It’s race test time as Tester Mike headed into Central London to tackle the Asics London 10k. On his feet were the Asics Magic Speed 3, in his ears, the new Shokz OpenFit and on his wrist a Casio G Shock packed with Polar’s heart rate smarts.
Find out if Asics’ latest generation Magic Speed impressed along with the rest of the kit below.
(Thanks to Asics for providing the media entry for this race and the review sample used in this video. We have not been paid to cover this race or shoe.)
JUMP STRAIGHT IN:
00:00 – Intro and kit being tested
04:33 – Asics Magic Speed 3 10k Race Test
08:53 – Other kit tested – Shokz OpenFit and Casio G-Shock DW-H5600
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Foreign Testers it is just before 7 00 a.m I am Getting ready to head and to Central London to do the Asics London 10K thanks To Asics for sorting out the spot Um I have decided to test a few things The main thing being the Asics magic Speed 3 uh NASA's house asked me to test This uh I asked if I could try it out It's uh kind of recently launched in the UK Um I you know I've raced in the original Magic speed I've used a Max Speed 2 a Lot we reviewed that and myself and Nick Did Um definitely preferred the second one To the first one but somehow didn't Quite work it into my rotation hasn't After testing which I think is probably Uh you know a big sign as to in terms of How it kind of compared to other shoes I Would use for the same sort of training Sessions that I think the magic Speed 2 And the magic speed Series in general is Designed for now obviously a magic Speed 3 there's some changes here you have now Got the kind of full-length complex Sandwich between uh kind of two layers Of FF blast plus Um foam and you know obviously it was uh Just the one and it was a TPU play uh in The magic Speed 2 as well so hopefully Should feel a little bit more forgiving I guess um obviously I'm going to be
Doing a 10K with it see how it handles Obviously it's kind of 150 160 pounds Pretty good in terms of those kind of You know new breed of kind of super Trainers that we're starting to see Um from other brands as well Um so yeah I'm just really getting you Know interesting to see how it's going To handle kind of race conditions Whether it's kind of go cheaper kind of Race option there's elements of the kind Of top end map speed Um Skyline here as well in terms of the Upper so yeah just interesting how it Runs I haven't run in it at all actually I've mainly been walking around in it um So yeah let's see how it kind of handles Um elsewhere I have got Um I've got the Casio or Casio G-Shock Uh watch on which has some of the Polar Kind of heart rate smarts in it so I've Done a couple of runs with it and it's Connected GPS I have to use my phone I'm Gonna have to carry my phone with me Um so I'll be having that on my wrist at The next 2D 40965 to test out the heart Rate uh tracking performs Um elsewhere I've got these shocks open Fit I literally got these yesterday and So these are shocks's kind of new open Ear Um kind of ear hook design Um earbuds so move away from the kind of Neck band style design it sits at the
Top end of its range it's 180 pounds so Not cheap uh and it ditches the bone Conduction Um you know approach to delivering the Audio so it's kind of essentially Putting speakers nearer to your ears Um and yeah interested to see how that Performs just performance wise in terms Of the sound quality making sure it does Stay put because that's a big reason People go for the kind of neck band Style shocked headphones the fit and you Know reliability of the fit is a big Reason to go for it as well as keeping You aware of things around you you know Particularly in kind of race conditions As well just seeing how the battery life Holds up you know not expecting to be You know out there for a long time but Interesting what the drop-off is when You're using maybe some of the other EQ Modes that are available on these Headphones as well so looking forward to Testing those I've chucked on the ultra Human Um Uh um smart ring as well I I'm a Long-term user of the aura so I've got That on I'm still collecting data you Know at that stage I'm just creating the Bass line so I'll try that on it as well Um so yeah mainly magic Speed 3 Um the shocks open fit and then also the Casio G's shock and seeing how Polaris
Kind of heart rate smarts kind of Compare Um to the 40965 so yeah I'm gonna head Off now I will Um do a little bit debrief after the Race and uh yeah I'll let you know I get On see ya thank you Foreign [Music] So Asics 10K in the bag there'd be the Medal I think I did Um I think 42 43 I think probably close To 43 minutes today obviously quicker Than uh the Lee Valley Bellow Park but I Did a race I did with Um Nick a few weeks ago so getting there Times are going back down again so very Happy about that speed is coming back a Little more confidence are running Closer to my kind of usual times Um speaking of speed obviously I was Running in the Asics magic speed three Ends It's a lovely shoe I mean I think I've Raced in the original Um magic speed and obviously I think With that shoe definitely a little bit On the firmer side Um isn't a shoe that I use long term Really might just be two definitely a Massive Improvement definitely felt in Terms of the changes that Asics made With that shoe it felt like a better Daily Trainer shoe
In terms of what we're getting with the Magic Speed 3 it's part of that new Breed I think of those kind of super Trainers that we've started to see and We're talking about and we're going to Do some you know more than that on the Channel as well so these shoes that are Built for speed training you know speed Work but also potentially you can use Um for racing as well and on that kind Of on that course it felt pretty good Um overall I felt um very good I think The biggest thing I think I really Noticed with this and obviously I've run With the race with the medicine sky and I think with this definitely puts you a Little bit closer to the ground but I Think the level of cushioning is very Good Um I think you know there's enough kind Of level of cushioning there to make it Feel comfortable but I also think pretty Responsive as well in terms of what you Feel in the shoe the outsole is great I Think that's kind of outsoles in general Are really really good and I think on The this course is kind of very twisty Kind of at places you have to kind of Flip kind of back on the course and kind Of cornering it was absolutely perfect In terms of what you get from the Outsole level of grip felt very good I Think you know it's nice and light I Like the fact that the upper is a lot
Closer to the meta speed Um Skyline Sky Plus which you know keeps The weight down but also think you know You're getting a good light shoe I think Interestingly I think the fit is is Quite an interesting because I Definitely think it feels a little bit More snug than the previous shoes and I Don't know if that's something maybe There might be an argument to go maybe Half size up in an issue I had it in a UK size a and definitely feels a little Bit more snug than it does on or did on The magic Speed 2 I think obviously the Mass speed sky and Sky Plus as well Um so maybe there's a there's maybe a Change in the terms of fit you're Getting here particularly against that Kind of top end Um racing shoe from Asics as well but There's no problems no no discomfort From that point of view And it felt pretty good yeah I felt very Very good in it I think it feels like a Better shoe for racing and why not also I think one using it for Speed work as Well I think ultimately the magic speed And the magic Speed 2 it's not a shoe That ended ended up in my rotation but I Do think this would be closer in terms Of things I do use those types of runs So things like the Hawker Mach 5 which Is something that I do use on a regular Basis my rotation I don't absolutely
Love the Endorphin Speed 3 but Um from a fit point of view but I think In terms of rivaling that shoe I Definitely think it's up there and I Think getting those elements of the top Tier A6 shoes into this shoe for less Money I think it's a really good thing And it definitely feels like a nicer Shoe to run and race it and I definitely Did today compared to the tank headed The magnetic speed I didn't definitely Feel like this is a much better suited Shoe and I think it's going to sit very Well in terms of those top tissues and Also I think if you're looking for a I Think a speedy shoe that you potentially Race in I think the key thing is whether You can go the distance in the shoe I'm Not going to need to do more running in It and Nick's got this as well so Obviously we'll do a full review and We'll have some longer runs in it but I Think in terms of 10K it felt absolutely Fine I felt like it can really kind of Roll through in this shoe it just felt Very comfortable I like the lower feel In terms of what you get here and the Cushioning just feels just about right Um I say the fit would be the only thing I think maybe you could argue going Maybe half size up in the shoe based on My UK size eight but ultimately really Enjoyed running in the shoe Um and I think it's definitely one of
The potentially I think less so than the More so than the magic Speed 2 and the Original motor speed that actually I Will start using this in my rotation for Speed Run I kind of speed work daily Kind of training kind of all that Tempo Stuff and also track stuff as well Because I think it's definitely better Suits it's that overall Good Okay so other things I was testing today Is the other really big thing I was Looking at was the shocks open fits this Is the first run that I've done with the Open fit so obviously this is shock's First pair of headphones it doesn't use Bone conduction headphones so basically Like wearable speakers position you know Either side of your ear and kind of Delivering ultimately a bigger sound More customizable sound and bone Conduction where you just don't have That customization or level of Customization you do have for headphones Like this so we've tested headphones Like this before Brands like clear and Other dance which Nick has tested as Well there's a few other brands out There I've got another pair from a brand Called sivago which do open ear Headphones as well so there's this new Breed of open ear headphones that don't Use bone conduction ultimately to offer Better Saturday the first thing for me
As if it is interesting I think you've Got this kind of hooks you know hooks Around the ear and then you drop the Speak inside here but ultimately I found It was kind of Clinging On at the Beginning of the race and I did play Around at that first couple of k Um because I was worried it was going to Move out of place I think after that it Felt generally fine but I think if You've got to have to think about the Fits and how reliable it's going to Securely stay in place and I think There's a question mark I think sound Wise I think it's fine it's not Best in Class in terms of that open air Sound in terms of what you get here but It is customizable I had it in kind of The Uh kind of bass boost you know I Listened to a lot during bass when I Race so I had that kind of my Hospital Records podcast on and that was kind of You know I needed the kind of bass boost Mode and that's what I went for and you Know profile was pretty good it's not Super clear not super balanced but it's Very good and definitely bigger sound Than shocks is kind of bone conduction Headphones in general battery life Um I think I had it for an hour because I had them on when I was kind of Standing in the in the pens and I think Um I think I had it 90 and it dropped to
Kind of 60 and obviously I think it was You know so it's it survived an hour's Worth of running but the drop-off was Pretty big and I had it pretty loud I Was getting told on my watch they're Going to turn the volume down so it's Too loud those kind of iPhones pairing Headphones to iPhones kind of generally Too which is very good Um but yeah so Bachelor fine fits the Design I'm not 100 convinced I do feel Like there's some better kind of suited And open-air designed headphones that Kind of offer a more secure fit they did Stay put but I think ultimately those First Um a couple of K I was playing around With the fit and it was bothering me so I definitely think that's something I'll Be looking to see if that is something Replicated you my other ones before we Do a full review on that the only other Thing worth kind of mentioning here from A testing point of view is I was testing A Casio G-Shock which uses connected GPS So you do have to well you've got kind Of accelerometer based tracking which Obviously is never the most accurate so What I want to do is use connect to GPS Obviously having the app open connected To your to the watch would obviously Improve the GPS actually not sure I got A reliable connection because the Distance tracking compared to the 40965
I wasn't already there I haven't checked Into the heart rate properly yet but It doesn't look like it was absolutely Immaculate And again it didn't track the full Distance so again very early into Testing with that I think it's interesting that Casio Um are doing uh or using posts and Algorithms and software and Hardware to Kind of pull in that more accurate heart Rate tracking ultimately though the core Collect space in terms of run tracking And the GPS performance It didn't really work for me today again Early days in terms of testing really About how I got on with the magic Speed 3 which is definitely a positive uh the Shocks open fit maybe a mixed bag okay But definitely got some question marks About the fit Um based on that first run okay so they Have it that is my uh 10k race test of The Asics magic speed three the shocks Open fit and a couple other bits I've Been testing as well obviously the race Itself I've done this one before Um you know obviously it's in central London you know you've got to kind of do Some twists and turns to get around the Course it felt pretty good there's a Kind of one maybe little kind of niggly Kind of Hill uh but generally felt good The conditions were good you know it
Wasn't it didn't rain it wasn't too hot A little bit muggy but generally fine I Think it was about 18 000 people doing It today Um and yeah pretty good I obviously got A lot of shout outs uh beginning and at The end of the race as well which is Always appreciated one of Tom's mates Terry from his running club Geico Mohammed who chatted to me and a guy who Came all the way from Isle of Wight as Well we had a good chat so yeah and Showed a lot of love to the channel so Thanks so much for that we appreciate it As always obviously thanks to the Asics For Um offering the race place for today as I said I haven't paid us to talk about The Asics magic Speed 3 just giving us a Place to go out and run and I know Thanks thanks to them for sorting that Out obviously we'll have a full review In the magic speed three he wants me and Nick have done a bit more running in it Do some verses if you've got any shoes You want to know how it compares to Obviously let us know about that as well But yeah I am going to head home now do My recovery yeah see you for the next Round test this video [Music]