Got the 440hi's in. My first impression: they fit my wide feet that don't fit in a lot of other shoes, very pumped about that. They are just as pretty of a shoe in person as in the promo pictures. They seem to run just a tad big so I would keep this in mind if you're on the smaller side of a size. The insole is really flimsy and thin (less than .5cm) which means it might be time for me to send it on the pricey insoles that I was avoiding having to buy. I don't know if this is a universal issue or just a pair I received issue, but my shoes had a couple quality issues off the bat that I am hoping don't continue to come up.
First, one of my eyelets was only half punched through, meaning I had to really push the shoelace through to get it through and it is quite a tight fit. Second, the lace flap on the other shoe seemed to be glued down like the rest of the stripe going down the shoe, meaning that I had to push something hard through and glue? got all over the shoelace after I put it in. Was able to scrape most of it off, but a little disheartened because I have never had issues with any other NB shoe like this before.
Got mine today too, white and green. They look super good irl, and the high top does make it feel more secure and structured than the 440 lows I've skated in the past, which were already quite good
Some differences I've noticed though, its a tiny bit more roomy than the 440 lows I've had in the past, not by much, maybe a quarter of a size at most so its totally fine but the fit isn't exactly identical. Definitely agree that the insole is really flimsy and thin, even more so than the 440 lows I've had in the past which also had super minimal insoles. Feels like it would help with break in time, but even 440s do pack out eventually so my guess is that this would only speed up that process, I'll probably throw in an aftermarket insole after a week or two. There's also a tiny bit more arch support than the lows I've had, definitely a fan of that.
Super stoked on them overall. But would have been good to have a more substantial insole, I quite like the insole of the 913s, something like that would be great. I also think it would be good if the high top section was suede or leather instead of the mesh, would feel a bit more stable that way, but thats definitely a nitpick.