chconline Veteran Posted August 5, 2006 Veteran Share Posted August 5, 2006 Mousepads has been quite a big thing here at APH for quite a while. We've looked at mousepads of various sizes -- from the huge XTracPads Ripper XXL to average sized mousing surfaces such as Func's sUrface 1030 Archetype. Besides physical dimensions, materials and its properties has been put into consideration -- from our favorite XTracPads Hybrid to our plastic collection such as the Corepad Victory; and let's not forget all the cloth pads we'll be looking at in the next few weeks. All we have to say is that mousepads may sound common, but it's not easy to make a good one that we just want to recommend to everyone. However, when the ever-so-common cloth or plastic (Or a combination of both) is put away, we've got other contestant as well who wants to join the game -- and that includes mousing surfaces made out of glass. Remember Icemat 2nd Edition? Let's see if our Corepad Magna, another glass pad that we'll be reviewing today, is any competition against the Icemat. Will it challenge the highly praised APH Recommended Func sUrface 1030 Archetype as well as the XTracPads Hybrid too? Let's dig into our review today and we'll find out. http://aphnetworks.com/reviews/corepad_magna -- Explanation on ratings and more details on my reviews: http://aphnetworks.com/review_focus Comments, questions, corrections etc please tell me. Give your opinions, tell me where I can improve on! Don't forget to rate this topic appropriately :) -- For those who wondering. I dont want to paste the review here on this page because: - I dont want to change all the HTML/php code or whatever into BBCode - Formatting issues - Takes too much time to do all these stuff - Reuploading all images to imageshack.us with take a long time. - It is not convenient for me to edit mistakes here and on my site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Echilon Posted August 6, 2006 Share Posted August 6, 2006 Do modern mice even need a mousepad? I've used my G7 without one for months and it works perfectly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smigit Posted August 6, 2006 Share Posted August 6, 2006 Well alot of people will say otherwise but I'd say no, you dont. I have a Func 1030 archetype and it's not noticably different, maybe subtle but nothing really all that noticable. It just looks nicer and stops my desk wearing out. And yeah, alot of reviewers say they test it by playing 2 hours of CS and seeing how their score improves. That REALLY doesnt sound like a good test to me at all. I mean one session I can be getting head shot after head shot and 1 hr later I cant get a kill. Realistically just basing a CS score as a sign of improvement and recomending a pad really proves nada, nil. Also the actual surface of your desk will matter, I mean some will suck and then yeah, youll want a pad but many may track perfectly anyway (so in the end its all down to the individual). I tend to take pad reviews with a grain of salt really since performance test is really just a biased test you cant put figures against unless theres obvious flaws with the surface (too loud, mouse "jumps" ect). It's the same reason I wouldnt take a GPU or CPU review or a PSU benchmark seriously without any figures, because anything that isnt calculated without real world numbers seems to just suffer from the placebo effect where something should be better "just because". And yeah i know theres pads can be compared against other factors such as comfort ect, but the actual performance is IMHO something which would be pretty hard to gauge accuratly without bias playing a large part. Ohh and this isnt related to the review above but them in general. The above was quite informative. That said I love my Func, looks wonderful next to my keyboard and my desk's surface was suffering from the hours of mouse usage I was applying on a daily basis. But yeah, whether you need a pad or not of it its desirable really just comes down to what sort of surface your desk has and how well thats going for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chconline Veteran Posted August 6, 2006 Author Veteran Share Posted August 6, 2006 (edited) It does make a difference, but its more of how the pad itself performs (Based on what I write, Glide-Control-Grip is the major scoring points) Bet you $5.00 that 99% of the review sites BS about mousepads. It's too easy. I havent seen a site that even disrecommended a mousepad before, because the reviewers havent tried anything besides their own desk or a $5 staples mousepad. I beg to differ, but I used to use CS + Photoshop as a basis of my earlier reviews, after my observations of Glide + Control + Grip. But I believe using my basis of rating is better than posting the partially subjective results, making an inaccurate review. This will create a more accurate and comparable benchmark with increased accuracy. You'll be surprised how many mousepads I have (Counting the ones I have sitting around right now that havent been reviewed), its a lot more than most people will use it 15 years. :p Therefore, it's hard to get a recommendation from me for a good mousepad. I tend to be extremely critical on these products, and the good things is that the companies won't mind when I do not recommend their products like 99% of other sites. Well alot of people will say otherwise but I'd say no, you dont. I have a Func 1030 archetype and it's not noticably different, maybe subtle but nothing really all that noticable. It just looks nicer and stops my desk wearing out. Did make a differnece to me. The glide is really good on that pad, but sacrifising control. Grip is excellent, quiet, I like it and still one of my favorites. I tend to take pad reviews with a grain of salt really since performance test is really just a biased test you cant put figures against unless theres obvious flaws with the surface (too loud, mouse "jumps" ect). It's the same reason I wouldnt take a GPU or CPU review or a PSU benchmark seriously without any figures, because anything that isnt calculated without real world numbers seems to just suffer from the placebo effect where something should be better "just because". Yeah I tend to agree. Shame to the whole review industry, I am mojority glad people still trusts my mousepad reviews.... :p I read a lot of mousepad reviews, and why, everything gets a recommended or some sort of award. Therefore I developed my own in-house sort of rating system. Maybe some other sites will copy it soon. Ohh and this isnt related to the review above but them in general. The above was quite informative. (Y) Edited August 6, 2006 by chconline Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom Posted August 6, 2006 Share Posted August 6, 2006 I still miss high res pics :p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smigit Posted August 7, 2006 Share Posted August 7, 2006 indeed. get the bandwith man! It'd be killer to have some nicer pics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts