Expert Product Review: New Balance 890v3 Running Shoe

The team at SwimOutlet.com and RunOutlet.com will be running in The Color Run 5k San Jose this month, so we thought we’d try out a pair of colorful running shoes as training gets underway this week!

The growing popularity of lightweight running shoes has been building for the past several years, but what seemed to be primarily a fashion-driven movement done for looks and style has very much become a functional development as some of the best running brands have entered into the category with terrific designs.

A few of the brands that focus on running technology have been putting a greater emphasis on making these lightweight shoes into terrific running shoes by their own accounts – not just resting on the laurels of the low-profile silhouette itself.

The New Balance 890v3 very much falls into this category: a good-looking, lightweight shoe that still doubles as a terrific runner. At 9.55 oz, it’s roughly 25% lighter than New Balance’s classic 990v3 design – so it checks the lightweight test.

The 890v3’s minimal mesh upper is incredibly comfortable yet still provided adequate protection and support despite its thin, lightweight construction during our 5-mile test run on the asphalt trail behind the office. The welded seams with no-sew application keep weight down – and gives the shoe a sleek and refined look.

For someone who over-pronates like myself, the shoe still provided solid support and the guidance in the midsole and tread; it even guided me to strike along the outside part of my sole with each stride.

The toe box area is snug but very comfortable and I truly felt fast in my 890v3s. Whether that’s a function of their lightweight or New Balance’s cushioning technology, I’m not sure. It could just be mental.

But my female counterpart tested the female New Balance 890v3's and also had similar positive reviews: “I loved how these felt. I really noticed the lightweight attributes of the shoe,” she said after the 5-mile test. “I primarily use orthotics, but I was able to run without them and my feet and legs left fine during and after the run. The only thing I would change is the length of the laces. I double knotted them and they were still too long.”

True enough, the long laces were my only real complaint. If you lace them all the way to the last holes, then maybe the laces are the right size, but who laces that far for running shoes? How much would it cost to offer a pair of shorter ones in the box?

In general, the New Balance 890v3 are a running shoe that can be a versatile sneaker for summer trips, while using them for runs on the side – but they are also plenty technical if they are kept fresh in the closet for those speedy 5k runs in the neighborhood.

Our next 5k is May 18th in San Jose and we’ll be wearing our colorful 890v3’s while representing RunOutlet.com!