What's the difference between a power paddle and a control paddle?

Power paddles, often thermoformed with foam-injected perimeters, give you more ball speed for a given swing but punish soft hands at the kitchen line. Control paddles have a softer, plusher feel that lets you reset and dink with more touch but require bigger swings for putaways. Most modern carbon-fiber paddles try to split the difference; reviewers will tell you where on that spectrum a specific model lands.