Sanwei Froster Pro Review - Better Value Than Viscaria? — Transcript

Full transcript

1. 0:00Hi, I’m Dario, and in this video I’ll be reviewing the Sanwei Froster Pro blade.
2. 0:06It’s one of the latest blades from the well-known Chinese brand and another addition to their Froster lineup.
3. 0:14I’ll take some measurements using several tools to give you as much objective information about the blade as possible.
4. 0:21I’ll also test it with different rubbers that I’ve previously used on other blades and explain how it feels in real play.
5. 0:30In addition, I’ll compare its spin generation to my current main blade using actual measurements.
6. 0:39Later in the video, I’ll also show you how the blade performs in real match situations from several official matches I recently played.
7. 0:51Before we begin, I’d like to mention that this video is not sponsored by Sanwei.
8. 0:58They did send me this blade for testing, but all opinions in this review are entirely my own.
9. 1:07As always, I’ll be speaking in Croatian, and for those who don’t understand Croatian, I’ve prepared English subtitles that you can turn on.
10. 1:18I’ve been playing with the Sanwei Froster Pro blade for the past month.
11. 1:24During that time, I tested it with several different types of rubbers.
12. 1:28I also played with my regular rubbers, the ones I normally use on my main racket,
13. 1:34but I spent most of my time using the Sanwei Target National on the forehand and the Sanwei Gear Hyper on the backhand.
14. 1:44In this video, I won’t be focusing on the rubbers themselves, as I’ll be making a separate review for each of them.
15. 1:53I just wanted you to know which rubbers I used for most of my testing.
16. 2:00The current price of the blade is €85, which places it in Sanwei’s higher price range.
17. 2:08By the end of this video, you’ll be able to decide for yourself whether it’s worth the price.
18. 2:14You can reduce that price even further by using my discount code, which I’ll mention at the end of the video.
19. 2:23The first thing worth mentioning, and something that adds to the overall value, is that every blade comes with a protective case.
20. 2:36It provides extra protection during shipping, and afterward you can use it to store your rackets.
21. 2:45The blade also comes wrapped in protective plastic, which is another nice touch.
22. 2:53As for the handle and blade design, I personally like it a lot, although that’s obviously a matter of personal preference.
23. 3:02A quick sound test by tapping the blade produces a nice, clear, and mostly consistent tone.
24. 3:11The overall finish is excellent and, in my opinion, better than most blades in this price range.
25. 3:21If you want to add some extra protection, you can apply a light coat of lacquer, since the blade doesn’t come factory-lacquered.
26. 3:29You can clearly feel the natural wood veneer.
27. 3:34Overall, the build quality is comparable to blades from higher-end Japanese and European brands.
28. 3:45The handle fits me very well.
29. 3:47It sits comfortably in my hand and gives me a confident feeling when playing every type of stroke.
30. 3:55I measured this particular blade, and here are the dimensions:
31. 4:01the handle length is 101 millimeters,
32. 4:05the maximum width is 35 millimeters,
33. 4:12and the thickness is 25 millimeters.
34. 4:17As for the blade head, its dimensions are 157 by 150 millimeters, which is one of the most common sizes for table tennis blades.
35. 4:30The blade thickness is 5.64 millimeters.
36. 4:36This particular blade weighs 90 grams.
37. 4:41As for the balance, I measured the center of gravity at 31 millimeters from the handle.
38. 4:50That means the ratio between the center of gravity and the blade head length is 0.197.
39. 4:59You may have noticed that I calculate this ratio in all of my blade reviews.
40. 5:05The reason is simple, it makes it much easier to compare the balance of different blade models.
41. 5:12For those of you who aren’t familiar with these numbers, let’s compare them with two well-known blades: the Viscaria and the FZD ALC.
42. 5:21Both of those blades have a ratio of around 0.171,
43. 5:26which means the Froster Pro has its center of gravity positioned slightly closer to the blade head.
44. 5:33Since I’m already comparing the Froster Pro with the Viscaria and the FZD ALC,
45. 5:38it’s worth mentioning that they have a very similar ply composition.
46. 5:42The main difference is the composite layer.
47. 5:46The Viscaria and the FZD ALC use the well-known ALC material, while the Froster Pro uses Japanese PLC, or Polyarylate Carbon.
48. 5:58Both ALC and PLC are composite materials that combine carbon fibers with arylate fibers.
49. 6:06Their purpose is to provide higher speed, a larger sweet spot, and better feel on contact.
50. 6:15Sanwei places its PLC material in the same premium category as high-end ALC composites.
51. 6:22Looking from the outer ply toward the core, the Froster Pro has the following construction:
52. 6:29Koto - PLC - Ayous - Kiri.
53. 6:34So on paper, it’s a construction that’s very similar to popular ALC blades, but with a slightly different composite material.
54. 6:45Since spin generation is one of the most important factors for my playing style, that’s exactly where I’ll start.
55. 6:55For the first time in my reviews, I’ll also be using a device that measures the amount of spin,
56. 7:02so instead of relying only on feel, we’ll also have actual numbers.
57. 7:08I’ll do two tests.
58. 7:10The first one is a short backspin serve,
59. 7:14and the second one is a topspin against backspin balls fed by the robot with exactly the same amount of spin.
60. 7:24To make the comparison as fair as possible, I’ll first do both tests with my regular racket, meaning the Victas Koki Niwa ZC blade with Hurricane 3 rubber.
61. 7:38After that, I’ll remove that same Hurricane 3 rubber from the Koki Niwa ZC and glue it onto the Sanwei Froster Pro.
62. 7:47That way, the only variable in the test will be the blade, while the rubber will remain exactly the same.
63. 7:55To get more reliable results, I’ll perform each exercise 30 times with both blades.
64. 8:03At the end, we’ll compare the average values and see whether there are any real differences in the amount of spin generated.
65. 8:13Let’s start with my regular blade, the Koki Niwa ZC, and a standard backspin serve.
66. 8:33After 30 serves, the average amount of spin is 53 revolutions per second.
67. 8:40The serve with the highest amount of spin had 58 revolutions per second,
68. 8:44while the lowest measured value was 47 revolutions per second.
69. 8:48The average serve speed was 13 kilometers per hour.
70. 8:53If I compare these results with other players, an average of 53 revolutions per second is very close to professional level,
71. 9:01where players are generally at 55 revolutions per second or higher.
72. 9:05On the graph, you can see the results of all 30 serves.
73. 9:11Now let’s do the exact same test, but with the Hurricane 3 rubber moved onto the Froster Pro.
74. 9:18Let’s take a look.
75. 9:56After 30 serves, the average amount of spin is 49 revolutions per second.
76. 10:02The serve with the highest amount of spin had 53 revolutions per second,
77. 10:06while the lowest measured value was 40 revolutions per second.
78. 10:08The average serve speed was once again 13 kilometers per hour.
79. 10:14This result places it in the upper half of advanced players.
80. 10:21I believe the serve results would have been slightly better if I had more room for the ball toss.
81. 10:30In this hall, I’m limited by the ceiling height,
82. 10:34but since both blades were tested under exactly the same conditions, the comparison is still completely relevant.
83. 10:44Now we move on to the second test.
84. 10:46Once again, I’m using my regular racket, the Koki Niwa ZC with Hurricane 3 rubber,
85. 10:51while the robot feeds backspin balls one after another.
86. 11:12After 30 topspin shots, the average is 133 revolutions per second.
87. 11:19The shot with the highest amount of spin had 137 revolutions per second,
88. 11:22while the lowest measured value was 126.
89. 11:25The average speed was 30 kilometers per hour.
90. 11:28An average of 133 revolutions per second falls within the range of professional-level results.
91. 11:35Now the exact same test again, but this time with the Froster Pro and the same Hurricane 3 rubber.
92. 12:24After 30 shots, the average amount of spin is 120 revolutions per second.
93. 12:30The highest measured value was 124,
94. 12:32and the lowest was 112 revolutions per second.
95. 12:35The average speed increased to 32 kilometers per hour.
96. 12:41This result is placed in the upper half of advanced players.
97. 12:46I’ve also prepared a table where you can compare all the results side by side.
98. 12:53If you’re interested in the details, feel free to pause the video.
99. 12:58The first thing you’ll notice is that the Koki Niwa ZC generates slightly more spin on serves,
100. 13:08while the difference becomes even more noticeable when playing topspin against backspin.
101. 13:15Finally, a quick explanation about the number of valid and invalid shots.
102. 13:22When performing the backspin serve test, the goal is to produce the cleanest possible backspin.
103. 13:28If I accidentally add too much sidespin during the serve,
104. 13:34that attempt isn’t included because the device would then be measuring a combination of different types of spin.
105. 13:42That’s why only serves with sufficiently clean backspin are included in the analysis, making the results as comparable as possible.
106. 13:52I hope you enjoyed this spin measurement test.
107. 13:58Those of you who follow my channel know that I like to support my reviews with as much measurable data as possible,
108. 14:06so they don’t rely solely on my subjective impressions.
109. 14:12Until now, I compared spin generation using a return board.
110. 14:18The robot would feed a backspin ball, I would play a topspin with the equipment I was testing,
111. 14:25and then I’d observe the angle at which the ball rebounded off the board.
112. 14:31That method was still useful, but this is a huge step forward in measuring the actual amount of spin being generated.
113. 14:42That’s why I’m retiring the return board from my testing for now,
114. 14:46and from this point on I’ll be using Spinsight to measure spin in future reviews.
115. 14:53In one of my upcoming videos, I’ll also make a detailed review of all the Spinsight features,
116. 14:59because it has proven to be an excellent tool for training, analysis, and player development.
117. 15:09Now let’s get back to the Sanwei Froster Pro.
118. 15:13I expected it to generate slightly less spin than my regular blade, the Koki Niwa ZC,
119. 15:20because realistically there aren’t many blades that can match it in terms of spin generation.
120. 15:29In my opinion, the Froster Pro is roughly on the same level as the Viscaria when it comes to spin.
121. 15:36Since I’m already comparing it to the Viscaria, I’d say the Froster Pro is slightly slower.
122. 15:43Compared to my Koki Niwa ZC, the speed is very similar.
123. 15:47The Froster Pro might be just a tiny bit faster in more passive shots, but when it comes to maximum speed, the Koki Niwa ZC and the Froster Pro are very close.
124. 16:00Another measurement I regularly perform on every blade is frequency testing.
125. 16:07This particular blade measured 1,464 Hz,
126. 16:14which places the Froster Pro in the OFF category according to my classification table.
127. 16:23The throw angle is medium-high.
128. 16:29It’s lower than on the Koki Niwa ZC, but very similar to the Viscaria.
129. 16:35The feeling on contact is quite direct.
130. 16:38The ball still stays on the racket long enough to provide good feedback, but the contact is shorter and cleaner.
131. 16:48As a result, counter-topspins and fast rallies feel more secure and predictable.
132. 16:56The feedback is clear and precise, while the unwanted catapult effect is almost unnoticeable.
133. 17:03During impact, you can clearly feel the ball sinking into the racket before leaving it cleanly.
134. 17:11There are some vibrations, but they’re not particularly pronounced.
135. 17:15I’d say they’re slightly more muted than on the Viscaria.
136. 17:21I really like the control and stability that the Froster Pro provides in almost every type of stroke.
137. 17:30For example, when playing farther away from the table, I occasionally found the Viscaria to feel a little unpredictable, whereas I never had that feeling with the Froster Pro.
138. 17:40Blocking and flat hits are both very solid.
139. 17:46The Froster Pro offers a great deal of control and a very stable feel in both areas.
140. 17:52On the other hand, if your game is based primarily on very fast flat hits and passive blocking at a higher level, you’ll probably want a faster blade.
141. 18:06In that aspect, the Viscaria does have an advantage.
142. 18:10However, if you use flat hits and blocking as part of your game, while building most of your points with topspin attacks, the Froster Pro won’t disappoint.
143. 18:23You’ll get excellent control, great stability, and very predictable performance in every situation.
144. 18:33Now, let’s talk about the sweet spot.
145. 18:35As you can see, the sweet spot is quite large.
146. 18:38That can be a real advantage when you’re not in the ideal position or when you reach the ball just a fraction of a second too late.
147. 18:47For those of you who may not be familiar with the term,
148. 18:51the sweet spot is the area of the racket that provides the most efficient energy transfer to the ball.
149. 18:57When you hit the ball outside that area,
150. 19:01the racket becomes less torsionally stable, resulting in energy loss and reduced shot accuracy.
151. 19:09Before I give you my final verdict, I’ll show you a few clips from a tournament where I played with the Sanwei Froster Pro.
152. 19:17I used the Sanwei Target National on the forehand and the Sanwei Gear Hyper on the backhand.
153. 19:24The result at that tournament wasn’t my main priority.
154. 19:27I was much more interested in seeing how this blade and these rubbers would perform in real match conditions.
155. 19:34Still, I’ll mention that I played six matches.
156. 19:38All six went to a deciding fifth set.
157. 19:42I won five of them 3-2 and lost one 2-3.
158. 19:47I have plenty of footage, but in this video I’ll only show you a few highlights.
159. 19:53I’ll save the rest for the individual rubber reviews, which are coming soon.
160. 24:40Now let’s move on to the conclusion.
161. 24:42As I mentioned earlier, the build quality of this blade is definitely better than you would expect for its price.
162. 24:50The balance is excellent, and the blade feels very comfortable in the hand.
163. 24:55The Froster Pro performs very well close to the table, from mid-distance, and even when playing farther away from the table.
164. 25:05It provides excellent stability at every distance, and that’s actually the aspect that impressed me the most.
165. 25:13I definitely wouldn’t recommend it for beginners.
166. 25:18Instead, I’d recommend it to more advanced players who build their game around topspin attacks.
167. 25:24I also wouldn’t recommend it to high-level players whose game is based primarily on flat hitting close to the table, because they’ll probably want more speed and power.
168. 25:36However, if you’re not playing at the highest level and you’re looking for extra control while still maintaining good speed,
169. 25:43the Froster Pro can be an excellent choice even for that style of play.
170. 25:49Those of you who have been following my channel know that I used to play with the Viscaria.
171. 25:55I think it’s enough to say that, based on my experience and for my style of play, I would choose the Sanwei Froster Pro over the Viscaria today.
172. 26:07And when you also consider the price, especially the fact that the Froster Pro costs roughly half as much as the Viscaria, the choice becomes even more interesting.
173. 26:19Of course, if you need extra speed, the Viscaria is still the better option.
174. 26:25Also, the overall finish of the Viscaria is still at a slightly higher level.
175. 26:31But looking at the bigger picture, and considering what suits my game best, I would choose the Froster Pro.
176. 26:39If you decide to buy the Froster Pro or any other Sanwei product from their official webshop,
177. 26:47you can use my discount code dgrd5 to get a discount on everything in your cart.
178. 26:56You’ll find the link to the official Sanwei webshop in the video description.
179. 27:02If you don’t want to miss my upcoming videos, and the reviews of these two rubbers are coming very soon,
180. 27:08make sure to subscribe to the channel.
181. 27:11Feel free to like the video and share it if you think someone else might find it helpful.
182. 27:18Until next time, enjoy table tennis.