Donic Appelgren Allplay

Along with the Stiga All Round Classic and Yasaka Sweden Classic, this blade is a solid and affordable all-round all-wood blade. It performs well in all aspects of the game, from loops, blocks, and pushes to chops and serves, and is well-balanced (averaging around 80g, but can be found lighter).

It has good feeling and falls into the ALL+ category (slightly faster than the Yasaka Sweden Classic). It has enough speed to end a point, especially when paired with Tensors. Its construction features an abachi core with layers of limba, resulting in a flexy blade with a noticeable amount of vibration.

Many players spend excessive money on equipment in the pursuit of the perfect combination. However, players below 1800 (US) and 1500 (UK) levels would benefit from choosing a versatile blade like this that offers high consistency and forgiveness.

If you prefer something slower and equally affordable, the Donic Defplay Senso is a suitable alternative. Its ayous wood construction provides even greater forgiveness and flexibility.

As a personal note, I have found that using long pips on one side of the Appelgren with 1.3mm or 1.5mm sponge can create a lively setup, but the flexibility works well for cutting the ball. The ALL+ rating provides more options on the inverted side compared to a DEF+ blade.

It is a decent blade.

I use it with Chinese rubbers.

Normally, I play with more expensive equipment, but I use this one to play a little bit during my breaks at work.

This is a suitable blade for beginners. An allround blade with average speed is recommended for starters. Avoid extremely fast or slow blades as they make certain strokes more challenging or easier. Initially, focus on developing a wide range of strokes.

Initially, avoid using high-tension rubber on this blade as it enhances its offensive capabilities. High-tension rubber imparts greater speed to your shots, but the returns may be equally fast, potentially hindering your ability to respond effectively. Consider using DHS Hurricane 3, Yasaka Mark V, or another high-quality rubber without high tension. This setup surpasses most pre-made rackets within the same price range.

Upon mastering the art of returning challenging serves, you can incorporate high-tension rubber into your setup. Don’t fret about being at a disadvantage with this setup; most speed and spin originate from the player’s skill rather than their equipment. Using an allround blade with non-tensioned rubber, you can achieve high speed and spin by striking the ball more forcefully and coordinating your body, arm, and wrist movements effectively.

This blade is an excellent choice for beginners. It offers a large sweet spot, making the game more enjoyable and helping you improve your control and technique. With its optimal control, you can progress rapidly and develop a solid foundation in table tennis.

I have recently switched from more attacking blades (Infinity VPS, Boll ALC) to this to try and improve my consistency and help to develop my touch and spin game. Changing to this blade has already made a huge difference after only using it for around 6 weeks. My opening loops are now more consistent than they have ever been with considerably more spin. The speed on this blade is not excellent, but it is more than sufficient for loop kills and loop drives. Control is a dream, making more controlled blocking and driving excellent when under pressure.

All in all, an excellent blade that I would say is suitable for beginners and advanced players looking to develop technique and not just rely on their blade for speed. For the price, I can’t imagine anything better!

Have it in cpen. This blade is a killer with control with Andro Rasant PowerGrip 1.7 or 1.9 on fh and Nittaku Hammond Pro Beta 1.8 on backhand. The ball just goes where I want it. Pair with these rubbers, and it’ll surely be a delight. Setup feels like a controllable offense blade. Not too heavy either, which was one thing I was worried about. Worth the money. If you’re looking for a great first paddle, get it. I like the pair with fast rubbers, but I’ve read it works great with Mark V as well for beginner set up.

A favor:

- Good control — Mixed play both backhand and forehand close to the table — Recommended for beginners

En contra:

- Uncomfortable handle and grip — Lacks feel, making it slightly difficult to control the stroke.

Decent Blade.

Here’s a history of what I’ve used and how it compares.

Note the overlapping setups for blade/rubbers.

1. Donic Appelgren Allplay (Flared) with Butterfly Sriver and Yasaka Mark V 2. Donic Appelgren Allplay (Anatomic) with DHS Hurricane 2 and Flextra 3. Stiga Allaround Classic (Flared Master) with Butterfly Sriver and Yasaka Mark V 4. Donic Appelgren Allplay (Flared) with Yasaka Razkza 7 soft and Tibhar Nimbus Sound 5. Nittaku Latika (Flared) with Yasaka Rakza 7 soft and Tibhar Nimbus Sound

Donic Appelgren Allplay vs Stiga All Around Classic - I preferred the Stiga. My shots with the Stiga landed more on the table than the Donic. For control and looping, the Stiga was better. However, for flat hitting the Donic was definitely faster. The Donic also felt heavier despite it being rated as lighter than the Stiga. For feel of the handle, the Stiga was way better than the Donic and I think even better feel than the Nittaku (surprisingly).

Donic Appelgren Allplay vs Nittaku Latika. Sound of the rubber when paired with the Donic was better. The Nimbus Sound rubber makes a chirp when brushing and a click when flat hitting. This sound was more pronounced on the Donic. NOTE: I’ve only used the Latika for 2 weeks so far so I’m not sure if there’s a breaking period needed.

The Latika seemed to ‘respond’ better than the Donic. Blocked shots would dwell a little longer on the Donic and shoot off the table. The Latika allowed me to direct the ball with a lower trajectory and more accurate aim. Loops with the Donic had better arc than the Latika.

Overall, I think the Donic Appelgren Allplay is a decent blade. When out of the box, the edges of the handle were still sharp so I had to sand it down a bit. For those learning to play, I would still recommend the Stiga All Around Classic because it has better control, better feeling handle, and forces you to use better mechanics.

I’d have to place this blade on the ALL--- side. I found this blade to flex well, creating great spin and dwell, but it was just a little too slow for me. Loop drives became a high percentage shot for me while using this blade, but just required too much effort to achieve and rarely past my better opponents.

Huge surprise from Donic. I came across it accidentally. Everything written earlier by these honorable gentlemen is confirmed. It has an extremely solid feeling with enough speed for attacking. It’s not as crazy fast as carbon blades, but its speed is more than enough to kill the ball. The balance is perfect, not head-heavy at all, despite max rubbers being applied. The control is much more than you can imagine. New dimensions are rising on the horizon. The ridiculously low price is because it’s an old warrior, and we’re misled by marketing gags. I bought it for ~20 bucks only. If Donic knew how great this blade is, they would charge us much more. A bag of greenbacks, if you ask me. I mean really. It’s an excellent choice after Stiga Allround wood if you need more UMPH :-) I feel obliged to rethink my earlier comments and reviews :-/ I LUV it…

Very good control blade. You can do all the strokes.

Picked this up from Tommy Fitzgerald Table Tennis for Euro 20 as a spare blade as opposed to splashing out on a premade. Excellent all-round blade, but the Flared handle is fairly big, so it wouldn’t suit the missus. If one were looking for a more meaty blade than a Stiga All-round, this would suit. Works well with medium-hard rubbers if you’re looking for more performance.

The blade offers excellent control and is not as slow as it appears. The performance is heavily influenced by the chosen rubbers, the player’s abilities, and their preferences. In the right hands, it can unleash its full potential and become an exceptional blade. Overall, it ranks among the finest blades available on the market.

As many have stated, this blade is a classic.

Speed isn’t the best parameter of this blade, but control and feel definitely are. Practically, you can play with it everything. It’s good for beginners and all-around players.

Wow! This is the best blade I have used so far. It offers great control, which is truly exceptional. The speed is more than adequate, provided you have the correct stroke technique and don’t rely solely on the blade for power. This blade allows you to generate a lot of spin, power, and precision. It also has very good feel and feedback, with just the right amount of vibrations. Using this blade has greatly improved my confidence in my strokes.

I have had this blade since I started playing in 1995. I have tried numerous other blades, but this is the only one that has stayed with me. It is perfect for my style of play, which is a modern all-rounder with aggressive backhand and slow forehand loops. I honestly would not change this blade for anything.

If you want an all-round blade that can do it all, look no further; this is the one. Combined with Butterfly 64, it will be fast, and the spin is just incredible! Easy to block and push with. What you put into it will come out, so it’s up to your own technique. Highly recommended!

Excellent all-around blade, arguably the best in its speed range. It provides a unique blend of speed, control, and feel.

An ideal stepping stone for developing players and a keeper for all-rounders, this classic blade excels in its intended strategies and has virtually no drawbacks.

The FL handle may be an issue for some, as it tends to be thinner and wider than most FLs, which appears to be a common trait of Donic blades.

Despite not being the optimal choice for my aggressive playstyle, I still value this blade as one of my favorite spares, paired with TG3/Sriver.

Very Good ALL+ Round blade. The ST handle is too chunky for me, but the FL is fine.

I play Chinese pen style and started with a Hurricane Hao pre-assembled with Hurricane 2 and Skyline 2. It was too heavy and powerful for me, but there are few C Pen style blades that are light, all-wood, and emphasize control over speed. This blade is one of them, and I haven’t been disappointed so far. I use Yasaka New Era on forehand and Donic Vario Big Slam on backhand.

This setup seems to have liberated me: I can hit pretty hard on the forehand without going off the table, and I can get heavy spin on the backhand without too much speed, helping me keep the ball on the table. If I used something less aggressive than New Era, I’d likely have even better control on the forehand.

I’m just an advanced beginner and don’t know many different blades, so don’t put too much weight on my opinion. But for what it’s worth, it’s difficult to go wrong with this blade. If you’re starting with C Pen style, it ticks all the boxes: light and enough control to help you master RPB.

Note that the C Pen version is claimed to weigh 74g at the Jasupo website.

This blade is one of the best you can find if you want to be able to do everything with a blade. You can play very offensively with it, also very defensively, and all strokes are very controllable with it. Blocking is fun with it, and you can exactly decide how fast the ball should be.

My recommendation: Not only for beginners but also for the typical all-rounders and modern defenders. For attackers, this could be too slow though.

Good blade for beginners.

Exceptional Allround blade, this one is a can’t-go-wrong option. Not very fast, but comes with enough speed to allow for a variety of shots. Provides ample control, which allowed me to develop a great “relationship” with my old one.