Ask a snowboard expert for a recommendation and you’ll be bombarded with technobabble: terms like camber, rocker, sidecut, and pop. Since most of a board’s technology is hidden in the core, neophytes tend to buy according to price and aesthetics alone—or they simply choose Burton, which controls 40 percent of the $300 million industry.

In the 1990s, when the sport that Jake Burton virtually invented started to become popular, dozens of snowboard companies sprouted up. But competition has thinned the ranks since then. Warmer winters aren’t helping either: Total skiing and snowboarding visits dropped by approximately 6 percent last year. Only about 20 manufacturers now make snowboards in significant quantities.

That said, the survivors are moving into a new wave of design, in which aspects that once seemed fixed—like the shape of the edges and the position of the bindings—are being rethought. Below, a jargon decoder for the most innovative offerings this season.

Arbor ALT
Good for: Saving the earth
Price: $500
The skin of most snowboards is made from petroleum-based fiberglass, but environmentally minded engineers at Arbor replaced it with a layer of bamboo for its new ALT board. Fans say the earth-friendly skin increases the pop, or spring, that a board gives during jumps. The ALT still has some plastic, though. Arbor hasn’t yet managed to eliminate the material.

K2 Gyrator
Good for: Powder
Price: $549
A tribute to the original Gyrator, a well-regarded design from the sport’s early days, in 1990, K2’s upgrade is a true rocker-style board. Most snowboards have camber, or a raised center, but on a rocker, the ends arc slightly up from the snow, making it easier for experts to do spins. One caveat—while the design works well in powder, it tends to slide more in icy conditions.

Burton Vapor
Good for: Stunts
Price: $1,000
In an attempt to increase a rider’s agility, Burton swapped the wooden core found in most snowboards with aluminum honeycomb—the material used in F-15 fuselages—and a fiberglass shell with a carbon skin. That reduced the board’s weight by about 20 percent, so it’s easier to maneuver. Experienced riders say the performance gain is similar to that of a Porsche over a Lexus.

Lib Tech Cygnus X-1
Good for: Slick conditions
Price: $1,200
For riding on icy slopes, Lib Tech gave the X-1 a feature called Magne-Traction, or serrated edges that dig in on slippery runs. Seven edged sections are placed around the perimeter, including along the sidecuts, concave flanks that help a snowboarder make turns. The idea has been around for years, but it’s just now catching on.