YES IPO Bindings Review

Hello and welcome to my YES IPO snowboard bindings review.

The IPO were really fun, surfy-feeling bindings that I found worked best when I was looking to slow things down a bit, slash around and get playful.

They weren’t the most precise or powerful bindings I’d ridden, and they didn’t feel like they were trying to be. But they had a nice easy-going feel, good comfort, solid shock absorption and a pretty forgiving flex that made them easy to get along with.

In this review I will take a look at the IPO as freestyle snowboard bindings.

As per tradition here at SnowboardingProfiles.com I will give the IPO a score out of 100 (based on several factors) and see how they compare with other freestyle bindings.

Overall Rating

Bindings: YES IPO 2026

Price: $219 (USD recommended retail)

Style: Freestyle

Flex Rating: Medium (5/10)

Flex Feel: Mid-Soft (4/10)

Rating Score: 83.5/100

Compared to other Men’s freestyle Bindings

Overview of the IPO’s Specs

Check out the tables for the IPO’s specs and available sizes.

Specs

Who are the IPO Most Suited To?

The YES IPO were best suited to riders who wanted something playful, surfy and forgiving, but without going super soft.

They worked well for all-mountain freestyle, casual resort riding, trees, side hits, butters, ollies and just generally riding with a looser, more relaxed feel. They weren’t the best match for riders who wanted a really locked-in, powerful, carve-focused binding, but they still had enough support that they didn’t feel floppy or unstable.

I would see them working best for beginner and up riders who valued board feel, comfort, tweakability and a surfy feel over hard-charging precision.

Test/review details for the IPO

O.k. let’s take a more detailed look at what the IPO are capable of.

Demo Info

Binding: YES IPO, M

Date: February 25, 2025

I rode these in shallow to moderate powder, so it wasn’t the best day to get a super clean read on every characteristic. The snow was soft enough that shock absorption and chatter absorption were a little harder to judge properly, and I didn’t get the same kind of firm groomer feedback I’d normally like for testing carving precision and high-speed stability.

But the conditions did give me a good sense of their overall personality - and that personality was definitely surfy, playful and easy-going.

Comparisons

We had the Bent Metal Transfer, Axtion, Joint, Logic, and Lightning Supermatic, plus the YES Drive and Jones Mercury FASE bindings on hand when doing the in-house testing for the IPO. For the on-snow test, we rode this on the same day as we rode the Bent Metal Logic and the Bent Metal Joint. Part of this review will involve comparisons to some of the bindings mentioned.  

Naturally we also had my control bindings (Burton Malavita) on hand for in-house testing and for the on-snow test, used during the control laps.

Flex

In-Hand

In hand, the highback had a lot of twist flex. It wasn’t as flexy as the Bent Metal Logic or Joint, but it was still very flexy. It was softer than the YES Drive by a good margin with a lot more give both torsionally and pulling back.

The pullback flex was also pretty noticeable. You could flex it not just from the top of the highback, but also more through the middle, which gave it that softer, more forgiving feel.

The straps also had a pretty mellow feel. The ankle strap had softer length flex than the Drive, which gave it more lateral freedom and helped create that surfier feel. Width-wise it was a bit stiffer than the Drive, but overall the strap package still felt more forgiving and less locked-in than something built for maximum response.

The toe strap was also on the softer side. It had the usual pattern of being flexier through the middle and a little stiffer toward the sides, but compared to the Drive, it was softer both in the middle and at the edges.

On-Snow

The IPO felt softer than my control bindings, but not super soft. I wouldn’t put them any softer than a 4/10 overall. They felt a little stiffer vs the Bent Metal Logic and very similar to the Bent Metal Joint.

Responsiveness

The IPO had a nice easy response, especially at slower speeds. They weren’t lightning quick edge-to-edge or super precise, but they weren’t sluggish either.

They were the kind of bindings that felt easy to move around on and easy to manipulate the board with. For slower-speed riding, tighter turns, mellow trees and more playful riding, they were really easy to get along with.

Compared to my control bindings, they were maybe a touch down in terms of carving power and higher-speed stability. At best, they were equal. But they definitely leaned more toward playful and surfy rather than precise and powerful.

Carving

Carving was fine, but not a standout. I would say they were at best equal to my control bindings for carving, and maybe a touch down. They didn’t have that really locked-in feel you get from a stiffer, more precise binding.

The softer highback and more forgiving strap feel gave them a looser personality, which was great for playfulness, but not quite as good when I wanted to really push hard through a carve.

They could carve. They just weren’t carving specialists. They felt better for medium-speed, surfy turns than aggressive, high-pressure carves.

Board Feel/Butterability

Board feel was good but not outstanding. They didn’t feel dead or overly damp underfoot, and they didn’t make the board feel too restricted and were decently easy to butter press and ollie with. But not as good as the Joint, Logic or my control bindings.

However, compared to previous impressions I had of the IPO, I felt like it was a step up in terms of board feel.

Pop/Ollie Power

They didn’t feel like super explosive, energy-loaded bindings, but they also didn’t sap energy from the board. They had a good amount of spring through the footbed, and the softer flex made it easy to load things up without much effort.

Speed

At higher speeds, they were again decent but not amazing. I didn’t feel too unstable or sketchy in them, but they didn’t have that planted, locked-in, chargey feel that stronger bindings tend to have. They were more relaxed and forgiving.

Shock Absorption

The footbed felt really cush, but not dead. It had that nice YES (formerly NOW) style feel where there was plenty of cushioning, but also some spring and life underfoot. That’s something YES and Jones bindings tend to do really well.

Because of the softer snow conditions, it was harder to get a perfect read on chatter absorption and harsh landings, but I had no complaints. They felt comfortable, damp enough and easy on the body.

Comfort

I didn’t feel any major pressure points or discomfort from the ankle strap.

The highback didn’t have padding, but I didn’t have any issues with calf-bite or anything else on snow, which is the main thing here.

The footbed also looked and felt canted, and that was pretty obvious both by eye and measurement.

Entry / Exit

The ratchets were smooth - right up there with the better ones. Most bindings are getting pretty good in this area now, but the IPO didn’t give me anything to complain about for sure.

The double hinge system on the ankle and toe straps was also really helpful. It kept the straps out of the way nicely, so I wasn’t standing on them when getting my boots in.

They were still traditional strap bindings, but the hinged straps made the process cleaner and easier.

Adjustability

You could run the disc horizontally, so stance width adjustability was good. They also had tool-less strap adjustments and tool-less forward lean, which was nice.

They didn’t have heel cup adjustment, ankle strap position adjustment, toe strap position adjustment, gas pedal extension, heel ramp adjustment or highback rotation.

They were compatible with the Channel, which was good.

One cool extra was the ability to adjust the bushings. This pair came with the soft bushings, but I’m pretty sure you could buy other bushings separately. That gave them a nice level of tunability that you don’t get with a lot of bindings.

Weight

On snow, they didn’t feel noticeably heavy or noticeably light. They felt about the same as the average bindings.

Score Breakdown and Final Verdict

Check out the breakdown of the score in the table below.

The YES IPO were comfortable, easy-going, surfy and playful bindings that worked really well for a more relaxed all-mountain freestyle style of riding.

They weren’t the most precise or powerful bindings I tested, and they weren’t the best option for hard carving or charging at higher speeds. But they had good slow speed maneuverability, decent enough board feel and felt easy enough to ollie with. They had good comfort and great shock absorption, and were easy to get in and out of thanks to the double-hinged straps.

The overall feel was more playful than precise. And for the right rider, that was a good thing.

If you’re looking for something that gives you freedom of movement, a surfy feel and a comfortable, cush ride - without going super soft - the IPO make a lot of sense.