Pickleball Apes Zen S+ Review

The power doesn't surprise you. The pace tracks your swing speed, so the harder you swing, the more you get, and the face never throws in a burst of pace you didn't ask for. It does take a few sessions to learn, because the soft shots work differently than they do on most power paddles, and I'll get to that below.

Spin backs that power up. The Zen S+ spun 2,344 RPM in my spin test, which is more spin than the average hybrid gets, so a hard topspin drive still dips into the court when you really go after it.

Speed-ups, counters and hands battles

Pop is the pace you get off short swings at the net, and the Zen S+ scored 92 out of 100 for pop. No hybrid I've tested pops more. Its swing weight of 104.4 is clearly lighter than the average hybrid's, which is about 112, so it gets into position early in a fast exchange. Speed-ups and counters come off quick and strong when you meet the ball out in front.

So how does a paddle with that much pop play soft? My pop test is 20 punch volleys, so it measures a short but real stroke, and on that short punch the Zen S+ has the most pop of any hybrid I've tested. What it doesn't do is add pace to a ball you barely touch. A late counter or a passive block gets less help from the face, so meet the ball out in front and put a short stroke through it.

Dinks, resets and third-shot drops

Control and sweet spot are my scores from the same ball-machine dink, drop and reset drills every paddle gets. The Zen S+ scored 71 out of 100 for control, which is about the same as the average hybrid. That's a big deal at this much power, because only one paddle I've tested with a power score of 90 or more is more controllable.

On dinks, nothing jumps off the face, so you add a little stroke instead of just tapping the ball. Resets stay low for a power paddle, but you have to push them through instead of just blocking. Third-shot drops work the same way. Since the Zen S+ face adds so little pace on soft contact, you can take a fuller stroke on a drop without it sailing, and that makes drops easier to shape.

Owners have run into the same adjustment. From August to late September 2026, three owners said soft shots needed a real push at first. Two of them said it clicked once they got used to it, and one went back to his old paddle after his first session.

Mishits

The Zen S+ is forgiving, which is rare for a paddle this light. Its sweet spot score of 85 out of 100 is the biggest of any hybrid I've tested, and the average hybrid scores about 72. Its twist weight came in at 6.94, higher than the average hybrid's. Twist weight is how much the face resists twisting when you miss the center, and only five hybrids I've tested have a higher one, so off-center hits stay steady.

That low weight is where the light swing comes from. The Zen S+ has a balance point of 23.67 cm, about the same as the average hybrid. So the paddle isn't hiding weight in the handle to feel quick. It's just light overall.

Pickleball Apes says the Zen "blends explosive power with a soft, controlled response." My numbers back the power part all the way. The control part holds up too, since a control score right at the average hybrid is a lot for a paddle that hits this hard. And it does play soft at contact.

The grit coating is the part to watch. It isn't in my wear test. Pickleball Apes said in late August 2026 that it was testing a new durable surface and hadn't decided whether the Zen would get it, so a later batch could come with a different face.

The warranty is one year, and Pickleball Apes lists a 30 day demo on the product page.

Through late September 2026, I found no owner reports of cracking or a core going dead. That's about six weeks of reports, mid August to late September 2026, so it's an early read.

They're different shapes, though. The unMARKed is an elongated, 16.5 inches long. The Zen S+ is a hybrid, 16.2 inches long. Both are 16mm thick, and both handles are 5.75 inches.

On my scores, the Zen S+ comes out ahead. It hits a little harder, with a power score of 100 against the unMARKed's 95. Pop is about the same. Spin is about the same too, at 2,344 RPM for the Zen S+ against 2,325 RPM for the unMARKed.

The gap is in forgiveness and control. The Zen S+ has a clearly bigger sweet spot, scoring 85 out of 100 against the unMARKed's 66. The Zen S+ has far more control too, scoring 71 to the unMARKed's 45. The Zen S+ also swings clearly lighter, with a swing weight of 104.4 against 112.2, and it's the softer of the two at impact.

So why would you still pick the unMARKed? Reach, for one, since it's an elongated. Both have about the same pop on a short punch, but on a ball you barely touch, like a soft block or a quick reset, the unMARKed's face adds more pace on its own. MARK also publishes its core, an EPP center with an EVA perimeter, while Pickleball Apes doesn't.

If you want reach and help on soft blocks, get the unMARKed. If you want the bigger sweet spot, more control and a faster paddle at the kitchen, get the Zen S+.