Ok here is the review of the Browning Oxylite Ti80 badminton racket. First off let me say that the only two places to buy this racket are from ebay or amazon, and they are both from Racketworld, who seem to have cornered the market for Browning in the UK. There is another online retailer called sportyshop, but their prices are way higher than what racketworld sell for. God only knows how racketworld can sell their rackets for the prices they do. Either they make very small profit on each racket, or they get for for ridiculously low prices in the first place.
Either way, it doesn't really matter, what does matter is that they are cheap. I have found the technical spec for the Browning Oxylite Ti80 from the racketworld ebay store. One thing that makes me laugh right away is that the recommended retail price for this bat is..£190!! No chance, not in a million years. That has to be the most stupid price i have ever seen for a badminton racket. Do you seriously think that us badminton players really believe that this racket should be £190?
However, the actual price is just £24.99, that makes a saving of £165.01 what a bargain! The reality is that it never did cost £190, not even when it was brand new. Ok, back to the review...
The spec says it is 80g. (From holding it i can say it is not 80g, more like 85g).
100% Oxygen Injected Carbon Titanium for the ultimate in lightness and durability
Widebody frame for power.
New technology 'box frame' head for superb stability in the head and crispness of shot.
New Browning flex system shaft technology for ultimate smash power.
Titanium strings for superb response.
Breathable grip for extra hand comfort.
Complete with quality full length protective headcase.
There is the technical jargon. It doesn't really mean a damn thing to me. The main points are that it has an isometric head shape, and one other glaring point missed on the spec is that it should say it is stiff. The balance is head light, but not too much.
I really do not want to go on about the technical fluff because underneath all this is a very good, well made badminton racket. In my opinion it has got to be one of the best value for money rackets you can buy. It is not a new racket, it is the 2007 model, but this is why it is so cheap, and the reason why racketworld can sell it so cheap, along with all their other rackets. They specialse in this market, and they beat everyone else out of sight.
I had this Browning strung at 30lbs with BG65, which was probably too high, however, the frame can take this tension no problem, so if you have one, and wondered what you can string it to, well you can safely go to 30lbs, probably more i reckon, but say goodbye to your shoulder if you do.
Control is excellent, power is also good. It feels solid, which is good news. It feels like a more expensive racket, which is also good news. It is not a hard work racket, it helps you out, and this makes it easier to use. There is not much more to say really, it is a good racket in my opinion, not as much power as the Apacs nano 999 power, but then again it is a little bit lighter. I would describe it as an all round racket, it does everything well.
The price is the real winner at £24.99, but if you bid for it you could even get it cheaper than this. The only drawback is the delivery charge, which is £7.95. This seems a bit excessive, but racketworld get a bit touchy when you mention this. They charge this amount because it is registered first class delivery, so you pay more for this. I can see why they do this. Afterall, the last thing you need is for someone to say "i have not received my racket". As the seller, racketworld would then have to send another racket out. If the buyer was being a little bit dishonest, they may have actually received the racket but just said they didn't, to get another for free.
I am sure this has happened in the past with racketworld, so the recorded delivery is to protect themselves as well as the customer. However, whatever the reason, it still means this badminton racket will cost an extra £7.95, which is a shame really, because at £24.99 it would be an even better bargain.
Racketworld are about to launch a new website. As a customer of their's in the past i was sent an e-mail to register for the new site. I have already done this, and i hope that now they have their own site, their prices may be even cheaper because they are not tied to ebay or amazon, so they do not need to pay them a slice of the profits. The big gamble is that they need to get their website infront of an audience so they can sell badminton rackets. I hope they are successful, they offer a great service and i have not heard a bad word said about them. Their feeback on ebay is 99.9% positive, so it proves they know how to sell and deliver low cost badminton rackets.
Friday, 24 April 2009
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13 comments:
Hi Antony
Thanks for your excellent reviews: your EdgeSabre 7 review was instrumental in my decision to buy one of these rackets - a decision which so far I have been very happy with!
I was wondering whether you could offer some comparisons between the Oxylite Ti80 reviewed here and the ES7. For example, how do their stiffness, weight, balance and power compare, and which do you feel is the better racket, both from a playing point-of-view and quality-wise?
Cheers
Toby
Hi Toby
I would say that the Oxylite Ti80 is stiffer than the Edgesaber 7 for sure. In all honesty the Oxylite feels more solid than the ES7, there is less twisting on impact as well. This is why it feels a more solid racket. The ES7 i tested was a bit lighter than the Oxylite. Power wise i would say that the Oxylite is more forgiving, that is to say it gives good all round power even if you don't quite hit your shot right. The ES7 is far less forgiving, but if you get it right, then you can get good power from it. Both are very good quality rackets, hardly any difference there. The Oxylite is an excellent racket for the money, that is why i recommend it. If you do get one i am sure you will like it.
Dear Antony,
First of all, thank you very much for your review of the Browning Oxylite Racquet as you are probably the only person that has reviewed it.
I am currently looking for a new racquet to use and the Browning range look very attractive due to the price being offered. I like head light racquets like the Yonex Arc Saber 7 and the Carlton Iso Blade (which my other half has commandeered off me), which racquet from the range would you recommend that fits in this category that is on par or better than the 2 mentioned above?
Your advice would be most grateful and thank you for your time.
Kind regards.
Hi Minicooper
The Oxylite 80 is the only one i have tested, so i can't give you a definitive answer as to which racket from the range would be best. I can tell you that the Oxylite 80 is very stiff, and the arcsaber 7 is a medium/ flexible racket, so the browning oxylite will play a bit different. It is head light though. You could try Apacs rackets, most of which are head light. Have a look at some of the reviews i have done on previous posts. They are also a lot cheaper then the equivalent Yonex and Carlton rackets. A further alternative could be the carlton airblade tour. This is one of my favourite rackets, and it is head light. The price is around £30-£35 from racketworld, who also sell the browning range. The ariblade tour is also pretty stiff.
Hi Antony,
Thank you for the advice, i definately will look at the airblade tour as i do like my previous carlton racquet very much.
Thanks again
Hi Minicooper
The ariblade tour is a few years old now, but when it came out it was a £100 racket, top of the carlton range. They don't make it anymore, but for some reason Racketworld have got all the old stock from Carlton. I have 3 of them which i bought from Racketworld many months ago. For the price it is great value. Jesus, i sound like a Racketworld rep!!
Hi Antony,
Thank you very much for your advice, after reading most of your past reviews i have opted to go for a carlton fireblade s-lite, which when held was most comfortable and resembled my carlton iso blade the most. Just wanted to say a thank you to you and keep up the good work.
Kind regards,
yeah, good reviews . keep up the good work. i use an oscure slazenger ti racket and it is superb. never really bought into the yonex thing.
Look, I agree with Anthony. I recently bought a pair of top APACS rackets and they are extremely good. Lower price and better performance.
Yep i know what you mean about apacs rackets, i have just bought 2 myself. I also test rackets for them and have posted amny reviews on this blog.
Hi,
I would like to thank you for the review. It helped me to make my mind and for today on I am an owner of Browning Oxylite Ti75, which I won for £19.99 on Ebay. It is exactly like you described. I am very pleased with it.
Which other Browning rackets would you recommend apart from Oxylite?
P.s.: There are no reviews of Browning rackets on the Net (at least I couldn’t find any) so I guess the Racketworld should be grateful for your help in “advertising” them.
Hi there
Thanks for the kind words about the blog, much appreciated. Well done on getting the racket at a great price, Browning are one of the secret supliers of badminton rackets that not many people bother to look at. They are missing out big time.
As far as other browning rackets go, i can't give you an accurate review because i have only played with the Oxylite 80, but if that is anything to go by, then any oxylite racket would be just as good. I would not go spending a lot of money for any browning racket though, you can get them cheap enough anyway, as you have just done. Good luck with the racket and your game.
whoaa its a nice article
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