I hired a pair of these for one day (unfortunately, the last day) of my recent ski trip to Austria. The verdict? - they were such an improvement over my existing skis, I bought a pair to bring home (even though I might not ski again in 2005). The main difference was edge hold - these things really grip once they're on edge. There is also hardly any 'chatter' on bumpy pistes compared to my previous skis - which no doubt contributes to the edge grip. In short, I found myself ski-ing better, faster and more in control in short/medium turns from the moment I put them on. If you're a 'plateau intermediate' like me, these could be just the skis to make that next step to really solid carved turns.