Yes! I finally got an icanhascheezburger pic in the news!

Yes! I finally got an icanhascheezburger pic in the news!

This week's poll should be one that every bit-tech reader will be able to take part in: what type of mouse mat do you use?

Earlier in the week, we had a request to review a selection of mouse mats, but how many people actually use one? Or even pay significant money for one?

Everyone has their own opinions on "gaming" peripherals, along with their actual usefulness and appeal, so we'd love to know what bit-tech readers actually use.

Of course, if you've got suggestions of mouse mats you'd like us to look at, why not drop into this feedback thread and let us know?

Don't forget registration on bit-tech's forums is quick and best of all it's FREE... so what are you waiting for? Get on with registering and join in the fun!
Apple Products at Misco
Quote Glider 27th July 2007, 19:15
Touchpad or riding bare ;)
Quote DougEdey 27th July 2007, 19:26
Bareback, no sensation quite like it.
Quote -:: M@ ::- 27th July 2007, 19:30
A black hardback book :D
Quote atanum141 27th July 2007, 19:34
Slicksteel pro. i dont think anyone uses these on the forums.
Quote Hamish 27th July 2007, 19:38
everglide titan

its BIGGAR THAN XBOX!
Quote Techno-Dann 27th July 2007, 19:43
Decently cheap cloth mat, from Office Depot. I can't stand the hard plastic mouse mats, they're rougher than my cloth one and hard on both my MX518 and my hand.
Quote Amon 27th July 2007, 19:55
G7 on textured desk. I used to use a gelled mat, but it was extremely small and dust would accumulate on the laser lens.
Quote fathazza 27th July 2007, 20:07
DKT Megamat...
Quote whypick1 27th July 2007, 20:19
Func Surface1030 Archetype
Quote furqan 27th July 2007, 20:29
Func 1030
Quote Tim S 27th July 2007, 20:30
I use a Steelpad 5L
Quote trigger 27th July 2007, 20:31
I go bareback at home, but that's a little inappropriate at work (;)), so I use a Kensington Gel Wristrest thing there.
Quote teamtd11 27th July 2007, 20:32
Thermaltake Tai-Chi M2 with a Razer Rest under it :)
Quote GuitarBizarre 27th July 2007, 20:35
I don't. Mousemats for optical/Laser mice are, in my humble opinion, a con.
Quote Hack'n'Slash 27th July 2007, 20:47
Steelpad S&S, made extra slippery with a dusting of silicone spray every few weeks. I've had a couple of Everglide Gigantas (plain black & smoke) in the past but they both bowed upwards in the middle after some time, no problems with the S&S so far. ;)
Quote The_Beast 27th July 2007, 21:09
My Mom gets free ones at medical conferences, right now it is a AARP mouse pad
Quote Firehed 27th July 2007, 21:20
Quote:
Originally Posted by furqan
Func 1030
Need to find mine... the thing fell off the face of the earth. In the meantime, touchpad, bare table, or cheap cloth thing.
Quote mikeuk2004 28th July 2007, 00:25
I go bareback as since going lazer/optical I didnt see the point of mice mats. There purpose was to give ball mice grip to give you a smoth movement. Now thats not the case with lazer so why would you have one??? Maybe people are so used to them that they feel lost without it.
Quote Shadowed_fury 28th July 2007, 00:42
I don't, so wooden desk for me with highest sensitivity on. :)
Quote DougEdey 28th July 2007, 00:42
Quote:
Originally Posted by trigger
I go bareback at home, but that's a little inappropriate at work (;)), so I use a Kensington Gel Wristrest thing there.

I would have gone bareback at work. But the f**cking cleaners, never ACTUALLY cleaned anything.
Quote Tomm 28th July 2007, 02:02
Ratpadz GS, but it needs a clean since it's actually less silky than the desk it's on!

But when clean it does make a difference (in reply to the person who said they're a con).
Quote GuitarBizarre 28th July 2007, 02:16
*shrug* I've never seen a mousepad thats offered any of the benefits they're touted for. A slight reduction in friction maybe, but all these pads that claim better tracking are just blowing smoke as far as I'm concerned. I've never had any tracking problems with good ol' wood veneer.
Quote Neogumbercules 28th July 2007, 03:46
Some cheap-o wal-mart mouse pad with a gel wrist rest. I used to use an old flat crap mouse pad I got with my super old Compaq. I haven't had wrist pain in my right had since I started using this one. Which reminds me, I need to get a better keyboard with a wrist pad.
Quote RTT 28th July 2007, 10:17
Some hard pad that came with my Razer Boomslang 2100 :D
Quote aix 28th July 2007, 10:19
Everglide™ Titan Monstermat ftw ;)
Quote zr_ox 28th July 2007, 10:27
After getting a Logitech G7 I went bare back since I just wanted to save space.

Since buying a Death Adder I got an eXactMat and for gaming it's incredible. I never expected such a difference, granted that gaming an PS work are the only times you might benefit from a mat.
Quote specofdust 28th July 2007, 10:34
Quote:
Originally Posted by mikeuk2004
I go bareback as since going lazer/optical I didnt see the point of mice mats. There purpose was to give ball mice grip to give you a smoth movement. Now thats not the case with lazer so why would you have one??? Maybe people are so used to them that they feel lost without it.

Not at all, mousemats simply enable you to be more precise and accurate with your mousing. The purpose of them may have been to give ballmice grip, but the purpose for my optical mouse is the exact opposite. It's to minimise friction. Teflon beats an old desk with peeling paint for that.
Quote Hiren 28th July 2007, 10:42
Work: Ratpadz GS

Home: Bareback, although this black desk makes my mouse go screwy at times.
Quote Duste 28th July 2007, 11:41
Why wouldn't you use a mouse-pad? More so when you're a gamer than anything else, but whatever. The bottom's of mice pretty much get sanded down by table-tops, or at least my wooden computer desk does it. :(
Quote poenanie 28th July 2007, 11:43
My pad-history :

Steelpad QCK+ \
Speedpad ( with prey theme ) | Logitech MX518 with Steel padsurfers ..
Steelpad S&S |
Steelpad S&S /
Steelpad 5L \ Logitech G5 ( 2007 version ) with Hyperglide Logitech G5 skates ..
Steelpad SX ( Currently ordered , not in use yet .. ) /

I'm a competitive lanplayer , hence the large amount of expensive mousepads i've allready had :p
Quote [WP@]WOLVERINE 28th July 2007, 11:58
Qpad XT-R and Noidpad custom
Quote dB1 28th July 2007, 12:02
I use a Steelpad 4D for my G5 mouse - works like a charm
Quote samkiller42 28th July 2007, 12:04
I chose None, but im currently in the market for a mousemat, as my desk is in two parts, and my mouse wont work on frosted glass:?

Sam
Quote Hugo 28th July 2007, 12:08
Quote:
Originally Posted by mikeuk2004
I go bareback as since going lazer/optical I didnt see the point of mice mats. There purpose was to give ball mice grip to give you a smoth movement. Now thats not the case with lazer so why would you have one??? Maybe people are so used to them that they feel lost without it.

The reason you would still want a mouesmat with optical is to give a smooth surface to use it on, not everyone has a mouse/desk combo that works. Some crappy Saitek mouse I pulled out one of the cupboards here, for example, refused to work properly until I got a mouseman for it.
Quote alextwo 28th July 2007, 12:10
Some cheap ass cloth pad. I just hate the feel of using a mouse on just a desk.
Quote ElZog 28th July 2007, 12:17
None, ever since I went optical mouse I haven't felt a need for one. Also I rarely have the desk space to fit a mat anyway (hopefully this will change next year when I go to a new flat.
Quote GiGo 28th July 2007, 12:33
Used to use a pad, but gave up after I got my second laser pad and upgraded my PC, decided that all the paper and crap that I shove on top of my desk every day covers the mouse pad to much to move, so much easier on the my leg or on top of the paper thats on top of my mouse pad.

Im not a gamer (we'll I am but don't need the mouse for racing) so I does'nt make a difference.

I also find that mouse pads get dirty and causes my mouse to get dirtier on the bottom than if I used the desk.

Regards
GiGo
Quote mashles 28th July 2007, 12:40
Steelpad QcK (currently on my 4th, i use my 3rd at work, my mum uses my 2nd) they are only £5 from scan so i tend to replace em like once every 6-8 months.
Quote FullThrottleRic 28th July 2007, 12:41
Icemat black second edition with MX518 and teflon feet here, it's so much nicer to use than cloth pads or the desk ;)
Quote Forsaken 28th July 2007, 12:46
Use one that was given away on some random sales rep, would go without, but my MS Laser mouse refuses to track on me desk, as its rather glossy.
Quote Seraphim Works 28th July 2007, 12:50
Don't use one myself, then again, I'm using an exotic dell mouse. Tracks well on a standard beech veneer desk, took a while to get used to my home made desk at home, it struggled with the glossy black worktop.
Personally I can't stand mousepads, I like my setup minimalist and a mouse pad just irks.
Quote Temet Nosce 28th July 2007, 12:58
I don't, I have a trackball mouse
Quote BioSniper 28th July 2007, 12:58
Func 1030
Quote cobalt6700 28th July 2007, 12:59
steelpad 4D or creative x-fi cloth one from i30, depending on what mood im in... i find no mousemat makes sweaty desk.....
Quote TheEclypse 28th July 2007, 13:04
Dont use one unless I have to (desk at uni is perforated).
Quote quack 28th July 2007, 13:31
Ratpadz at home, none at work.
Quote SPQQKY 28th July 2007, 13:36
I had a mouse pad my mom had made with my sons picture on it, it started to wear out and I wanted to keep it nice so I just busted out the free max pain pad I got years ago.
Quote bubsterboo 28th July 2007, 13:38
I use a cheapo one, only because my desk is glass.
Quote c.u.later 28th July 2007, 13:39
Well, I use an everglide mousemat, and to be fair it's pretty good, but I wouldn't have got it if I hadn't won it tbh, I'm usually a cheap and cheerful guy :P

c.u.later
Quote jjsyht 28th July 2007, 13:43
Dont use one... except when gaming which I use my ol' trusty hard&slim everglide
Quote yakyb 28th July 2007, 13:50
icw mat but im gointg back to a cloth mat as soon as i get a new desk
Quote r-gator 28th July 2007, 14:05
Glass desks and laser mice don't work so well together so I kind of have to have a mat.
Quote yodasarmpit 28th July 2007, 14:05
Blue Icemat 2nd Edition, had it for years now.
Quote Xen0phobiak 28th July 2007, 14:36
Quote:
Originally Posted by fathazza
DKT Megamat...

Me too.
Quote legoman666 28th July 2007, 15:13
I roll with an Icemat. Kind of hard to keep smooth since it's glass, but it's really slick for a few days after I clean it.
Quote z3rb 28th July 2007, 15:30
if there was a "one i stole 30 of from the government" option, i would have chosen that.
Quote FIBRE+ 28th July 2007, 15:41
Black Icemat + thick teflon skates on my mouse, and I use my old steelpad 4D as a rest for my elbow/forearm.


Mouse mouse!

http://www.instructables.com/files/deriv/FKZ/DRW6/F0ZSTCZX/FKZDRW6F0ZSTCZX.MEDIUM.jpg
Quote Demon Cleaner 28th July 2007, 15:46
Generally I use whatever surface is nearest - desk, bed, leg, etc... If I'm gaming I'll use a basic mouse mat.
Quote MonkeyNutZ 28th July 2007, 16:25
S&S SteelPad.
Quote Silver Shamrock 28th July 2007, 17:04
I have a classic Allsop mat. It's 6 years old now and has been washed countless times but is still in great condition barring a few slightly frayed edges. Couldn't imagine using anything else.
Quote Salazaar 28th July 2007, 17:23
I'm dropping in another vote for Icemat, white though. I love that frosty glass look!
Quote banshee256 28th July 2007, 17:47
I use the Steelpad QcK+ with my Logitech G5 lase-tingy. And there's a few reasons for that.

My table is a 50 year old wooden desk, made before they put a nice, slick surface on them. So it's rough... My brother-in-law had it before me and he has made a lot of burn marks on it, with his cigarettes, so the big surface covers them up nicely.

And, as some (probably young) guy suggested, I'm old and used to a pad. Pad and mouse go together like... coffee and cigarettes, widescreen and surround sound and work and an ulcer: There's no point having one, if you can't have both ;)
Quote wafflesomd 28th July 2007, 18:09
My wooden desk!
Quote sui_winbolo 28th July 2007, 18:25
Just got a Func pad. Haven't used it yet, but I got it for my laptop when I'm not on the go.

http://a733.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/113/l_fe2577b9842668c9cb234166b2472bec.jpg
Quote useru_clairvoyant 28th July 2007, 18:33
bareback or a piece of paper.
Quote useru_clairvoyant 28th July 2007, 18:37
Quote:
Originally Posted by banshee256
... Pad and mouse go together like... coffee and cigarettes, widescreen and surround sound and work and an ulcer: There's no point having one, if you can't have both ;)

I'll dare to quote you on that. You're office worker, right? :D
Quote Blademrk 28th July 2007, 18:39
an LED one I picked up in Maplins for a tenner it looks almost the same as this mouse mat but it's sides are flat instead of concave and I don't think it was made by Thermaltake.
Quote Omnituens 28th July 2007, 18:55
DKT here
Quote Mister_Tad 28th July 2007, 19:09
Used to have a Ratpadz GS, until the texture wore off (imo far too quickly)
Then switched to a Steelpad 4D, which I loved until that started wearing down a bit, so I replaced it with a Steelpad S&S and and I must say, I preferred the texture on the 4D (I thought they were the same until I bought the S&S)

Use 4Ds at work
Quote DriftCarl 28th July 2007, 19:14
I actually have 2 ontop of eachother =/
one on the bottom is some cloth one with a nice wrist rest at the bottom, its a round mouse mat. ontop of that I have an Everglide plastic mat designed for optical mice. So the cloth wrist rest is the only bit in use from the bottom one. Its comfy :)
Quote DarkLord7854 28th July 2007, 19:18
Table-top suits me fine :)
Quote CoolFox 28th July 2007, 19:22
I go "Bareback", but I clean my desk surface with one of those teflon bath cleaners.. WOW that makes for a orgasmic mousing surface.
Quote GuardianStorm 28th July 2007, 19:32
Everglide Titan Monstermat :D, but i use it a s a rest for all sorts of things...glasses, papercraft, PIC dev...
Quote masteroffm 28th July 2007, 19:44
a "puzzle pad" that I have had forever. has an interlocking mouse pad and wrist rest nearly an inch thick.
Quote LoopyJuice 28th July 2007, 20:06
Icemat white, I have a black around somewhere too. I was using the free creative x-fi mats given out at i-series events for about a year but after moving to a 30" display I needed a higher sensitivity to give a reasonable feel on the display.

This lead to me noticing that the tracking on the free mat was pretty bad and jumpy for very small movements (graphic design or fps games etc) and slowly got to me until I sought out my old Icemat.

Having used it for a few weeks I cant do without it now, it's far smoother and the tracking problems/jumping are gone completely. Only issues I have are with the feet that arn't stuck down that well and occasionally a small particle will get on the mat and make an infuriating grinding sound. :)

Oh and bareback is not really an option as I use an optical mouse and my desktop is 10mm plate glass and it refuses to track at all on it :)
Quote D B 28th July 2007, 20:11
Razer Mantis, speed, to go along with my Diamondback ... slippery and it's freak'n huge!
http://www.razerzone.com/images/mantis_LRG5.jpg

Although .. I like that idea about using a teflon cookie sheet ;)
Quote karx11erx 28th July 2007, 21:06
Razer exactMat X control. Almost no friction with my Razer Copperhead mouse.
Quote Brooxy 28th July 2007, 21:28
I use a recycled car tyre...

linky
Quote Tyr 28th July 2007, 21:40
I don't use a mouse mat.

Got a free one from a chemical company, but it is too small.

Really want a hard Raptor pad, but then it is the moving it about and finding space for it...
Quote D3s3rt_F0x 28th July 2007, 21:45
Func 1030 bought Alienware branded one for £7 instead of spending £30 for the plain func one
Quote Raziekiel 28th July 2007, 21:52
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hamish
everglide titan

its BIGGAR THAN XBOX!

QFT I use one as well =D
Quote Pie_uk 28th July 2007, 22:04
razer exact mat
Quote severedhead 28th July 2007, 22:19
Original Icemat + padsurfers.
Quote RedDethX 28th July 2007, 22:19
Cheap flimsy mouse pad = win!
Quote Ramble 28th July 2007, 23:01
I use a smeggy free one I got from work experience with TNT.
Before that I was using a stolen army issue mousemat.
Quote speedfreek 28th July 2007, 23:09
The non glossy side of a piece of a golden grams box.
Quote simosaurus 28th July 2007, 23:24
i use a speed pad, hard trasparent plastic mat, won it like 4 years ago at a LAN and its still going strong
Quote Ghys 28th July 2007, 23:31
Everglide Titan Fnatic

http://membres.lycos.fr/sifer1/bureau.jpg
Quote Firehed 28th July 2007, 23:46
Holy hugeness - how big is that thing?

As an aside, is that Zelda: LTTP in the SNES? And does it still work?
Quote proxess 28th July 2007, 23:48
I had a pair of jeans that didn't fit me, so i cut out a part of the legs then turned it inside out, and put it on top of a piece of rubber. The mouse rolls smoothly over the jeans but doesn't glide if i let go of the mouse. I recommend it to everyone!
Quote woodshop 29th July 2007, 00:35
CorePad XXXL, link got it not to improve any performance but to keep the desk clean and provide a huge surface that the mouse could use without falling off it or scratching up the desk. Its is also big enough that the entire keyboard fits on it so i don't have to deal with the rocking issues that i had before because 1/2 the keyboard was on the mat and 1/2 was not.
Quote Mister_Tad 29th July 2007, 00:44
Quote:
Originally Posted by CorePad XXXL spec
Dimensions 35.43" x 17.72" x 0.19"

I read that in cm first and thought it was just slightly larger than average, then it hit me

tell me this is a typo, for what reason could one possibly need a mouse pad that's 3 feet wide!

My mouse sits in around a 4x4" square in the middle of the pad, and can traverse over 4000px of horizontal resolution without straying from that patch :|
Quote Furymouse 29th July 2007, 00:46
http://www.xtracpads.com/prohs.htm
Bought the older one a few years back at a LAN. Works beautifully under my S500.
Quote Smilodon 29th July 2007, 00:50
Quote:
Originally Posted by furqan
Func 1030

Same here. I got it because i was tires of the mouse "sticking" to the mouse mat making it inaccurate when editing pictures. (no matter how much i cleaned the pad and mouse) I also had some teflon tape which made it a tad better, but it came loose, and i can't find the rest of it :( . I like having my mouse at high sensitivity, so i use maybe 1/3 of the pad for mousing.

On laptop i use touch pad of course.

At work i use some plastic mouse mat i got from a co-worker. (plastic thing with a calender and some advertisement for he's dads company.) It's pretty nice :)
Quote ivanrlynn 29th July 2007, 01:22
Im using a small circular one with a gel wrist rest on the arm of my chair/couch.
Bought it in pc world about a year ago.
Quote David_Fitzy 29th July 2007, 01:30
Bareback for me my semi-cheap MS comfort 3000 seems to be happy on any surface I give it.

The only reason for a mat as I see it is for mouse ball grip or to improve cheap mice's optical scanning. I haven't seen a ball mouse for sale for ages and I'd bet if they are still for sale the cost would be similar to a cheap optical mouse. It won't be too long before even cheap mice have lasers instead of LEDs then the need for a mouse mat will be pretty much nil.

Demand will be for decorative mats, for people with glass computer desks or gamers who feel they need optical enhanced mats. Oh and of course those mats where the wrist rest are the lady's boobies
Quote woodshop 29th July 2007, 04:31
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mister_Tad
I read that in cm first and thought it was just slightly larger than average, then it hit me

tell me this is a typo, for what reason could one possibly need a mouse pad that's 3 feet wide!

My mouse sits in around a 4x4" square in the middle of the pad, and can traverse over 4000px of horizontal resolution without straying from that patch :|

Not a typo.. Like i said i use it for more then just the Mouse.. it protects my cherry wood desktop.

Note To Self: I really need to clean.......

http://cs.nmu.edu/~aanagnos/desk.png
Quote HourBeforeDawn 29th July 2007, 04:55
nice, well I use the Razer ExactMat
Quote RotoSequence 29th July 2007, 05:11
Quote:
Originally Posted by woodshop
Not a typo.. Like i said i use it for more then just the Mouse.. it protects my cherry wood desktop.

Note To Self: I really need to clean.......

So isn't it more of a "Keyboard-Monitor-Mouse" pad?

Mouse pads are for sissies ;)
Quote woodshop 29th July 2007, 05:37
Quote:
Originally Posted by RotoSequence

Mouse pads are for sissies ;)

or people that don't want to wear the finish off the desk by rubbing the mouse on it for hours a day in the same small spot day after day after day
Quote wbdog206 29th July 2007, 05:52
i just put a nice thick layer of finish on my desk top.
Quote Cheap Mod Wannabe 29th July 2007, 05:59
I had a pretty large Rat Padz mat with my older optical logitech, but since I've upgraded to G7 last year, I've noticed that laser mouse was working much better on my white matte table.
Quote AlexB 29th July 2007, 09:51
Icemat, black.
Quote sgr55 29th July 2007, 10:59
I find with a wooden desk, optical mice work far better on the desk than a mouse mat. (then again, maybe it's just the cheapy mouse mats that seem to keep getting landed on me.
Quote Kipman725 29th July 2007, 11:07
Cloth one from game, very nice considering the low cost.
Quote antiHero 29th July 2007, 12:12
Thunder9 for me. Its huge but I love it.
Quote r0z|3o0n 29th July 2007, 12:46
I use my trusty Logitech MX510 on a very large piece of 5mm Etchlite Glass. It's very durable, about 50cm x 30cm, has approximately the same surface as my friends icemat, plus it lights up from the optical sensor on my mouse. Best of all, cost = $0, it was a cutoff from a glass place.
Quote CardJoe 29th July 2007, 13:06
Giganta 4 Laser LE (Plastic) at home, SteelSeries Pro Steelpad at work.

...and when I'm on the missus' PC then I just use a DVD case.
Quote The_Pope 29th July 2007, 13:07
Ratpadz for 6-7 years now
Quote Dayains 29th July 2007, 13:09
Ratpadz GS
Quote SNIPERMikeUK 29th July 2007, 13:30
Mantis Speed, makes a lot of difference....It is stupidly large though, when your mouse has a high dpi, u do not really need much more than a postage stamp sized one....
Quote Starbuck3733T 29th July 2007, 14:46
X-ray technology thunder 9 I got from someone at a lan + logitech MX wireless.
Quote pumpman 29th July 2007, 14:54
4d steel , must get another one, this one is getting very shiny with wear
Quote Ghys 29th July 2007, 16:42
Quote:
Originally Posted by Firehed
Holy hugeness - how big is that thing?

As an aside, is that Zelda: LTTP in the SNES? And does it still work?

1) It is the exact same size as the regular Everglide Titan you've probably seen before http://www.everglide.com/store/images/titan.jpg

2) hell yeah it is !

3) hell yeah it does !


:D:D:D
Quote L2wis 29th July 2007, 19:10
ratpadz GS :D
Quote keir 29th July 2007, 19:36
Razer eXact mat (speed side)
Quote tranc3 29th July 2007, 21:33
Bare back, with Microsoft wireless intelliMouse (explorer 2)
Quote mime genocide 30th July 2007, 02:48
plywood covered by masking t