How to Choose Your Mouse Pad？

Mouse pad, a product that many people have never paid attention to, has undergone tremendous development and changes to this day, but many people still don’t understand what benefits a mouse pad can bring to everyone.

Many people think that it is just a pad placed under the mouse, and people can even use newspapers or other paper as a substitute, especially in the era of optical mice.

Initially, people used mouse pads because the mouse at that time was mechanically designed, that is, there was a ball at the bottom of the mouse. During use, a slightly uneven interface would affect the use of the mouse.

At that time, the mouse pad not only made the mouse more stable and stable, but also prevented the mouse ball from entering dirt and affecting accuracy.

Although it is now the era of optical mice, and some mice have very good cross-border capabilities, mouse pads are still very important for some users. For example, game users and professionals who have high requirements for accuracy and stability need mouse pads when using mice.

Some people say that there are many types of mouse pads now, which one is the best?What are the performance parameters of mouse pads?

What Are the Performance Parameters of Mouse Pads?

Startability

The startability of a mouse pad is the rapid acceleration performance of the mouse on the mouse pad. The rapid turning action in FPS games is closely related to this performance.The startability of a mouse pad is divided into two parts.

The first is to overcome the static friction between the mouse foot and the mouse pad, and turn the mouse from the static friction state to the dynamic friction state.

This process is generally when the mouse pad is the most astringent, and a relatively large force is required to turn the mouse from static friction to dynamic friction. The second stage is the continuous acceleration stage of the mouse.

Some mouse pads will increase the friction as the mouse speed increases. These two items jointly determine the startability of the mouse pad.The startability is closely related to the surface material and weaving process of the mouse pad.

Generally speaking, the mouse pads with the same surface material and the same surface problems will not differ much in startability.

Smoothness

Smoothness can also be considered as the slipperiness of the mouse pad. The higher the smoothness, the smoother the mouse pad.

However, this smoothness is not the higher the better. Generally, the improvement of smoothness is accompanied by a decrease in stopping performance, which means that it is more difficult to accurately control the mouse.

Generally speaking, in terms of smoothness, resin pads > coating/random woven cloth pads > coarse woven cloth pads > smooth woven cloth pads. The smooth experience brought by the same surface treatment process is basically similar.

So when choosing a mouse pad, the weaving process and coating material on the surface of the mouse pad are often the factors that determine the smoothness of the mouse pad, and your skin touch is often not accurate.

Braking

Braking is relative to the starting performance, which is the process of the mouse from sliding to stillness. In other words, it is the astringency of the mouse. The higher the astringency, the better the braking performance of the mouse pad.

In the game, high DPI parties and hand-clumsy parties are more suitable for astringent pads. High-astringency pads are more suitable for control in a small range of movement. The less obvious the reaction to hand shaking, the more stable the mouse.

Astringent pads generally have two characteristics: delicate surface material and thickened pad layer. They all have delicate surfaces and thickened pad layers, and the resistance is relatively large when moving, but it is easier to form muscle memory.

Transparency

This is actually the thickness of the mouse pad. The thicker the mouse pad, the weaker the communication with the desktop.Generally speaking, the advantage of thick pads is to achieve a higher flatness on uneven surfaces.

And many people are used to thick pads because thick pads are more comfortable, and the mouse pad can be placed at a more comfortable height, or when the mouse is thrown after losing the game, it will not hurt the desktop.

Flexibility

Flexibility can be considered as the rollability of the mouse, but a rollable mouse pad does not mean that it can be folded in half! Soft mouse pads have a certain degree of rollability, but if the mouse pad is folded in half.

It will easily damage the surface coating and weaving process of the mouse pad, causing irreversible damage or surface creases, so no matter what kind of mouse pad, try to avoid bending.

We have explained the performance parameters of the mouse pad above. Next, let’s talk about what misunderstandings there are when choosing to buy a mouse pad in daily life?

What Are the Misunderstandings in the Purchase of Mouse Pads?

Is the thicker the mouse pad, the better?

There is a strange phenomenon in the domestic mouse pad market. The thicker the mouse pad of the same model, the better the sales.

Under the same surface process, the thicker the foam layer pad, the more astringent it is, and the higher the edge of the thick mouse pad is, the easier it is to cut the arm. Especially for mouse pads of the same model like Jianjiang, which provide multiple thicknesses.

If you pursue the ultimate smoothness, you must choose the thinnest one, and don’t blindly pursue “solid materials”.

But it doesn’t mean that thick pads are bad, and you have to base it on your actual situation. If the desktop you usually use is flat enough or you pursue a smooth feeling, it is still recommended to use a thinner pad.

Is the life of the cloth pad really long?

This question can be said to be yes or no, because different understandings of the life of the pad also have different understandings of the life of the cloth pad.Unlike coated pads and resin pads, woven cloth pads will have a huge difference in feel after the coating is worn.
The difference in the feel of woven cloth pads after wear is small, but it does not mean that woven cloth pads will not wear.

Even the fiber layer will cause the woven fiber to polish due to friction during use, resulting in a change in feel. The life of a woven pad is generally 6 months to a year, but there are also special fiber woven pads such as CD-35, which can maintain the same feel for 5 years.

Some people are sensitive to the change in the feel of woven cloth pads, while others are not, so for users with high requirements for the feel, it is recommended to replace the mouse pad once a year or so.

What else affects the feel of the mouse pad?

In addition to the craftsmanship and the degree of wear, the feel of the mouse pad will also be affected by the material of the foot pad, the area of ​​the foot pad, the design of the mouse chassis and the weather.

Needless to say, the foot pad is smooth with a small foot pad and stable with a large foot pad, and the design of the mouse chassis will also affect the sliding feeling to a certain extent.

The impact of weather should be more profound for friends in the south. Many cloth pads are prone to increase in astringency as humidity increases.

In addition to the air being very humid after entering the rainy season, sweating during intense games will also affect the smoothness of the mouse pad.

How much does the mouse pad affect the feel?

Strictly speaking, the mouse pad only has 60~70% influence on the feel, and the rest depends on the matching of the mouse feet. Generally speaking, small feet are smoother and more startable, but the use experience of coarse woven pads and resin pads is relatively poor.

And they do not feel smooth when moving, while the mouse with large feet is just the opposite.If you use astringent feet and resin pads, you can improve the controllability of the resin pad. So how to find a suitable foot pad depends on whether you can find a suitable match.

There is no best choice of mouse pad, only the most suitable one for yourself. According to your usual usage habits and the games you play, choosing a mouse pad that suits you can make your daily use more comfortable.

If a high-quality mouse is 60 points, then choosing the right mouse pad can achieve a higher score. But if your mouse itself only has 29 points, even the best mouse pad will not reach the passing level.