HOVR Infinite: Under Armour's latest running shoe offers a sturdy ride

It may not be the best pure running shoe around, but its remarkable efficiency makes it an excellent everyday option

Thanks to modern tech, almost everyone is delivering a decent running shoe. But how do you make a good shoe better? How do you stand out in a market where it’s impossible to tell two products apart? American sportswear major Under Armour seems to have found some answers.

The HOVR Infinite, Under Armour’s latest long-distance running shoe — one among five smashing new drops this summer — comes embedded with a chip in the right heel that allows you to instantly track your running performance: pace, distance, cadence and stride length. A few runs in and you can also gain access to some valuable coaching tips. Unfortunately, the shoe can only be linked through the Under Armour MapMyRun app, so if you like to have all your runs in one place, the HOVR Infinite is a slight dampener.

The shoe itself is an absolute winner. It’s a neutral runner with a lightweight mesh upper that breathes well and has enough support despite its soft texture. The outsole is surprisingly good, made up of rectangular carbon rubber pods ideal to pound the road with. The shoe initially feels a tad hard underfoot, but once you get the hang of it, offers a sturdy ride. There may be no springy feel to it, but the HOVR midsole is actually quite good: the technology is Under Armour’s take on high-energy return, which is ably supported by a charged foam topsole.

Syncing the shoe with your phone, however, is a slight issue — I could only get it going after five attempts. Also, running advice is available only post your run; real-time coaching — fixing your stride length, for instance — would’ve added some real value. And while the performance data is hugely beneficial, it would’ve been nice to have some unique stats, of the kind you wouldn’t ordinarily find in your average running app or fitness watch. 

Despite all that, what’s really going for the HOVR Infinite is its price. It may not be the best pure running shoe around, but its remarkable efficiency, coupled with its ability to give feedback, makes it an excellent everyday option.