There are loads of classical blades designed by Stiga Sports. Stiga evolution is one of them and is also welcomed by huge numbers of players.

Unlike Stiga Carbon pro, evolution is more balanced and even gain the name of  “defensive master”. In this blog, we will give you an all-around review of it and cover the comparison between evolution and pro carbon.

Overview about Stiga Evolution

Evolution is a great shake-hand paddle and also a nice choice for both intermediate players and beginners.

As a well-rounded paddle, it features a 6-ply all-wood structure and has gained over 1500 five-star feedback on Amazon. The price is about 90 dollars, which would be kind of expensive for some players. Is the price worth it? Let’s have a look!

Feature:

Unlike pro carbon, Stiga evolution does not have any special feature. Maybe the only one is the 6-ply all-wood itself, which makes the blade itself lighter and gives players a “soft” feeling.

Blade 9.3/10:

Without fiber or carbon, evolution features an all-wooden structure. As we mentioned in our previous blog, the carbon helps to accelerate the ball to make it become more offensive but makes the paddle heavier. So the overall feel of evolution is LIGHT and SOFT！

For those defensive players who chops or block the ball, it makes them return the ball much easier and can control the ball well without much effort.

And for those attackers, they can do more backhand or forehand loops or smash as the paddle is not heavy.

Handle 9.4/10:

Loads of people believe that handle is not so important as it doesn’t contact the ball directly. Unfortunately, this idea is totally wrong. Stiga Company has applied Shock Dispersion Tube tech to many of its blades.

It means, a tube is embedded in the handle, which can collect the power when the paddle hits the ball. Afterward, it redistributes it to the surface of the blade.

The new tech makes the paddle more balanced and has greater power on strokes or smash. If we look well, we can notice a hollow part at the end of the handle.

Weight 9.5/10:

As an all-wood blade, Stiga evolution only weighs 0.35 pounds. Those who play chops tend to use a lighter blade with 5 or 7 pls wood. So for those defensive players, undoubtedly, evolution is a great choice.

Speed 9/10:

Honestly speaking, speed is definitely not the strength of evolution. Without carbon or fiber, players cannot smash or loop the ball extremely rapidly. However, you can match the blade with rubbers like tenergy or donic acuda s1 to compensate for it. So both stability and speed can be guaranteed.

Spin 8.8/10:

Likewise, the spin is neither the strength of evolution. But as a defensive player, I really fond of it as it will reduce the mistakes that I make. Also, you could find a proper or a little bit harder rubber to match with it, if you feel it’s way too soft and cannot generate enough topspin or backspin as you expect.

Control 9.4:

According to the ads released by Stiga, they give a mark of 96 to the speed but only 90 to the control. Personally, I don’t agree with the value, especially after I use it. I suppose evolution has done a really good job in balancing speed and control. It gives players consistent ball placement without struggling.

Pros of stiga evolution:

• Really good-looking. Stiga Evolution is beautifully designed that it has a pretty out looking. It gives us a good reason to purchase it.
• Friendly for both beginners and intermediate players. Unlike some blades with fiber or carbon that make beginners struggle a lot to return the ball on the table, evolution has great control and even those who just beginning learning ping-pong can use it.
• Approved by ITTF. It means that you can use it in all of the formal tournaments.
• Balanced performance and great feeling. As we mentioned many times, lightweight and well-balanced Stiga Evolution is absolutely a perfect choice for players who don’t look for lots of speed. Actually, you can choose a proper rubber to make it more powerful.

Cons of stiga evolution:

• According to some reports, the concave handle can be way too wide for some players with smaller hands. Well, maybe my hands are not small and it fits me very well. So before buying it, you can ask your friends or teammates to have a try if they use evolution too.
• A little bit expensive.
• Lack speed sometimes. If you are an offensive player who is crazy about speed and spin, maybe you’d better choose some paddle else like pro carbon. As we said several times, these two things cannot be guaranteed at the same time.

Stiga evolution vs pro carbon

Stiga carbon pro and evolution are most mentioned and compared in the table tennis community. Which one is better? Actually, both of them are pretty good. They only belong to different series and have a different styles.

Pro carbon excels in speed and spin and lack and it’s designed for a more offensive play. Especially those who are crazy about backhand and forehand loops and play far away from the table. It is more suitable for players who like flat shots to loop.

The additional carbon piles help it to make use of the reverb effect and reinforce the return ball to your opponents. But the pro carbon is built from 5 piles of woods and 2 layers of carbon on either side, which makes it a little bit heavy.

So if players lack enough strength or endurance, they may be exposed to fatigue after dozens of loops or smashes.

While evolution aims at control and precision. It suits players who play near the table with blocks or chops. The lightweight paddle can protect the players from being exhausted.

Although there is not as much tech applied as carbon pro, it makes defensive players satisfied. Sometimes, less is more.

Most importantly, those beginners who just learn from grip can practice with evolution and when they have the more advanced skills, they can change into carbon pro to step up.

Conclusion:

As a big fan of Stiga, I am really fond of both Stiga evolution and carbon pro. But I am a chop player, so evolution fits me better.

It’s an ideal paddle for beginners and intermediate players who want to seriously improve their performance in games. When it comes to the choice between carbon pro and evolution, hahaha, I have both in my package.

You could choose it according to your style and budget. Neither of them will let you disappoint!