KSWISS Women's Hypercourt Express Shoe Review

Comfort - Score: 3.8

If you're searching for plush, cushioned tennis shoes, the Hypercourt Expresses just might end your search. Our entire team enjoyed the ultra soft cushioning, and the comfort was appreciated from the very start. Tiffani immediately took note of the cushioning, saying, "I really liked the feel of the Hypercourt Expresses when I first slipped my feet into them. The cushioning is soft and feels gel-like. The uppers were quite flexible right out of the box, and the fit is wider than medium as well, so I felt comfortable heading out to play in them right away. I didn't have any comfort issues initially, but the more I played the more I began to struggle with comfort. I'll cover it more in the support section, but I began having issues with toe jamming, which took away from my overall comfort experience in these shoes."

Just like with the previous version, the Ultra Express, Brittany found plush cushioning underfoot. She said, "After wearing the Hypercourt Expresses for a couple practice sessions I appreciated the padding around the ankle collar and the cushioned tongue. I did have to tie my laces tighter than normal due to the wider width, but the padded tongue allowed me to do that without any pinching or rubbing."

Karly also loved how soft and plush these shoes felt right out of the box. She commented, "Because of all the padding around the ankles and the cushioning I didn't have to worry about a break-in period. However, as the playtest went on and the shoes loosened up, my feet began sliding more within my shoes, which caused some toe jamming. There wasn't enough padding in the toe box to soften the impact when I made quick forward stops. I thought there was excellent padding throughout the rest of the shoe, but, unfortunately, not enough for my toes."

"I had high comfort expectations since these are the replacements for the Ultra Expresses, and those were met immediately," said Michelle. "These shoes are pillowy and soft -- I felt good lacing them up and getting on the court without a break-in. The heel collars helped lock my feet in and there was padding throughout. I never experienced any harsh shocks or had any problems with comfort. My only complaint would be that these shoes were a bit big on my feet, so I really had to lace them up tightly to feel locked in."

Ventilation - Score: 3.6

Our playtesters all had slightly different opinions on the breathability of the Hypercourt Expresses. Brittany was happy with the mesh uppers and felt they allowed enough air to pass through. She said, "My feet never felt like they were overheating. I had no problems when playing but did tend to take them off within 30 minutes of finishing a hitting session."

"While the mesh uppers didn't keep these shoes as cool as I was expecting, I thought the ventilation was average," said Karly. "After playing for about 20 minutes I noticed my feet starting to warm up, and when I was done playing my socks were pretty damp. I was never bothered by the heat and didn't mind keeping the Hypercourt Expresses on after a hit, but I wasn't expecting them to heat up as much as they did because of all the mesh on the shoes."

Despite the seamless materials and mesh, Michelle found these shoes to run on the hotter side. She explained, "They were definitely not the most breathable shoes I've worn. This is never really detrimental for me, but I did take them outside a few times on our warm spring days and noticed them heating up a bit."

Tiffani added, "I can't recall ever having an issue with the breathability of these shoes. I always felt comfortable in these Hypercourt Expresses, and I actually didn't mind wearing them for a while after playing. These shoes were better than average in terms of ventilation."

Arch Support - Score: 3.6

The majority of our playtesters had no issues with the arch support. Karly commented, "The arch support was low, but it didn't cause any problems for me. My feet are flat so I don't need much support to keep them comfortable. The low arches worked just fine for me."

Michelle agreed, saying, "These shoes supported my higher arches just fine. I found the support to be a little on the low side, but my feet felt well supported because of the way these shoes are shaped and cushioned, and I didn't have any aching or problems with my arch. Plus, the insoles are very well padded and felt super cushioned underfoot."

The arch support was slightly lower than what Brittany is used to, but she didn't mind. She said, "The plush cushioning quickly molded around my arch and gave me all the support I needed."

The only playtester to struggle with the arch support was Tiffani. She explained, "My arches felt some strain. Although I do have relatively flat feet, I prefer shoes that offer some structure through the midfoot or some support. I felt like there wasn't quite enough support, so my arches felt achy after playing for awhile."

Foot Support/Stability - Score: 3.2

The wider fit of the Hypercourt Expresses had a negative impact on our playtesters' support scores. Michelle, who appreciates stable shoes, found the support and stability to be solid, but the fit caused some slight compromises in that area. She explained, "I found these shoes to run a bit wide for my feet, which started to take a toll on the support and stability because my feet were sliding around. Lacing my shoes up even tighter seemed to fix the problem, but I never felt completely locked in. Luckily, I was never too worried about taking a spill and still felt confident moving aggressively in these shoes. The Durawrap material on the uppers and the midsole technology really helped keep my feet stable on the court."

Even though the uppers were mostly made of a soft mesh fabric, Karly was confident when making aggressive cuts on the court. She said, "The uppers were supportive enough to prevent my ankles from rolling over when stopping quickly and moving side to side. I didn't think twice about my footwork in these shoes. The only downside for me was their loose fit. They didn't hold my feet very well, and I was constantly sliding around within them no matter how many times I retied them."

The support fell short of Tiffani's expectations. She explained, "I was a big fan of the previous version of these shoes, and the Ultra Expresses remain one of my favorite tennis shoes. Those shoes surprised me by the level of support they were able to offer, and frankly I was not impressed with the support in the Hypercourt Expresses. These newer shoes allow too much movement within the shoes; my feet wouldn't lock into place. With my wider feet I appreciated the roomy fit, but at the same time I couldn't get the uppers to cinch down to support my feet. I was constantly retying the shoes trying to get a tighter fit and to stop the toe jamming. The stability was good, but the support was too sloppy for me to want to wear these on court. I do, however, enjoy training in the gym in them because hard stop-and-go movements are minimal there."

Brittany also had some issues when it came to support and stability because of her narrow feet. She said, "These shoes were just too wide for my feet. No matter how tightly I tied my shoes (and for most of the time the laces were tied tightly enough that the eyelets were almost touching), I couldn't get my feet to feel secure. My feet were moving inside my shoes in all directions, from left to right to slamming into the front of the toe box. On super aggressive cuts my feet were almost twisting fully sideways in my shoes. I could also feel the upper giving a little too much when I stopped suddenly. I didn't have a ton of confidence that these shoes would hold my ankles in place when I started to move in a different direction."

Overall Sole Durability - Score: 3.7

With a name like Hypercourt Express, and being on the lighter side at 11.5 ounces (size 8.5), we didn't expect these shoes to be very durable. Karly noted only some balding at the medial forefoot. She said, "The tread started to smooth faster than normal, after about 5-10 hours, but it leveled off and reached a point where the smoothness stayed the same. While they didn't necessarily stack up to the most durable shoes, I was happy I didn't experience any significant damage to the outsoles."

Tiffani felt the outsoles held up OK for lightweight shoes. She said, "The outsoles were holding up moderately well, just like the Ultra Expresses. These aren't going to be the most durable shoes I've worn, but I didn't tear through them at an alarming rate either."

Brittany added, "The outsoles are very similar to the previous version. My shoes have held up for the 10 hours I have playtested them. However, I am starting to see some wear and would rank them right around average for durability."

"I'm seeing some decent wear under my big toes, but that is after a solid 15-20 hours of court time," said Michelle. "Since these shoes are light and speedy I wasn't expecting a high level of durability. Like the others have said, the wear seems pretty similar to the Ultra Expresses to me. There was decent durability for such a light shoe."

Toe Durability - Score: 4.1

Our toe draggers were impressed with the toe durability of the Hypercourt Expresses. "The toes of these shoes are tougher than the outsoles," stated Tiffani. "I hardly made a dent in the uppers or the toe bumpers. I'm quite pleased with the toe durability."

The toe bumper also held up to Brittany's toe dragging. "The DragGuard toe bumper came up to a decent height and was plenty thick," she said. "There is also DuraWrap material on the uppers for extra protection. However, for more extreme toe draggers this may not be thick enough to prevent damage to the uppers."

Traction - Score: 3.6

Across the board, our team agreed the traction levels were adequate when playing in the Hypercourt Expresses. For Karly, the traction was good, but not great. She said, "These shoes offered a nice grip on the court at the beginning of the playtest, but the outsoles lost traction quickly. I never slipped and eventually that smoothing leveled off, but the more I wore these shoes the more hesitant I was about stopping suddenly."

On the other hand, Brittany was confident with the traction level. She explained, "I thought the traction was slightly above average. These shoes didn't do anything great traction-wise, but they got the job done. There was enough grab and give that I didn't feel like I was stuck or slipping. The plush cushioning made me feel like I was slightly higher off the ground than I would have liked, but it wasn't too much of an issue, and I got use to the feel after a couple hitting sessions. "

Finding no issues with the traction of this shoe, Michelle said, "I appreciated that the traction of these shoes held up. I found a good blend of give-and-go on the court and never felt like the outsoles got too slippery. I never felt like I was going to slip or lose my footing, even when the soles started wearing out a bit more."

"When it came to changing directions and stopping in these shoes, I liked the traction level," said Tiffani. "I didn't slip or slide around too much. Unfortunately, the lackluster support overshadowed a relatively good experience, so I wasn't moving aggressively enough to take advantage of the solid traction level."

Weight - Score: 3.6

Despite all of the plush cushioning, our playtesters never felt weighed down by the Hypercourt Expresses, but they did find them heavier than their predecessors. Brittany thought these shoes landed on the lighter side. She said, "I appreciated that they didn't feel heavy or clunky, however, they did feel heavier than the Ultra Expresses even though they are only heavier by 0.3 ounces. They weren't super light, but I didn't have any issues with weight."

The Hypercourt Expresses were heavier than Karly was expecting. She offered, "All the plush padding added to a somewhat bulky feel in these Hypercourt Expresses, and my takeoffs seemed slower than normal. It took a lot of effort to get going, and with the loss of traction my movements just didn't come as naturally in these shoes."

"I wish KSwiss didn't have to add weight to these shoes, but since they are less than a half-ounce heavier than the Ultra Expresses I really don't have anything to complain about," commented Michelle. "The extra weight wasn't super noticeable, but these shoes did feel bulkier. I am impressed with how comfortable these shoes are while maintaining a lighter weight."

Tiffani also made comparison to the Ultra Expresses. She said, "These weigh about the same as the Ultra Expresses but feel heavier to me. They're just a bit clunky. I'm impressed that they feel somewhat lightweight for being so cushioned, but I hesitate to put them in the light category. With so many lightweight options these days, the Hypercourt Expresses felt more like middle weight shoes."

Overall - Score: 3.4

Playtester Foot Types:
Tiffani - Wide width / Low arch
Brittany - Narrow width / Medium arch
Karly - Medium width / Medium-low arch
Michelle - Medium width / High arch

Review date: May 2015. If you found this review interesting or have further questions or comments please contact us.

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