If one is looking at a cue with points, a decorative ring or buzz ring between the base of the points and the handle is a pretty good indicator a cue was made with short-splice points and mortise & tenon construction. The lack of a ring doesn't necessarily rule out short splice points either. It could be that the joinery is simply concealed under the wrap. A strong magnet held over that area can indicate the presence of a connecting pin that's secures the mortise & tenon joinery used in typical A-joint construction. If the connecting pin is made of a non-ferrous material, or if the mortise & tenon were threaded, a magnet obviously wouldn't reveal anything.
On a full-splice cue, there won't be a ring between the handle and forearm of the cue. Inlays could be done to look like a decorative ring but it's not too common. There's no A-joint in the area between the handle & wrap, or connecting pin for that matter. Instead, diagonal splices are made that create a relatively large surface area for glue joinery.
Going into the perceived advantages and disadvantages is a can of worms, but I will say from a cue maker's standpoint, short-sliced points w/ mortise & tenon construction affords more control over the weight, balance and the overall design.
Full-splice construction is much more involved, and as far as I know, there are only a few custom cue makers that build them from scratch. That pretty much lends it self to the mystique. Then of course there's the Brunswick Titlist, out of production more than 40 years, and still one of the most sought after cues around.
