For some strange reason within the past 5 years or so I observed that shoe designers for companies that were well known by runners for making WIDE shoes stopped making truly WIDE shoes. This included Saucony and New Balance. They would label a shoe WIDE and the toe box was cramped and narrow. In fact I purchased an "extra wide" pair of New Balance to use for shooting hoops just so I could get my OTC orthotic inside and have ample room in the toe box. And my feet are "normal" width per my podiatrist. Imagine if I had duck feet? They would never fit.
Thankfully I am able to report that New Balance has returned to the game providing a truly WIDE shoe.
I ordered the men's 12 WIDE all black 608 shoe. My usage is for a upscale corporate security officer position in a high-rise where our uniform is a black sport coat, white dress shirt, black or gray tie and black slacks. I opted for this style of shoe because it looks better than a black running shoe.
LOOKS:
-- IMHO it will not appeal to the younger crowd. The aesthetics simply are not designed that way from the stitching to the overall design and including the width. But for my needs it is just fine.
-- It gets a B grade for looks
COMFORT:
-- I would give it an A- or better so far
-- I inserted an OTC orthotic (and removed the included one) and that surely helped
-- I walk approximately 9K to 16K steps per day patrolling our building and parking garage and everything in between escorting vendors etc.
-- Walking on concrete is going to be a challenge for any shoe, but this shoe responded quite well.
-- Since I walk so much I will likely be replacing these every 3-4 months when the cushioning is shot.
-- I mostly sit or walk on my job with little standing, but when I did stand in brief increments when at the desk or escorting vendors they did the job.
-- This is a LIGHTWEIGHT shoe
SIZE:
-- This is a true WIDE and the size 12 is very accurate.
-- I wear a size 12 shoe 98% of the time and this is a definite 12.
-- My podiatrist said my feet are of a NORMAL width (not narrow and not wide), but since I use OTC orthotics for plantar fasciitis I often need WIDE shoes to get my orthotic to fit. These are quite roomy for me and borderline almost too roomy for my "normal" width sized foot. Bear this in mind.
SLIP-RESISTANT:
-- Not tested as spills rarely occur in my workplace nor greasy floors
REASON I PURCHASED:
-- Reasons already mentioned and I saw a Men's Health review that ranked this shoe as their #2 best for walking and as you can see I walk a lot.
-- If it keeps performing well I could see getting this as a walking shoe for the neighborhood when my other walking shoes wear out and when my other New Balance shoes I use for shooting hoops by myself (for exercise only) wear out I will likely opt for these for those purposes.
VALUE:
-- Price is fair for quality of shoe received
Christine McGinn
IamJustRick