Mouse Pads
What is the best mouse pad?
If you are reading this, chances are that you know how important that material under your hand is. Unfortunately, many gamers buy expensive gaming mice but fail to understand that the mouse and the mouse surface go together.
Teflon feet don’t do you much good if you’re mousing around on a plywood desk, and the precision you pay for in your mouse can go to waste if you’re not using a surface designed for mouse tracking. Investing in a decent mouse pad will often improve accuracy as much as a new mouse, and cost much less. See the individual reviews for more info (exact size, specific features, etc.)
Mouse Surface Ratings
| Review | Rating | MSRP | Surface | Texture |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steelseries SX |  4.60 | $59.99 | Anodized aluminum | Very smooth |
| Razer Ironclad | 4.50 | $59.99 | Anodized aluminum | Smooth |
| Steelseries 5L | 4.50 | $39.99 | Hybrid | Smooth |
| Steelseries 4HD | 4.40 | $24.99 | Hard plastic | Semi-rough |
| Steelseries 9HD | 4.40 | $29.99 | Hard plastic | Semi-rough |
| Steelseries SP |  4.00 | $39.99 | Hard plastic | Smooth |
| Steelseries S&S | 4.00 | $29.99 | Hard plastic | Smooth |
| Steelseries Experience I-2 (Icemat) | 4.00 | $39.99 | Glass | Very smooth |
| Razer Destructor | 3.90 | $39.99 | Fractal surface | Smooth |
| XtrAC Ripper XXL | 3.90 | $38.70 | Cloth | Controlled |
| SteelSeries Qck | 3.80 | Varies | Cloth | Controlled |
| Razer Goliathus Control |  3.20 | Varies | Cloth | Very controlled |
| Razer Goliathus Speed | 3.20 | Varies | Cloth | Fairly smooth |
| Razer Megasoma | 2.80 | $49.99 | Hybrid | Smooth |
Compatible surfaces: People buy pads that don’t work for their mice every day. It doesn’t help that the jokers down at your local “Buy More” don’t really know which mouse pads can be used with which technologies, if they even carry any quality surfaces. Make sure you know whether you want a surface that is designed for laser or optical mice.
If you’re unsure, or think you might be getting a new mouse, consider a pad that is compatible with both laser and optical mice. We clearly list which technology the pad is designed for in each of our reviews.
Hard vs. soft: I remember the days when everyone was mousing around on a cloth mouse pad with squishy rubber on the back. If you’re like me, you probably heard of hard-surface mouse pads and wrote them off immediately. I thought they would be uncomfortable, and provide little benefit over a non-gaming surface… like a desk. I have now been using hard-surface pads for many years, and could never go back to soft-surface pads. I’ve grown accustomed to the smooth glide and superior durability of a hard pad. As for my desk, the tracking is just not as accurate or consistent. For a long time, almost all top-notch pads were hard-surface, but we’ve seen some nice soft-surface pads in recent years. If you like smooth movement, most soft pads don’t compare to solid pads. Our reviews list the surface clearly so that you can find one that meets your preference.
Slick vs. rough: Newbies often fail to realize that smoother is not always better. You have to decide what you are most interested in: speed (smooth) or control (more texture). We hesitate to say rough, because a good mouse pad surface will never be inconsistent or high in friction. If you don’t know which you prefer, it’s probably pretty safe to go with a smooth gliding pad and adjust from there.
Whether you prefer speed or control, all quality mouse pads will help you in one major way: your mouse will not jerk when you begin moving it. Rather, the mouse moves consistently, as if already in motion. There is no initial “grip,” but rather one fluid movement.
Size: Please measure your desk and take a look at the size of the pad you’re interested in before buying it. We review some very large pads that you may not have room for. The Steelseries Qck Heavy, for example, is 17.7″ x 15.7″. Generally speaking, high-sensitivity users will be alright with smaller pads, but low-sensitivity gamers will need a larger pad, as their motions are much wider.
Brand, quality, and wear: This is where we do the homework no one else does for you. You’d hate to spend money for a pad that usually wears in the middle after a couple months, wouldn’t you? We make sure the pad
grips like it’s supposed to and holds up in the long-run.
Awards
The Steelseries SX and the Razer Destructor (discontinued) were the winners in the performance category, each with a unique feeling. The Destructor offers superior control and tracking, while the SX is supreme in terms of smoothness. The SX is the most expensive mouse surface we know of, but the Destructor has durability issues after months of play.
The Steelseries 5L is definitely our favorite soft pad - or perhaps our favorite mouse surface – combining the benefits of a hard pad with the softness of a cloth pad. It is large, durable, and has a smooth surface.
It came down to the Razer Goliathus Oversized (speed or control versions) versus the Steelseries Qck pads for the best very-low-sensitivity surface. Again, there were tradeoffs that made a definite decision impossible. Goliathus offers a speed and control version, while the Qck pads fell somewhere in-between in terms of texture. The Qck had better durability for those who rub their wrists against the edge of the pad. As with all cloth pads, mice with high polling rates and high DPI settings will not perform well unless DPI/polling is turned down.
The The Icemat won as the best optical-only surface. The I-2 is nearly impervious to regular wear-and-tear damage, tracks well, and offers a large surface that is smooth and comfortable. If only it worked with laser mice.
