Side by Side Comparison of: Joola vs STIGA vs MAPOL

The JOOLA inside Table Tennis Table arrived in two large boxes - each half is packed separately with its metal legs. Plan on having at least one other strong person to help when moving these, they are VERY heavy. The packing material is extremely sturdy and it withstood the inevitable mover's dings and cuts - there is a thin layer of particle board glued to the cardboard that protects the table edges and surface. The leg assembly was easy and only required attaching the lower portion with the casters to the pre-installed locking leg mechanism, with eight blots. The only tools needed are two adjustable or socket wrenches and a level. Assembly takes about 15 minutes. Once attached, the legs roll very smoothly - the two sections butt to each other and are not attached. The table halves are easily leveled by adjusting the leveling feet on the non-rolling legs. Once the table is in the desired location, locking the casters makes the unit rock-solid. The included clamping net assembly installs in a few minutes - and the table is good to go! It is a very well-designed and constructed, quality product. The ball bounce is true and, if kept in a dry environment, this table will provide years of enjoyment. I particularly like that the table can be set up as a backboard and half-court for practice. Great job, JOOLA!

This is a high quality Joola product. It was very easy to assemble (my teenage sons did it themselves). It is of sturdy construction and plays smoothly. We all take turns and enjoy this product as well. We purchased rackets and balls from Joola as well and have enjoying using those together with the table. You can easily forget yourself while table tennis playing and loose a few hundred calories chasing that ball :-) We are very satisfied with this product, and Amazon's delivery and overall highly recommend it.

I had no idea how much fun this would be. With all of the video games and TV nowadays, this is a great alternative for the rainy day. This is perfect if you are stuck inside during a hurricane without power. Assembly was fairly easy but took 30 mins to open it up and put it all together. It was a 200 pound box so you might need a hand lifting the ~90 lb table halves for assembly. The bottom was damaged during shipping but it didn't change how the table played and amazon handled it amazingly. Overall its just plain fun and a great reason to have friends over for some competition.

This table is absolutely wonderful for the average recreational table tennis player. I am 40 now and used to play during my teenage years, so wanted to get back to playing table tennis after all these years. I consider myself to be an average player with some good natural skills, so after much research, figured I'd settle for something that wouldn't burn a hole in my wallet, would be quick and painless to put together, and still give me good value for my money. I settled on the Joola Inside table seeing the numerous positive reviews. My other choice was the Stiga ST4100 / STS 385 but I think I will wait to improve my game first before I invest in a solid, tournament-level table. The Joola Inside table looks sturdy and very well constructed and will get me to that higher level that I seek, without a doubt. It was VERY EASY to put together and took only about 20-30 minutes with the help of my partner, as all the pieces were mostly already assembled. I've stored this in my garage with also the Joola table cover (about $20) to keep dust away, and I know I will get several months of good practice with this table. Highly recommended!

So after researching every table out there for $400 or less, I decided on the Joola Inside, and I'm VERY pleased. First of all, assembly was simple... this is a big deal if you are aware of all the horror story reviews out there regarding assembly of similarly priced tables. It comes almost completely assembled, all you have to do is assemble the wheel brackets. Piece of cake. It very well made, and extremely solid. It's a 2-piece table, so none of the mismatch concerns that plague some of the 4-piece tables (beware the 4-piece tables!). The two halves line up perfectly. Very easy to roll and fold up for storage. Can't imagine why you'd need more unless you absolutely must have a thicker surface (a legitimate concern for advanced players, but not for the average recreational player). Low price, but in no way says "cheap". Highly recommended!!!

I bought these for me and my 9yr old daughter and these are great to learn, they look of good quality.

Good paddles for the price. I'm not a pro or anything so these cheaper paddles work fine for amateurs.

Getting them out of the packaging was challenging, but the quality of the rackets is good for our teenagers.

This is my first product feedback on Amazon.I loved this ping pong set as this is what I wanted for as a beginner. I have used it more than 20 days over last two months and it hasn't broken yet/wore off. Over the time I unintentionally banged it few times against the table side and still no issues.I would certainly recommend it to all entry level players. Once you get comfortable with your game, you will realize that it is not what would be preferred by a skilled player (very well aligned with product specifications). I might use it for few more months before I move to the next level.

The paddle themselves will definitely change your game play. I tend to want to kill the ball with the less padded paddles and they never give the correct spin and go far whereas these paddles allow for power and spin shot combos. They also come with great playing balls, much better than the average store bought balls. Very impressive set and would highly recommend for competitive game play.

Just ordered and received a new ping-pong table http://www.amazon.com/JOOLA-Inside-Table-Tennis/dp/B002HWNVZK/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1450937345&sr=8-2&keywords=ping+pong+tableDidn't realize that we needed to purchase the paddles separately, so back to the drawing board. I need something that would hold up to daily use but wasn't going to break the bank. This is set was exactly what I was looking for to withstand the many kids from the neighborhood that would be stopping by to play. So far, so good! The paddles hit the ball swiftly and glide to the other side with ease.

Once assembled, this is a great looking table which folds up easily for storage. There are only four stars because the assembly instructions could be much, much more clear. Just a single sketch or photo of an assembled leg would be helpful.

Secondly, our table arrived with a mis-drilled hole in one of the legs (three legs would be longer than the fourth). After two to three weeks of back and forth, Joola customer service finally sent out a replacement leg drilled properly.

Finally, our table arrived with a section of white paint scratched off of the table top. Overall, the table was well packed for shipment, but not quite well enough to prevent paint damage.

Looking forward to using our new table!

First, this was delivered exactly on the day and time it was requested. Since the package was quite heavy, I appreciated that it was placed just where I wanted it by the delivery guys.
Second, I assembled this alone with a socket wrench and pliers in about thirty minutes. That included tipping each end upright after the caster wheels were put on. Each end is a completely separate unit, identical in size and assembly. For the interested, I am 63 years old with a twitchy back and had no problems.
Finally, we were playing table tennis an hour after arrival. Good table, good value. As it is brand new, I don't know yet how it will stand up to use and time.

Highly recommend! I'm really pleased with the table so far. Great build quality from the table top down to the casters. Assembly took less than 15 minutes - needed a wrench to tighten the bolts. The tables come with stickers on the bottom that illustrate the assembly steps with pictures. Both halves of this table fold up quite easily. The easy to use spring clamps, that hold the net in place, are a nice feature. My table had two locking casters per half.

Looking forward to years of enjoyment!

Bought this table because of the reported ease of assemble and prior reports of quality, that justified the slightly higher price.

Delivery was scheduled and came without any problem. The product was extremely well packed and protected. Assembly was easy - just a matter of attaching bolt plates to the legs - the instructions are misleading since you have to place two bolt plates to the leg (one on each side) and you realize this only after the fact, when you realize there are 8 bolt plates present. The quality overall is quite good and the table is well designed and sturdy. As mentioned previously there are two separate tables that are attached and kept together with the net.

One quality control issue in my table - there is a bracket that attaches on the bottom of each of the tables and probably keeps the table from warping. On one of them the screws were not attached properly and the wood seems to have been stripped. It was an easy fix with some wood filler and some glue but clearly a missed defect.

All in all a great table.

We purchased the basement after some thorough research, though I was still hesitant to commit given that it's on the least-expensive end of the well-reviewed tables on Amazon. So, we rolled the dice and are very glad that we did!

The table arrived by freight carrier (ABN, I believe?) who was very easy to work with. I called and requested to waive the signature and they got the word out so that delivery occurred without incident. The table arrived in good condition, though part of the frame was dented in two spots. The playing surface was in perfect condition and the frame itself was still straight and seemingly structurally unharmed.

Carrying the table components (one at a time....no chance we'd be able to carry the whole box) was the most difficult part of set-up, but it's easily manageable with two people. I assembled the table by myself in about fifteen minutes with no issues. The instructions are very clear and there was no missing hardware.

To my surprise, the table assembled into two separate halve (not one jointed piece). When used, the two halves meet seamlessly and the locking casters keep everything in place. I love the net assembly, as it's not the cheap set screw variation I've seen in the past. The net is secured to the table by a clamp on each end beneath the pole. It's very easy to adjust and remove, and the clamp is strong enough to correct any unevenness in the level of the two halves.

Playing on this table is fantastic. I'm not an expert on table tennis, but for the recreational user this table offers great bounce and speed. Spin that's applied to the ball is translates nicely in the bounce. The rest is simply left to your abilities.

Folding and storage takes all of 30 seconds to complete. The halves fold up with no resistance and lock in place once vertical. The casters are unlocked and the table is rolled away. Simple as that.

In the end, this is a five-star product. I gave it four stars due to the denting of the frame during delivery. This didn't affect the table's performance in any way, but was a little disappointing...maybe to be expected of shipping such a heavy item. If you have the ability, maybe try to pick this up yourself at a store. If not, the shipping process is as easy ordering any random item on Amazon Prime, and you can't complain about the free S/H.

The quality is fine. Just good for beginners.

Purchased these for the hubby. He likes them!

good one.

This is a great value for the set so thus 4 stars. I knocked off one star because the balls left marks on my new Joola ping pong table. Joola was not too helpful with suggestions for how to clean up the ball marks without messing up the paint. So be aware if you really value the look of your table, these balls will leave little circle prints all over your table.

Great paddles for the price. Awesome spin and padding is thick, extra foam is great. Seriously, for price, this is a great deal. It's 40 bucks at Dicks Sporting Goods, so good job yet again for amazon. Only complaint, and minor, is the paddles are light, probably the reason so affordable. But i'll trade the weight for the padding and spin.

Decent set for the price. These don't spin or control the ball nearly as well as a Killerspin JET300, but they are also much lighter than that paddle. I think both the Killerspin JET300 and the Butterfly Flail paddles are much better than these, but my teenage kids like these best because they think the Killerspin JET300 is too heavy, and the Butterfly Flail is too fast (too easy to hit the ball long) for their taste.

Plays well. I like that it folds up and can be moved on decent casters. The net is easy to install/adjust. Construction is not nearly as sturdy as it looks in the pictures. The packaging was successful in mostly protecting the unit from the rough handling it got during shipment, as it is a very heavy and unwieldy package. Be warned that the shippers will not be gentle with this package. Thankfully ours arrived with only minor damage to the brittle plastic pieces used for corner protection and capping the thin gauge metal legs.

I was amazed that the table was undamaged given what the box looked like on my garage floor. A bit of a challenge for one person to assemble. Very disappointed that one of the four locking leg braces was on backwards and would not do its job. I offered to have Amazon send me a new brace but they said my options were to send the unit back for replacement or cancel the order. Having previously read reviews I figured a replacement could be even worse. More communications with Amazon...they offered a very generous partial refund and I would go direct to maker for repairs/parts. In stead of probable anguishing communiccation with maker I bought a small vice-grip to clamp the brace when in use. My next chore will be to re-seat several screws holding the top to the frame. They are stripped so will fill with gorilla glue and clamp, hopefully that will work. Glad I bought the entry priced unit and hope I can stay ahead of repairs for another garage season of action. Bottom line we are enjoying the table.

This was easy to put together and works very well under heavy but careful use. It would not hold up to a lot of crashing into it or shoving it around. The reason this didn't get a 5-star rating is that the second time I folded up one of the sections the locking strut popped out of its hole. I can hold it in and get it to lock properly, but will need to punch it back in for long term use.
The table is two pieces that do NOT have a hinge, but the two clamps that hold the net in place also hold the table-top halves together. If you want to use this as a real table as well (due to lack of space) it could work, but it will not support any heavy load on it.

I have been happy with this table. Set up was quite easy despite one of the bolts stripping out on one of the legs which really annoyed me. One of those things that should not happen and while it would only cost $.50 to go to the hardware store and buy a new one, it starts the experience off poorly. All that said though, the quality of the table has been great. Its very portable and fun to play. There was a delivery issue that the local company blamed on Amazon for not getting the table in time which delayed the delivery by many days however after speaking with Amazon, I was happy with the resolution they provided to me and was happy to get good customer service from Amazon on this problem.

Unit was easy to assemble, though I experienced a minor setback when two of the bolts had defects that prevented the nuts from threading correctly. I really like the two separate side design and overall this is a very high quality unit. It looks nice as well. After several hours of playing, I'm really satisfied with the purchase. Good value for the price.

Update - 3/6/16 - Along with the paperwork included with the table is a promotion where Joola promises a free pack of balls ("within 4-6 weeks") for submitting a review. I haven't received anything thus far (almost 4 months later). Their customer service hasn't responded about this, so keep in mind that problems you might have will likely not be backed up by good customer service. The table itself still working great. There is a slight issue with the inside height of one piece not aligning with the height of the other side, but the net clamp holds everything evenly.

I have only had these a short time and they are already coming apart. The red and black are lifting significantly at the top. I suppose I can glue them back but it may mess up the performance. I am not satisfied and would not recommend or buy again.

Decent deal but even with a heavy duty cover on my table the rubber part is still lifting and bubbling from the heat or something. I've only had them 2 months and I can tell they won't last long. The balls all function fine so I rated a 3 instead of a 2.

Kids broke them rather quickly

Good paddles for beginners. Rubber is soft but the paddle is fairly hard. Quality is as good as expected at this price.

These paddles are great for kids or beginners but they are not made for play that is above the beginner level. After using the paddles for a while one of the paddles split apart, I was able to glue the parts back together but it was not the same.

Balls are great quality, but the paddles are very cheap. These paddles are very "soft" and light and do not provide the player with a lot force in hitting balls. These paddles would be great for older family members or young children who want a slower game, but these are not "performance" in any sense. In fact, the play is quite slow with these paddles. However, the balls are quality and have adequate play with some real "performance" paddles.

I got my Joola Inside 15 ping pong table about two weeks ago. The delivery service was on time. But after I opened the package, I found that there is a very big dent on one of metal piece between the side legs. There were also two broken screws dropped from the bottom of the table right away.
The table is still usable without big issue so far, but the condition could be better.

Prompt delivery: We request scheduled delivery for Monday morning. We got a call from the delivery person if we OK for an early delivery for Saturday morning. We refused since the place was not ready. Our door bell rang at 8AM on Monday. We are happy with the delivery; 5 stars.

Assembly: It is two separate tables and their assembly is independant. If you have the right size wrenches, it can be opened and assembled in 30 minutes. You need two wrenches: one to hold the bolt head and the other to tighten the nut. After fixing the wheeled support stands each table needs to lifted by supporting it on the wheels. Except this part everything else is straight forward. Team assembly- 2 people preferred. 4+ stars.

Storage: There is no single weakness to point out but I am not comfortable folding and moving frequently. The screws that attach legs to the stand look small to me. Because table thickness is less than an inch, I am not too sure how well it can take frequent moves. 4 stars.

Others: The surface board is less than 1" thick but there is a metal support all over the edges, giving it a look of thicker surface. Netting was very good. I am not a professional to know the difference but the ball response feels good. Surface, paint, and finish look/feel good too. There are no level-adjusting screws under the legs; so the ground surface should be leveled. There was some slope in my case, so I used cardboard pieces to keep it leveled. It looks good and kids love it. 4+ stars.

It is always better to buy a high end table but for the price, I think it is not a bad choice. Overall the table deserves more than 4 stars.

Customer support: There was an offer for table tennis balls. I performed the instructions and notified Joola for the free balls. I send them reminders but did not hear from them so far. 0 stars for customer support.

Table was delivered within the time frame they said it would be. It came well packaged and all parts were there. The table halves are each quite heavy and needed two of us to carry them down the stairs to the basement. Assembly was straight forward and didn't take too long. You definitely need another person to flip the halves over after you get the wheels attached. My initial impression was that the table was very solid and well constructed. But after a week and a couple of times folding/storing the table, we found two screws on the floor under one of the locking braces. The locking brace plate that is screwed to the table was not straight so every time the table was folded up, the plate twisted and pulled the small screws out of the table. I found this on the other table half also as two of the four screws were loose. Amazon responded very quickly by sending a replacement table. Unfortunately we didn't accept that one either because of the same defects.

Right out the box, one of the tables had a bent and rusty metal plate beneath it. Ordered a replacement from Amazon and also noticed a defect with the replacement table. The red elbow joint metal under one of the the tables was only screwed down in one place instead of four. Not sure whether to ask for another replacement or get a full refund from Amazon.

On a positive note, the table is fairly easy to assemble and does not have too many parts to put together. It's fairly easy to move around with the attached wheels. However, the quality of of materials/workmanship is poor not worth the price paid for it. I might as well gone for the cheap $150 ping pong table from my local WMT box store. If you do decide to get this, give it a good look over for salient defects.

I had very high hopes for this table. The other reviews and my supplemental research had me feeling very confident in my purchase. However, the table must have had a very rough trip from manufacturing to my door because most of the screws that were used to assemble it were hanging on for dear life trying to keep this thing together. To make matters worse, the screw holes in the particle board that makes up the table were all stripped out so most of the screws are only grabbing by 1 or 2 threads. Luckily its ping pong so there is not a lot of physical stress applied to the table, but if we try and move it, even just sliding it across the carpet, and screws start falling out. I will have to go to the store and get longer screws to secure this table for the long-term. The seller should have it shipped less assembled to avoid these issues.

Chose these because we bought a STIGA table and thought this would be of good quality. But if turned out that 2 of the rackets after 5 mins of playing started splintering on the handle. Probably will be returning.

The paddle handle is too short for my hands and I have small hands, so just a heads up. the balls are quality. but I wouldn't recommend this package because the paddle handle and the price.

This set of four costs less than any one of my other paddles. I bought them for my office, and one broke after only a few weeks. Disappointed.

It's ok but the surface came off really quick and I needed to glue it together.For the price it's ok .

This racquet doesn't provide you a good grip.Also it is too smallIf you're really serious about ping don't buy this one.

I needed some extra paddles for if I had guests over that wanted to play doubles. I own a few nicer paddles, but it gives them an unfair advantage when playing against these stiga paddles. I would recommend this for beginner players or children who aren't serious about the game. The paddles don't have great feel and you can't put spin and power on the ball due to the rubber quality.Pros+inexpensive+comes with 3 star balls+Feels comfortable in handCons-Cheap-Aren't meant for performanceTipsIf you are buying these for a competitive game, it means all players should use these paddles to level the playing fieldI would recommend saving up and buying better paddles.

Big stain on my table... I wish I can return

Table came without net and post. It's unlikely that I will get the missing parts anytime soon.

Product arrived damaged. Still usable but unsightly. Not worth the money.

Update - table warped. Net not taunt. Customer service won't answer emails. I would NEVER RECOMMEND this company.

ps - the high ratings feom Joola are because they promise a free set of balls. Never materialized - just like their customers.

We love our Joola Table! We got it as a house warming gift from relatives. It was super easy to assemble by my husband and 14 year old son. You need 2 basic (adjustable) wrenches to assemble the legs, and it's done. Took them 15 minutes max! We considered buying the assembly service, but Joola makes it so easy. As for the playing - it is great entertainment for all ages and skill levels. We even had grandma (72!) play with us this weekend. As a family, we play on Friday nights to burn off some steam after a long busy week...much more fun than watching TV and we get a bit of exercise too! The kids have already made plans to invite their friends over!

Came with a manufacturing defect - one of the leg's was undrilled
Had to spend 50$ plus taking this to a shop to fix

all balls were smashed please send me new ping pong balls! also the table one of the brackets were turned ! i unscrewed and fixed on my own!! please send some ping pong balls ! white and yellow thank you!

made cheap. All paddles broke within a month.

The bat is too light and not as good as I expected. The handle (grip) is little short too. The rubber is too thin and peeling off and one of the bat's handle split(broke) from the center in just 2 weeks. I would not recommend this product even for beginners.

After only a few uses the rubber covering is separating from paddle on three of the four paddles. These have a four star rating. Maybe this is a bad batch? Regardless, I'll purchase a different brand in the future. Very disappointed.

Just as previous reviews have stated - the rubber on these paddles come off WAY too quickly and easily.You would like to believe that if this item is coupled with such a nice, expensive table that the quality would match.But it does not. I would save your money and buy paddles from a local store in the event you have to return or exchange them.I have not yet contacted the company for a refund or exchange as the paddles themselves still work, but I will if only for the feedback informing the company that their adhesive needs attention!!

Very cheap quality rackets, probably for basic play for beginners and children. Ply and board(handles) almost unpolished with rough edges. Extremely thin sponge, almost no rubber, which is poorly glued. They should not use the term "Performance" that is nothing to do with the skill level of this racket.