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PTO Review
We skied them. Here's how they stack up.
KS-UP (with PRD12GW binding) — technical, form-focused piste skiers — anyone skiing a certification or a prize test, whose default turn is mid or long but who refuses to give up short ones. Laser SX — piste skiers who want one comfortable, wide-range carver and prefer all-day ease to race-build effort. Check the radar chart below to see where each one wins.
Each row compares all skis on one dimension. 🏆 marks the highest score.
| Dimension | KS-UP (with PRD12GW binding) | Laser SX |
|---|---|---|
| Carving | 8🏆 | 8🏆 |
| Park | 1🏆 | 1🏆 |
| Playfulness | 5🏆 | 5🏆 |
| Forgiveness | 7🏆 | 6 |
| Stability | 7🏆 | 7🏆 |
| Powder | 2🏆 | 2🏆 |
Technical, form-focused piste skiers — anyone skiing a certification or a prize test, whose default turn is mid or long but who refuses to give up short ones. One card on this exact binding build read its supple underfoot feel as suiting advanced skiers who are short on leg strength.
Short-turn specialists. Inside the same KEO'S series the KS-AP2 is drawn roughly a meter shorter in the arc at every length, on the same construction, for the same $1,250 flat, and the KS-CV and KS-CX are tighter still. Skiers who want the most grip and rebound underfoot: two of the four staff cards on this binding build called its grip thinner than the plate versions, and PTO stocks neither the FM585 nor the SRED plate build. Competition-level long turns are out — an instructor said plainly it will not generate the vertical drop that needs. At 69 mm it is not a powder ski and not an off-piste ski; OGASAKA's width lives in the E-TURN line. Beginners should be looking at the KS-CX, which OGASAKA describes as helping beginners and skiers with less leg strength build speed from low speeds, at $820 flat.
Piste skiers who want one comfortable, wide-range carver and prefer all-day ease to race-build effort. It suits medium-to-long-turn skiers at moderate-to-fast speed — the Laser SX runs the longest radius in the line — who value low-input, forgiving manners on groomed and variable hard snow over maximum edge bite. Stöckli's own brief calls it a genuine all-rounder among piste skis.
Powder and off-piste skiers: at 74 mm on a pure on-piste geometry the Laser SX has no float, and the wider range Stöckli talks about is range within the groomers, not off them. Short-turn and slalom-rhythm skiers: the radius bottoms out at 13.1 m, and quick edge-to-edge belongs to the Laser CX or the shorter Laser SL. Skiers chasing race-level grip and power: there is no Race Core, no carbon, and no racing sidewall here, and the 1.5° comfort base bevel is not the 1.0° race tune of the SC and WRT — that bite lives on those skis, not this one. Anyone who needs a published on-snow test before buying should wait: this generation is completely redesigned and no independent review of it exists yet — every existing Laser SX review is of the older, narrower ski and does not apply. And Stöckli lists no skier level of its own; read this as an intermediate-to-advanced piste ski, inferred from its mechanics rather than measured on snow.
The KS-UP (with PRD12GW binding) is best for technical, form-focused piste skiers — anyone skiing a certification or a prize test, whose default turn is mid or long. The Laser SX is best for piste skiers who want one comfortable, wide-range carver and prefer all-day ease to race-build effort. The right choice depends on your primary terrain, ability level, and riding style.
The OGASAKA KS-UP (with PRD12GW binding) scores highest in Stability at 7/10, making it the strongest all-mountain option. It handles groomers, chop, and variable conditions without losing composure, so it's the best single-ski choice for skiers who want one pair for the whole mountain.
The OGASAKA KS-UP (with PRD12GW binding) leads in Carving with a PTO score of 8/10. Its edge grip on hard snow and groomed runs is the strongest in this comparison.
The OGASAKA KS-UP (with PRD12GW binding) is the most forgiving option with a Forgiveness score of 7/10. It doesn't punish imperfect technique, making it the easiest ski to progress on among these.
Not sure? Ask us.
