About Yonex 

【Foundation year】: 1946

【Headquarters】: Tokyo, Japan

Yonex is one of the most well known badminton brands in the world which manufacturer its products in Taiwan, China and Japan. They are based in Japan and was founded in 1946. The company first began manufacturing badminton rackets in 1957. In 1980, they made the first ultra-lightweight badminton racket called the Carbonex 8.Beyond that, they’ve been a world leader multiple times with their newest technologies.They currently have nanometric technology that connects carbon fibers more closely together without any spaces. This feature gives you a super-strong, lightweight racket frame.Yonex are also one of the sport’s biggest sponsors. In fact they sponsor many tournaments. 

The Yonex racquets are the best for enhancing acute smashes, stability and speed. Badminton is designed to flex on the impact point and to handle the shuttlecock properly. The best feature about these racquets are, they are best suited for both the amateurs as well as expert players.Nearly 80% of the world’s best players use Yonex.While Yonex offers a variety of different kinds of rackets, they specialise in power rackets. All Yonex rackets offer better control, efficient sweet spots, and maneuverability, making them the ideal Badminton racket for any player.Yonex also produce a range of clothing, footwear, bags, shuttlecocks, strings, grips and other accessories. If it’s to do with badminton they make it, including stringing machines.

All in all, Yonex is a superb-quality badminton racket manufacturer. You really can’t go wrong choosing a racket that fits your needs from this brand.

Where to buy：

• Walmart: up to 4% super cash back

• Amazon

TWO Best Yonex Badminton Rackets 2024

1.Yonex Astrox 99 Pro Badminton Racket(@Amazon)

Price: $240

The ASTROX 99 is a head-heavy power racquet, boasting the heaviest swing weight of the ASTROX series. It’s known to generate a single, powerful smash, often too heavy to be speedy in recovery. In response, Yonex worked hand in hand with Kento Momota to craft a racquet that would give him both power and the ability to convert defensive plays into offense; the result is an improved ASTROX 99 where decisive power is accompanied by extended shuttle hold for enhanced defensive shot-making.

Yonex has introduced a new technology known as “VOLUME CUT RESIN” in the Astrox 99 PRO.“VOLUME CUT RESIN” is a new type of epoxy resin that has been used to construct the entire frame of the racket. It is lighter in weight and has excellent strength.

2.Yonex ArcSaber 11 Badminton Racket(@Badminton Warehouse)

Price: $210+

Yonex Arcsaber 11 is one of the most celebrated rackets currently on the market. It comes with all the essential and exciting features to make your game enjoyable as you look forward to stunning your opponent with powerful smashes during your games.

The head frame of Yonex ArcSaber 11 was made with Sonic Metal which would result in improved flexibility and leads to quicker and more accurate shots. Combined with the T-ANCHOP would provide a more stable shot.

The inner frame was made with Neo CS CARBON NANOTUBE for improved toughness and frame flexibility to hold the shuttlecock longer on the stringbed, which would result in better control and accuracy for returning shots.Because of the less head-heavy design so it doesn’t cost much effort to swing the Arcsaber 11.This is one of the rackets that are suitable for beginners to advanced level players.

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About Li-Ning

【Foundation year】: 1989

【Headquarters】: Beiing, China

Li-Ning is a company based in China and was founded in 1989 by a famous gymnast called Li Ning (go figure), who won 3 gold medals in the 1984 Olympics. It provides various sporting goods including clothing, footwear and of course badminton racquets.The Chinese brand is one of the most important and leading brands which provides the badminton racquets around the world.

It is often used by the Chinese national team and is one of the high-end Badminton brands in the market. They use incredibly light frames on their rackets while still providing excellent stability and aerodynamics.These rackets are designed for intermediate and advanced players, as it can be quite difficult to get used to them.Li-Ning has 3 BWF approved shuttlecocks – the Li-Ning A+600, Li-Ning A+ 300, and Li-Ning A+ 100.Their current product line-up includes the following series:

• Super Force
  

• U-Sonic

• Turbo Charging

• Windstorm

• 3D Calibar

• Aeronaut

Where to buy:

• Amazon

• L-Ning Badminton

• Badminton Warehouse

TWO Best Li-Ning Badminton Rackets 2024

1.Li-Ning 3D Caliber 900i Badminton Racket（@L-Ning Badminton）

Price: $219

The 3D CALIBAR 900I badminton racket is built on the 3D Calibar Technology Platform and features a high-tech, geometric badminton racket frame design that greatly reduces air resistance. It produces faster swing speeds for bigger smashes and gains outstanding reviews from strong players looking for maximum power.

Although it won’t offer you killer power, the racket can definitely offer you with reasonable smash power that you need.You can play a deceiving trick easily with the maneuver of this racket as you can exert less power because the shaft of this racket is very flexible.

2.Li-Ning Aeronaut 7000 Badminton Racket(@L-Ning Badminton)

Price: $150

The AERONAUT 7000 badminton racket is built on the Aeronaut Technology Platform with a unique air-stream channel integrated into the racket head. This reduces air resistance which helps to generate faster shuttlecock speeds. It’s suitable for players looking for the best control with little to no sacrifice in power.

About Victor

【Foundation year】: 1968

【Headquarters】: Taipei, Taiwan

Victor is a company based in Taiwan and founded in 1968.Over the past 50 years, VICTOR has grown from a small shuttlecock-making factory to a house-hold badminton brand, creating huge market success ranging from rackets, courts, apparel, footwear, and accessories.Now one of the sports leading names, VICTOR sells an impressive 36-million shuttlecocks annually.Their products are now available in more than 60 countries spanning some five continents.

The quality of the Victor racquets is staggering and perfect for delivering powerful smashes. Mostly the racquets of Victor are light-weighted and easy to use. These racquets are made up of carbon graphite and are surprisingly durable. These are among the perfect racquets for the amateur badminton players, but the expertise players also prefer the Victor racquets. Victor is tied with Yonex for having the most number of BWF approved shuttlecocks – they are the Victor Master Ace, Victor Master No. 1, Victor Champion No. 1, and Victor Gold Champion.The Victor racquets are used by some of the leading players such as Gao Ning and Yang Wei.

Where to buy:

• Amazon

• Badminton Alley

• Badminton Warehouse

TWO Best Victor Badminton Rackets 2024

1.Victor Jetspeed 12 Badminton Racket(@Amazon)

Price: $223.05

Victor Jetspeed 12 proves to be the best racket for players who place much preference on speed regardless of price which comes with all the essential features to make your game enjoyable as you look forward to shocking your opponent with powerful smashes during your games.

The racquet is made of Hi-Resilient Modulus Graphite, TERS and PYROFIL. These are resistant but lightweight materials, with which you can make the most of your racquet. The PYROFIL material ensures that the blows that are released during the blow are silenced as much as possible. The isometric shape the blade provides a larger sweet spot during hitting. This makes it easier to hit the shuttle in the right place on the racket.

Talking of speed, this racket is equipped with increased speed and designed with the advanced Twin Epoxy Resin System (TERS) for easy control. It is also furnished with resistant modulus graphite and hard core technology.

2.Victor Auraspeed 90S Badminton Racket(@Amazon)

Price: $224.25

Nicknamed as “Razor Sharp” the Victor AuraSpeed 90S badminton racket is one-of-a-kind. The Auraspeed 90S is a speed-type racket that is very easy to use. It has a low counterweight and balance point. It featured with larger sweet spot and a shaft with less stiffness.

The Auraspeed is a series similar to the Brave Sword and Jetspeed series designed for speed. These rackets are known for their fast handling and resilience, which provides a balance of both speed and power.

The frame of the Victor Auraspeed 90S is configured with blade-like structures to increase the aerodynamics of the racket swing, making each stroke swift and sharp.

Comparision Table

How to Choose A Badminton Facket?

Technically there's 3 important aspects you want to look for when choosing a racket:

• Balance

• Weight

• Grip Size
  

• Shaft Stiffness / Flexibility

1.Balance

All Badminton racquets can be categorised based on their balance, or where the weight of the racket is largely located. The three categories are: Head-Heavy, Even-Balance and Head-Light. There are also in between ones of course, but most players refer to them as these three. The balance of a racket can usually be found written somewhere on the shaft.The following chart highlights each types strengths and weaknesses:

2.Weight

Weight can make a real difference to reaction speeds and power: Too light and the racket may not be powerful enough; too heavy and quick movements needed for defensive or flat exchange can become difficult. 

The weight of the racket is usually denoted by “U”; the smaller the number, the heavier the weight of the badminton racket. The weight of a racket can be found on the cone and is often seen together with the grip sizing. Racket weights can be categorized into several categories:

1U: 95-99g

2U: 90-94g

3U: 85-89g

4U: 80-84g

5U: 75-79g

6U (F): 70-74g

A good badminton racket usually weighs around 80g to 100g.Lightweight badminton rackets are highly recommended for beginners. They should weigh between 85g to 89g (3U) as such rackets are usually easier to control.Single players usually use a slightly heavier racket such as 3U rackets to ensure stability while doubles players use 4U rackets for more speed allowing them to react quicker against their opponents.

3.Grip Size

Just like the weight of a racket, grip sizes also vary.  They are usually found on the cone of the racket along with the racket's weight.Grip Sizes are measured by “G + Number”, the smaller the number, the larger the handle.The following are grip sizes (circumference in inches) that Yonex and Victor follows:

G1: 4 in

G2: 3.75 in

G3: 3.5 in

G4: 3.25 in

G5: 3 in

G6: 2.75 in

The grip size for every player is different as it is dependent on their personal preference.  Smaller grip sizes will allow for more finger power/wrist action to be used whereas a bigger grip size will utilize more of the arm. Generally UK and European Badminton Players are preferring to go for smaller grip sizes these days.If you don't know which size to get, it is recommended that you get the smallest grip size available to you as you can always add on an over grip to make it bigger if necessary.  And also because you are limited by how much you can decrease the grip size.

4.Shaft Stiffness / Flexibility

Shaft flexibility is just as crucial as balance when purchasing a badminton racquet, and the correct level for you is dependent on your wrist/arm speed. There's general 3 categories – Stiff or Medium and Flexible. 

• Stiff shafts are suited to players with refined technique and fast and powerful swing. 

• Medium stiffness rackets are ideal for players with a developing technique and lesser arm speed. 
  

• Flexible shafts offer more power and speed for the beginners or slow arm speed players and are easy to maneouvre.
  

If you're still unsure what to choose for yourself, we'd recommend going for a medium flex badminton racket.

5.Other Considerations

Stringing: For beginner and intermediate players string tension of 15 - 22 lbs. is recommended; advanced players should use 22-28 lbs. The higher the tension on the frame the more fragile it becomes. String breakage also becomes more likely. Thinner gauge and rougher micro texture string gives superior feel during play but much reduced durability and is therefore best suited for professional players. Thicker gauge, smoother string will be longer lasting but is correspondingly less responsive.

Frame: Low-torque performance and a solid feel on impact come from a high-tension graphite composite frame. More expensive racquets generally use higher yield modulus graphite to reduce frame torque.

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