OOAK Table Tennis Forum

Robot is great to refine technique. It is also great in working out spin and how to experiment strokes to counter it because it can consistently give you the same ball/spin/speed every time.

However, it is not the end all. IMHO, a coach helps correcting technique.

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I think the major problem with robots are the lack of effort you need to put in, unless you're defending or something.

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Chasse Patate

Personally I dislike robots! They are good if you have a coach watching you but most of the time your hitting hundreds of continuous strokes and all it takes is to get a touch of incorrect technique and your game is scared. VERY HARD to change technique after youv've hit about 100 shots

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Loop or be Looped.
><>~~~~~~~~~
Primorac Carbon
Hurricane 3 FH
Globe 999 BH

I know Coaches that charge $50.00 an hour, you come of the court pretty sure that you got more than your money's worth, you can also get coaches for $35.00 an hour, and you know all you've done is hired a glorified hitting partner, there are many coaches that fit in both categories
floating around in old sydney town, you find your best coaches by word of mouth, word does get around on the T.T. grapevine...................

Ozzie Rooster.........

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1: RE-Impact Tachi F/H Black Donic Bluefire M2 B/H Red Tibhar D-Tecs OX 136g
2: RE-Impact Ta hi F/H Black BTTY Tenergy 25 B/H Red Tibhar D-Tecs OX 136g
3: Xiom Zetro Quad F/H Black Xiom Omega V B/H Red Tibhar D-Tecs OX 160g
4: Donic Ovtcharov F/H Black Xiom Omega V B/H Red Tibhar D-Tecs OX 160g
5: Dr. N. Titan F/H Black Xiom Omega V B/H Red Tibhar D-Tecs OX 153g
6: TSP 8.5 Balsa F/H Black Xiom Omega V B/H Red Tibhar D-Tecs OX 146g
7: Darker Spd 90 1Ply F/H Black Donic Bluefire M2 B/H Red Tibhar D-Tecs OX 146g
8: Juic Hinoki 9mm 1Ply F/H Black Donic Bluefire M2 B/H Red Tibhar D-Tecs OX 151g

In the US 50 bucks an hour is about the price for a former US champion. A lot of excellent coaching in my city is available for 30-35 an hour.

Robots can mess you up if you don't use them right.

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Butterfly Viscaria Black tag
2.2 mm Nexy Karis M on FH and BH

Interesting thread. I always like it when these old threads come back to life.

I know that for me, having my Newgy 2040 is absolutely essential. But I am in a situation where I don't have access to coaching or a club. So it's really my only option. I do have a semi-regular playing partner but even that is not very consistent (especially considering summer vacations and the contraction of pneumonia by my partner).

I purchased my robot in March of this year and, while my progress has been slow, it has been absolutely consistent as I am noticing significant improvement over the last few months. Am I making mistakes in terms of my form and technique? Of course. But on the upside I have a playing partner who can deliver to me consistent strokes whenever and wherever I want to use it and it allows me to practice consistently three to four hours a day, including 300 to 400 practice services per day.

While I know my game is far from perfect (I'm not even willing to post videos of myself playing to this forum yet) it is making steady consistent improvement such that some day, when I move from these lonely mountains in Colorado and actually have the luxury of making the tough choice of whether to get coaching or not -- I will at least have the basics of a solid game in place to start from. That is, assuming I don't have the basics so screwed up that the coach has to start off from Ground Zero. If that happens I am done with coaching and will simply play recreationally for the rest of my life.

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Currently playing classic defensive style (a la Chtchetinine)
American Hinoki Single Ply 9mm Bald Cypress
Palio CJ8000/1.2mm Dawei Butter
Saviga V 0.6

Playing the Seemiller grip, good luck finding a coach won't try to change you to shakehand.

I think drilling with a live human is a lot better than a robot because there is more difference in the shots you receive plus you can experiment with shots and see the results. Also you experience the visual clues as to what spin is coming.

That said, since no one I know plays in my town (or county even), a robot is a necessity. Didn't like the Newgy, no variation. Now I have the Amicus 3000 Plus, which can alternate between topspin, underspin, no-spin and variations of the above, even in series, and I'm a lot happier.

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My whole set-up costs less than a sheet of Butterfly Dignics

Any such coach will simply be fired immediately! In fact, that will be the first question I ask him or her before I even hire them. I refuse to be forced into a mold to try and suit my coach. The coach should exist to suit ME.



No argument. Playing with my regular playing partner is very, very different from playing with the robot. While the robot can play with me any time I have availability and can play as long as I want as hard as I want etc. -- is too easy to be able to predict where the robot is going to place the next ball. After you have played with the robot for more than about 15 minutes you can tell just by the sound and the timing where the ball is going to be hit. This has a detrimental impact on my footwork because, since I receive a lot more clues as to where the ball is going to be hit from the robot than I do from a human player, I can sort of just slide over and cheat on my footwork rather than have to make a quick transition into my next shot.



Isn't that robot $2500? Now THAT could buy a lot of coaching!

There is no doubt that having a robot of that class is vastly superior to the Newgy 2040, if you can afford the price tag. But while I certainly do value my robot over coaching at this point in time, I would rather hold off on making such a large investment in the robot to save it for coaching at some point in the future. Perhaps your life situation dictates that you won't be able to move anywhere where you have the ability to get coaching anytime soon, but I'm hoping that I will be able to in the not too distant future!

With that said, I would love to play with a robot of that class -- I envy you!

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Currently playing classic defensive style (a la Chtchetinine)
American Hinoki Single Ply 9mm Bald Cypress
Palio CJ8000/1.2mm Dawei Butter
Saviga V 0.6

Damn you should come to China for a tabletennis vacation. That 50 bucks can get you 5 quality hours with a very very good coach, and if you go to the northeast of China, that is going to be even better.

During my year in China, I plan to get all the coaching I can. Everyone tells me Guangzhou is a good area and is not too far away.
I do wish I had a robot sometimes, especially when I try a new rubber. I am getting the hitting with the Peace Keeper down but I think it would have happened quicker if I had a robot to feed me. It was mainly figuring out blade angle. I can only ask my partner to spend so much time feeding balls. Really getting to like the PK.

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Shakehand, left handed.
Blade, Yinhe, W-1
Forhand, H-3 National
Backhand, Sriver FX Max

This makes it worth my while, but I tend to like easy multi-ball better than robots...odd.

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Viscaria. H2 Neo 2.15. Tenergy 05 1.9.

Yes, I like multiball better than a robot but I can work with a robot for any amount of time I want. It would be hard to ask someone to feed for 2 or three hours straight.

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Shakehand, left handed.
Blade, Yinhe, W-1
Forhand, H-3 National
Backhand, Sriver FX Max

Or loop for you to practice racket angles on blocks all day long.

I suddenly want one. Or a drill slave.

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Viscaria. H2 Neo 2.15. Tenergy 05 1.9.

And now that you are forcing me to get the Peacekeeper I will definitely be getting some extra reps with the 'bot! It is exceptional for training new rubber.

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Currently playing classic defensive style (a la Chtchetinine)
American Hinoki Single Ply 9mm Bald Cypress
Palio CJ8000/1.2mm Dawei Butter
Saviga V 0.6