Customer Reviews adidas Originals Rod Laver

Like the last reviewer, the sole of this shoe has changed in this latest re-issue. I have owned both the original green/white and blue/white classic tennis shoes as well as a newer colorful pair. They always had the lightweight foam sole, but I tried the blue combo that just came out and the white sole is a very heavy rubber. I am definitely returning them. The blue material also has more of a nylon sheen that shows in the picture. Nice, but not what I wanted.

So I already owned two pairs of the white ones (one with blue soles and and one with green soles). Other than the color, these shoes are identical. I just bought and received a red pair. It's a different shoe. While it's comfortable, it's noticeably heavier than the white ones, which I consider to be very light. The upper material in the red pair is different so I'm not sure if that's the reason for the heavier weight or if it's the sole which is also thicker than the white ones. The red ones are definitely cool but I wish they were lighter.

I have ordered these about four times from Zappos and for some reason this time I was not impressed maybe my feet have changed. They were great for work because I need mostly white shoes and the blue matched my uniform. They pinched my toes this time and just were not comfortable.

Cool looking tennis shoe. The white canvas mesh upper is a hassle to keep clean, though. Very little traction due to the flat hard outersoles. Not recommended for long stints on one's feet due to the so-so insoles. Low interior clearance, so not ideal for high arches or hammer-toes. Only medium width available so, not ideal for any feet wider than D width. Basically a tight looking sneaker with a tight feel at first. They're a staple of mine, but I don't wear them all the time. They may work well for you or not. You've been warned.

Love these shoes and used to wear them when I was a kid, but I found them to be too hard soled for me today (25 years later) for tennis. If it matters, I am a woman. Maybe a taller man would have no issue getting the shoe to flex. I also had to order a size 7 women's (perfect length, a little narrow). I usually wear a 7.5 or even an 8 because I like a little extra width.

My modest review has more to do with my pancake feet than the shoe. I love the look of the shoe; it's exactly what I want it to be. Unfortunately, the shoe runs too narrow for my flat feet. It's narrower than other comparable shoes (Converse All-stars, Nike Pro Sport). I ended up with the Nike Pro Sport canvas shoe. The Nike is fine for my feet but I just love the look of the Laver and wish they made a wide size.

I bought these shoes for my husband who uses them for the gym. He found them just "okay." They require some break-in time and are rather stiff.

I wanted a pair of these so desperately when I was younger about 2 years ago. My private school buddies had them and I did not, so when I saw them here I purchased. There are very sporty but I made the mistake of wearing them during a 3 mile march. They certainly are not meant for exercise and don't hold a candle to MBT's or New Balance. For being cute and short jaunts they will do.

Nice shoes... I purchased these for my 15 year old son. He was very pleased with them and says there very comfortable.

Classic looks but very uncomfortable - These shoes look great just like they always did but I don't remember them being so uncomfortable. After wearing them for about an hour my feet start to burn. Honestly, I can't wear these for any great length of time. Oh well, maybe they just need a good long break-in period.

These are (as everyone else attests) an awesome trainer. I was pretty surprised how comfy they were as I'd tried on a pair of my mates a few years ago and they felt horrible. The worst part though is that the nylon mesh fabric has become soaked with disco fudge and they just look really patchy and dirty.

Not great for women - These are great-looking sneakers, but they are really designed and sized for men. The correlation to women's sizing is off, mainly in the proportions. The whole toe area down to ball of the foot is too wide, probably for most women; so, the sneakers buckle at the front when laced for a secure fit. I love the look, but they are not as comfortable as they should be -- and they certainly are not suited for actually playing tennis. FRUSTRATING.

Adidas is slipping on quality - These shoes look great, and they're not entirely uncomfortable, but the quality of materials used is very questionable. Whereas the original Rod Lavers (I believe) had a traditional hard rubber outsole (as all tennis-specific shoes do), Adidas has instead used the softer midsole polyurethane material for both the midsole and outsole. The result? traction is a problem with these shoes out of the box. I nearly slipped and fell several times while walking on concrete/tile floors the first time I wore them. This does improve as the outsole gets scuffed up by the ground, but it just seemed ridiculous to me since these are TENNIS shoes! I can only guess that the Adidas "Originals" line is dedicated only to visual reproduction, and not quality or performance. Too bad, Adidas, I'll definitely try other "originals" shoes in store before buying.

Adidas Original Rod Laver - This shoe gave me the worst blisters on the top of my big toe ball mound. The problem is where the stitching for the laces are rubs on my feet (both of them). I am still breaking them in. I have never had a shoe that did this to me. They are so cute though.

Rod Laver review - I love the look, but they aren't comfortable at all. The sole insole burns my feet, and the mesh cuts into the front of my feet.

These hurt - I'm an Adidas guy. All my shoes are Adidas. These actually hurt my feet. Then when I step and my foot flexes the metal eyelet digs in to my foot. I can't return these since I wore them for a full day to try to break them in. They now just sit on my shoe rack.

Like others, I found this new version too heavy and narrow. I should have listened to what others said, but I HAD to see for myself. Don't be like me.

Great looking shoe but the sole on the left one has completely split after about six months of use.

Poor traction so it feels slick and like a cheaply made shoe. The white part at the toe scuffs very easily. It was scuffed by the first day and you cannot buff it out. I am not hard on my shoes. I am really disappointed and would not buy them again. The black mesh is certainly easier to keep clean than the white. This is the first time I have worn black and wish I had made another choice.

I have an older pair of the Lavers that are very comfortable but this new pair falls short on quality. They are also running a half size small so I will be returning these.

Uncomfortable, cheap materials - I have never owned a pair of Adidas shoes before. I have heard good things, so I thought I would give them a shot. The Rod Lavers were uncomfortable and I thought the materials used were sub-par. I broke my ankle and had to have surgery a couple years ago, so I have been wearing really supportive New Balances ever since. I experience no pain in my ankle and haven't for some time. However, after walking around in these shoes for 10-15 minutes, my ankle started to hurt. I went ahead and exchanged them, decided to give Adidas another shot and go with the Superstar IIs. That is a nice shoe... comfy and the materials are what I would have expected. More stylish than the Lavers, too, in my opinion.

Don't judge a shoe by its brand - Over the years I’ve been satisfied with Adidas quality shoes. But upon receiving these Rod Laver's I had to reevaluate my judgment. The shoe looks great out of the box, but take a picture, because it will never look near that decent again. After only 6 hours of wearing these shoes had accumulated dirt on the toe and tongue area, and excessively on the mid-heel area. No amount of bleach helped remove the stain, and I was only able to wear them once more before retiring them. Only consider these if you live in a bubble.

Great shoe until it fell apart - I loved my Rod Lavers - I had a pair 20 years ago and loved them then as well - but the sole started to come apart after only 3 months. True, I’m on my feet all day, but I’m not particularly hard on shoes. The soles of these started shredding and falling off in chunks! I bought ‘em for summer, but they didn't make it through spring.

Heavier (much) than they were before. Warning. I have had 4-5 pairs of rod lavers. I bought 2 new pairs of rod laver "originals" from adidas directly, and was so dissappointed. The material is not at all like it used to be, much worse quality. The soles are super-heavy. I actually weighed and compared, but I cant find the photo right now, but it is ridiculous. The new ones feel really cheap and heavy, and it totally destroys the rod laver feeling. I hope they stop making them that way and go back to making them with quality like before.