Summary

The Poparazzi got a new name for the 23/24 season. It is now called the Mantra. However not much has changed as far as camber profile, shape, and board personality. New name but same reliable Poparazzi Camber features. The Arbor Poparazzi Camber (Mantra) snowboard is a true camber board that comes with a softer flex, and raised fenders to give it a catch free ride. This board is slightly directional, and comes with Arbor's grip tech to help with harder snow.

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Riding Style All Mountain
Riding Level Intermediate - Advanced
Fits Boot size (US) Women's, < 8, 8-10
Manufactured in Dubai by SWS
Shape Directional Twin
Camber Profile Traditional Camber
Stance Centered
Approx. Weight Feels Normal
Split No
Powder Average
Base Glide Average
Carving Good
Speed Good
Uneven Terrain Great
Switch Excellent
Jumps Great
Jibbing Good
Pipe Great
On Snow Feel

Semi-Locked In

Turn Initiation

Medium/Fast

Skidded Turns

Moderate

Flex

Medium/Soft

Buttering

Semi-Easy

Edge Hold

Hard Snow

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Arbor Mantra Camber Snowboard Written Review Review by The Good Ride

Ethics Statement: We don’t get paid by the manufacturer to write these reviews.  No one is perfect and we do make money from the “Where To Buy” links below, but this is our best attempt at an honest and objective review from an average rider’s perspective. 

How This Review Happened:  We borrowed this for an extended demo and then returned it.

Size: 144

Days: 2

Conditions: Spring conditions with some powder on top.

Riders: Steph

Boots: Vans Ferra

Bindings: Union Milan

Set Up: 21″ Centered 15 front -15 back

Board Sizing: 144, 148, 152

On Snow Feel

The Poparazzi ( or Mantra) is a true camber board so you would think it would feel pretty locked in. But with the raised fenders on the toe and heel edges, it helps the board to maneuver around without the catchy feeling of a traditional camber board. So it feels semi-locked in, and has that energy that you get from a camber board without the downside of catching edges.

Powder

I had some soft spring powder when I tested it, and the Poparazzi handled really well for being a directional twin and having a positive camber profile. The raised fenders also help to keep the camber profile from wanting to dive down in softer snow. However, the snow I was riding in was pretty hard to sink in. It was more dense than your mid winter powder. The Poparazzi can handle small powder days, but might not be ideal for deeper days.

Turn Initiation and Carving

I felt like this board was quick to turn. It felt fairly easy to change edges, and with the softer flex, it is easy to muscle it around when you need to.

Speed

It held its speed nice for the terrain I was riding, but I didn’t get the chance to really go fast. I feel like with the softer flex the Poparazzi might not hold a solid line if you are going really fast and it starts to get a little bumpy. I think it enjoys a good medium speed.

Uneven Terrain

I liked turning it through trees and off piste. I didn’t have a problem maneuvering it last minute or through tight spots. But it likes to turn through bumps instead of fly over them.

Edge Hold

It is a positive camber board so the edge hold is pretty good. You stay connected to the snow for the most part. And you get the added help from the grip tech bumps under your toes and heels. The Poparazzi would be able to hold an edge in hard snow, but wouldn’t hold and edge quite as well as a board with magna traction all the way down the sidecut.

Flex

The flex is a 4/10, although I felt it was a little stiffer when I was riding it. It may soften up after it breaks in a little. But I liked the mix of a softer flexing board and the traditional camber. The camber kept the energy in the board so you don’t feel like you are riding a wet noodle.

Switch

Riding switch is no problem. You don’t notice that it is slightly directional if you are riding it centered. Also the raised fenders help with not catching and edge when you let your guard down.

Rails/Jibs

If you like the feel of a camber board on rails and boxes, this could be a fun board to jib with because of the softer flex. But if you are just learning how to jib, it might not be the most forgiving board to try on.

Pipe

I think this board would be a lot of fun in the pipe. The camber profile and grip tech would help you ride up the wall, and it has a pretty good amount of pop for having such a soft flex. But it would be more for mellow pipe riding because of the softer flex as well.

Jumps

A fun board to ollie around and hit jumps on. Pretty forgiving for learning tricks if you have a little park riding experience. I think it would be fun on small to medium features.

Overall

The Arbor Poparazzi (Mantra) snowboard likes to explore all over the resort. If you are an intermediate rider who likes having the benefit of a positive camber board you might like this one. Or, if you like to cruise around and aren’t looking to charge too hard then this could be a good fit.

If this Arbor Poparazzi (Mantra) review helped, we’d appreciate if you:

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Arbor Mantra Camber Past Reviews

2014-2015

Thie Arbor Poparazzi is pretty much a re-named Arbor Eden.  For 2012 it was a great do anything all mountain camber board. If you want pop, good carving and a technical approach to freestyle tricks the Poparazzi is going to be a great call. Since 2013 the Paparazzi has been a continuous rocker board that is kind of a medium flexing semi-loose all mountain freestyle ride.

Ethics Statement: We don’t get paid by the manufacturer to write these reviews.  No one is perfect and we do make money from the “Where To Buy” links below, but this is our best attempt at an honest and objective review from an average riders’ perspective.
How This Review Happened:  
We borrowed this for an extended demo and then returned it.

The 2014 and 2015 Arbor Poparazzi changed up the sizing to every 3 cm like most boards do and also added more sizes so now you have more options to get the right boards. They didn’t really change the way the board rides though.  It still has the archaic 2 x 4 8 pack insert pattern that is not ideal for those that want to get their stance truly dialed out. For some it won’t be a big deal but for others it will be harder to center up your board with some bindings. The reason is because the inserts are spaced twice as far apart.

On Snow Feel: Even though the Arbor Poparazzi has a pretty loose playful feel it was surprising to find how stable it felt cruising around regular or switch on any type of groomer.  From very steep fast runs to almost flat track beginner runs the Arbor Poparazzi did a good job for a continuous rocker ride.

Powder: The Arbor Poparazzi should perform very well for its size and plane very well.  If you compared this to a camber board of this size the rocker it has would blow it away.  The Arbor Poparazzi’s rocker and fast base would plane very well above the snow. Still it’s not a setback directional board and the deeper the snow the more the work to stay afloat it will take. If you ride switch a lot in powder this is very good but if you like to set it back you might be a little disappointed here.

Turn Initiation– You can get where you want to go in a hurry if you need to but it’s not completely effortless.  Most continuous rocker boards are super easy to turn and this is just easy.  We all liked that a lot though.

Speed: The Arbor Poparazzi rides pretty big for its size.  We aren’t saying size down or anything but it’s a fast board.  Especially for a continuous rocker.  Most continuous rocker boards don’t have Mountain speed but this does.

Uneven Terrain: This has the ability to have fun in uneven shitty end of the day snow but it’s not going to easily bounce around in it like the Swoon.  If you have to slow down to powder through less than ideal terrain it’s very doable.

Approximate Weight– Not a featherweight but it’s not heavy either.  There is no tugging feeling when on a chair lift.

Edge Hold: The Grip Tech technology does a very good job with helping your edge hold on to the snow.  Grip Tech is basically an extension of the edge at each binding.  It doesn’t feel catchy but grips very well.  It might be a minor step below Magnetraction in terms of edge hold but the ride has a more smooth traditional feel to it.  Even on an icy pipe wall or hard pack the Poparazzi will hold it’s edge.

Flex: The Arbor Poparazzi is  pretty middle ground.  Maybe a touch on the stiff side of things.

Carving Ability– This is one of the best experiences you can have with a continuous rocker snowboard when it comes to carving. It holds very well and no matter how hard the carve was the tail would not wash out.  That being said it didn’t have that springy feel that camber snowboards or even some hybrid shapes can generate.  All in all the Arbor Poparazzis carving ability was very impressive for it’s shape and riding style.

Switch: There was no noticeable difference riding either direction.

Rails/Jibbing: A little to stiff for full time rail/jib work but it isn’t bad for a visit.  When it comes to playing around in the jib park the Cadence is better here.

Pipe: No pipe is up yet this season but the solid edge hold and forgiving nature of the Arbor Poparazzi should make it very fun for most people in the pipe.

Jumps: The Arbor Poparazzi is a solid board when it comes to jumps. It’s not super springy but also is far from being dead.  If you are hitting mainly mid sized jumps you will have a great time.  It’s debatable as to if the Poparazzi will handle going really big.  Yours Truly (editor) won’t be caught dead approaching a 60 foot kicker so that’s why we say it will be debatable.  Some friends of The Good Ride who go big say it will be just fine and others prefer a camber or hybrid shape so as always it’s personal preference. In 2012 Arbor seemed to add some spring to the board to give it a bit more ollie power.

All in all the Arbor Poparazzi was a nice surprise for a continuous rocker snowboard and should fit many all mountain freestyle snowboarders needs.

 
Arbor Mantra Camber Specs

 
Arbor Mantra Camber Images

We try to get as many images of the Arbor Mantra Camber, but forgive us if they're not all there.

2024

Arbor Mantra Camber User Reviews

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