Overview
Portable saws are masters of the jobsite. They offer construction quality cuts in a package that fits into a pickup truck. While they can be used for fine woodworking, using them for such quickly becomes limiting.
Shopping Guide
It should be a given that a portable saw is to be used on the jobsite. Riping door frames, sizing plywood, and crosscuting trim is what these saws are all capable of. Putting one into a woodshop is not a good idea. Making high quality furniture leve cuts on a regular basis is possible on such a saw, but the user will be fighting the machine every inch of the way.
Ripping fullt sheets on portable saw is possible, but is considerably more dangerous than doing the same thing on a cabinet saw.