the VP2s were especially great on serve when I would land on my left forefoot. A small/ non existent zoom unit is a deal breaker. Just ordered an old colorway of the GPC1 on sale. We'll see how they do...
 
Alcawrath said:
That's me! I don't have any injury right now, but the VP2s were especially great on serve when I would land on my left forefoot. A small/ non existent zoom unit is a deal breaker. Just ordered an old colorway of the GPC1 on sale. We'll see how they do...
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Interesting to hear the crash pad landing notion on serve. I liked the vp2 as a new budget friendly vapor but it being so close to the v11 in performance (I believe better at a lower price) was baffling. There is a place for it in the market but it succeeding the VP1 made no sense. VP1 replaced V1-VX from a product portfolio perspective. Now the VP2 was expected to be the successor to the V1-VP1 but now we have a take down version ? It all made no sense. Then they bring back the numerical with an V11 that’s basically a worse shoe. I imagine vp2 will age nicely on the second hand market with the cushion in the new VP3 being much less impressive/sustainable. Same with the V11 because of its encased midsole, that won’t age well secondhand I think. Vp3 looks cool those and as @Rosstour pounted out their likely going to just PJ sinners ZZ to look in the vein of the VP3, so they will probably sell fine. It’s just a shame they’re shortchanging the consumers like us who want to support them and buy multiple colorways of great shoes
 
Has anyone else noticed the men's off-white (white/binary blue) VP3 is different on the nike website vs TW? The latter has a red outline by the laces.
Is the nike photo an error or does TW have an exclusive?
 
wow, what high demand this item is though. Nike really is getting only benefits from this. back order after back order after back order. cant imagine the vapor 12.
 
VitalSigns said:
Has anyone else noticed the men's off-white (white/binary blue) VP3 is different on the nike website vs TW? The latter has a red outline by the laces.
Is the nike photo an error or does TW have an exclusive?
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Lot of the time pics aren’t final. Sometimes TW takes their on photos of the shoe so will have to get one in hand to confirm who has it right.
 
Been wearing these for a few days now. The upper is definitely an improvement. softer upper with an improved lacing system. Have no issue with heel slippage once i do a runners loop. There is a little less cushion up front than the previous model. Its definitely not the plushest shoe ive worn but the fit is good and on clay, they perform well. I would not wear these on hard because of the lack of cushioning and i try to protect the knees and back. Should be a smooth transition from the VP2.
 
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