Joola Pro V First Hits

Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVhTXymYG_Q

Hey guys, today we're doing some first hits with the new Pro V paddles from Joola. I was able to test them out at a local facility and wanted to show off some initial gameplay and provide some early thoughts. The paddles I got to try were the Perseus and Hyperion in the 16mm thickness and their new hybrid Kosmos in the 14mm thickness. For these paddles, the Perseus had been demoed before, while the other two I'm hitting are brand new but even still, I do want to call out that this won't be an extensive review of these paddles. There likely will be a break in period that will change my thoughts on the paddle performance but that will come in a future video when I get some more play time. For now this video will be on how the paddles play out of the box. For comparison paddles we have the Pro IV versions of the Perseus 16mm and the Scorpeus 14mm which have been hit for a while and are broken in.

So for initial hits, the paddle feels stiffer than I expected. I've seen the content and interviews about the Pro V and I know the intent was to make a softer feeling paddle but for first hits during gameplay and warmup, I was surprised at the stiff feel but granted these paddles are all new and not broken in.

For the power I tested this out early and immediately I could see this had solid power just like the Pro IVs. My put away power, counters, and drives all felt like they had good juice to it and I would put these in the mid tier for power paddles.

The Pro IV ultimately I felt had more top end power though when I hit the two side by side. It feels softer and springier but it has more of the trampoline effect and when I look at the depth and speed of my drives and serves, I do see more top end power on the IV over the V

Here's where I switch to the Hyperion which is brand new and it feels even stiffer than the Perseus V but I imagine it will soften up with use and feel more similar to the Perseus. But I also think this will apply to the Perseus as well and I'm curious to see how the feel becomes and if it softens up more like the Pro IV.

I do think the flex frame does make the Pro V easier to control compared to the Pro IV. It has a more consistent and predictable feel off the face because it has less of that trampoline effect near the top of the paddle that the IV has which I found easier to connect with.

Personally I do enjoy the more consistent and slightly stiffer feel of the Pro V a bit better. Though I think the difference isn't too big between the two, which makes sense since both are just variations of Gen 3 floating core construction

Now for the Kosmos 14mm, I wasn't as much of a fan of these as the 16mm elongated variants. To be expected the paddle felt stiffer and I couldn't connect well to the feel. I also didn't enjoy the shorter 5.3 inch handle. With the way the throat tapers, it made the handle feel shorter than I'm used to and I would have preferred the Kosmos having a 5.5 handle like the other shapes but I'm going to let Coach Mo talk as he hit it the most this session. 

All right so what are my honest opinions on the Pro Vs. Do I think it's worth it? Well let's start with my thoughts on the performance right now. Compared to the Pro IV, I would actually take the Pro V over it. I connected better with the more consistent feedback on the V over the IV. The IV had more of the trampoline effect, especially in the upper areas of the paddle giving me more top end power, but the paddle face felt more consistent across the face on the V. There was less of the trampoline effect which I connected better with while with the IV, it had a softer and springier feel to it.

Performance wise I do think the paddles are comparable with the IV having more power while the V has better stability. Surface textures and spin generation were similar between the two and the biggest thing again is the feel. So is the Pro V a good performance paddle? I do think so, I think it does serve as a different paddle compared to the Pro IV and I think players that are looking for a particular feel and more consistency from the Pro IV will enjoy the Pro V paddle.

But is the Pro V work the $300 price tag? Now that's where I have issues. 

Another paddle I brought out to play against the V was the popular $100 Luzz Cannon. Another Gen 3 paddle Like the Pro IV and Pro V that is also UPA and USAP approved but at a much lower price point. Compared to the Joola paddles, the Cannon had the most hollow feedback but it kept up with the other two in performance. I found its top end power to match the Pro IV with a stiffer ball feel than the IV and V. Its sweet spot and stability was more comparable to the V than the IV while the spin generation felt the same as well. As for core and grit durability, because it does share a similar construction as the other two, it’s likely the same too.

The Cannon to me plays more like the Joola Gen 3s and I do think performance wise, it doesn't lose out compared to the other two.

Now if all 3 paddles were the same price, it ultimately comes down to your preference in paddle feel. For me I did enjoy the Pro V the best out of the 3 and one of the other players in the session felt the same as well. He thought the Cannon was a very good paddle, especially at its price point but not a paddle he felt he connected the best with and to use for higher level play. At the end of the day, the V isn't a big difference from the IV but when you're competing at a higher level and you need the paddle you connect the best with, if it's the V, then go with the V and if it's the IV, then you're not missing out with the V and you should stick with the IV. But if you're more of a casual player and can't tell the small differences yet between paddles/don't care too much about paddle feel, or if you're just looking to save money, I would recommend looking into the Luzz Cannon or even any of the other foam paddles on the market.

And that brings us into the other downside about the price and that's with the lack of innovation on this paddle. Basically Joola has made slight changes to the Gen 3 design but other brands are releasing paddles with more durable foam cores and innovating with longer lasting grit. Meanwhile Joola claims to have increased the durability of their core and while we haven't fully tested this, based on past experiences we've had with honeycomb cores, we are very hesitant to accept this claim. So ultimately, I'm not impressed with this release, especially at the price point it's coming out as because there are many other paddle releases that have come out this year that do have better performance but I do see the appeal for certain higher level players that want to stick with Joola and are chasing a particular ball feel. It’s just a smaller market and I don’t think it applies to the majority of players out there.