One oft-heard comment with first time Newton runners is the favorable impact on their running speed, attributed to the Action-Reaction technology lugs incorporated into the sole, roughly under the metatarsals. In prior Newton shoes the presence of these lugs were typically immediately apparent while walking, as the walker notices to a greater extent the lugs' height. However, Newton's Kismet shoes incorporate tapered lugs, so the shoe is more comfortable while walking and is therefore more versatile and comfortable.
My intuition about the effect of Newton's tapered versus standard lugs is that a bit less energy recovery results, and this may result in a slightly slower running speed. This impression is reinforced from Newton's own marketing material which uniquely includes the word "fast" in reference to the POP 1 design of the Motion and Gravity, and not the POP 2 design of the new Kismet or Fate. However, any running speed reduction of the Kismet versus the Motion, if present, is insignificant.
As a major advantage for first time Newton buyers the low $129 MSRP of the Kismet will hopefully encourage more runners to give them a try.
