SawStop Jobsite Saw PRO with Mobile Cart Assembly - 1 1/2 HP 120V 60Hz JSS-120A60

Why it's worth it

The Jobsite Saw PRO carries SawStop's flesh-detection system, which stops and drops the blade in under 5 milliseconds when it senses skin. It's the heaviest and most expensive saw here, and it comes on a mobile cart that folds down for transport and storage.

Nothing else here can stop a blade before it takes a finger. SawStop's system senses skin contact and halts the blade in under 5 milliseconds. Human reaction time runs past 150 milliseconds, so you can't win that race on reflexes, no matter how careful you are. The CPSC puts table saw injuries at roughly 33,000 a year, about one in ten an amputation. That math is the entire argument for this saw.

The catch is what a trip costs you. The brake cartridge is single-use, and the blade generally doesn't survive the stop either, so one activation means replacing both and losing the rest of the afternoon. Damp or pressure-treated lumber can set the system off, too. If you cut wet stock daily, plan around that before you commit.

From our review of 4 contractor and jobsite table saws, by David Sinclair, Managing Editor

What we like

• +Nothing else here can stop a blade before it takes a finger
• +The catch is what a trip costs you
• +As a saw, it's good rather than exceptional
• +It makes the most sense in a shared shop or a teaching space, where you can't control who's standing at the blade

What to know

• –It's heavy and bulky
• –A few owners describe it as a construction saw rather than a precision machine, with a fence worth checking rather than trusting