Page 1: The Pad
<B>Introduction</B>:
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I have to admit, I never really thought of a mousepad as something to review. But after seeing the costs of high end mousepads, if your in the market for one, it is quite an investment. So, for the first mousepad review I'm doing, I present to you the <a href="http://www.steelpad.com">Steel Pad</a> 4S!
<B>The Packaging</B>:
I was really impressed with the speed that the package arrived, in about three days. And that was from Denmark no less! Steel Pad told me that this is there new service for customers.
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Anyway, there was three layers of packaging. The outer shipping layer, the inner wrapped layer, and the packaging for the box.
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The box itself is nice enough.
<B>The Pad</B>:
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The pad itself is all black, and metal. It is not steel as you may think, but it is Aluminum. Aluminum is cheaper and lighter than steel (but is weaker). It is generally pretty heavy for a mouse pad. The surface of the pad is EXTREMELY smooth, and I mean EXTREMELY. In fact, it is so smooth, that your optical mouse might have a problem tracking the movements.
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The size of it is extremely large, perfect for people that need a large surface. I find myself constantly wrapping around my normal mouse pad, but with this one, I had to do it less.
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The bottom of the pad has 8 rubber feet on it that really hold it to the surface. Believe me, it won't slide around.
<B>The Comparison</B>:
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Now, I know this is a really unfair comparison. How can you compare Duke Nukem to Steel? Nukem would rape Steel all over the place. Anyway, the normal Nukem mouse pad is a soft rubbery type, while the Steel Pad is a hard metallic type. The normal mouse pad does not have any problems with any mice what so ever, but the Steel Pad has trouble with Logitech mice (except the MX series). I tried about 5 of my mice and the only one that worked was my MS IE v3 mouse, so that might be a factor in your decision. This is including 2 non wireless optical mice.
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The normal pad also does not feel cold, while the Steel Pad does. And the Pad also condenses wetness on your hand and creates some more friction. That's just what metal does in general.
The normal back glides smooth, but the Steel Pad has a very large coefficient of friction. This might be suitable to people though. Some people don't like to have a slippy mouse. The problem is that the mouse also make a bad noise on the Steel Pad so you'll have to use some Teflon tape.
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This tape goes on your mouse feet, and it gives the mouse a nice and smooth surface, with a lot less friction. It does raise the height of your mouse. You'll have to get used to it.
Tracking with the pad was really good, but without the tape, was loud. I was afraid to use it because I thought it would scratch the surface. I shouldn't have cared to much, in the end I dropped a screwdriver on it which made a scratch in it. So much for being careful.
Remember that metal shows marks and fingerprints well, so you'll need to clean it. Some Windex or other type of all purpose cleaner will work with a non abrasive cloth.
<B>Conclusion</B>:
I'm not going to lie, I don't use the pad. It doesn't work with my Logitech Elite Duo. Also it is quite expensive at around $47. All in all, it is a nice mouse pad, and if you have a load of money burning a hole in your pocket, consider picking one up. They also have a smaller version of the pad which might be better for some people. It is really hit or miss if your mouse will work with this pad. If you have a third generation optical mouse, it should work fine.
I'd like to thank Mads Onesburg from <a href="http://www.steelpad.com">Steel Pad</a> for sending this for review.
<center>
</center>I have to admit, I never really thought of a mousepad as something to review. But after seeing the costs of high end mousepads, if your in the market for one, it is quite an investment. So, for the first mousepad review I'm doing, I present to you the <a href="http://www.steelpad.com">Steel Pad</a> 4S!
<B>The Packaging</B>:
I was really impressed with the speed that the package arrived, in about three days. And that was from Denmark no less! Steel Pad told me that this is there new service for customers.
<center>
</center>Anyway, there was three layers of packaging. The outer shipping layer, the inner wrapped layer, and the packaging for the box.
<center>
</center>The box itself is nice enough.
<B>The Pad</B>:
<center>
</center>The pad itself is all black, and metal. It is not steel as you may think, but it is Aluminum. Aluminum is cheaper and lighter than steel (but is weaker). It is generally pretty heavy for a mouse pad. The surface of the pad is EXTREMELY smooth, and I mean EXTREMELY. In fact, it is so smooth, that your optical mouse might have a problem tracking the movements.
<center>
</center>The size of it is extremely large, perfect for people that need a large surface. I find myself constantly wrapping around my normal mouse pad, but with this one, I had to do it less.
<center>
</center>The bottom of the pad has 8 rubber feet on it that really hold it to the surface. Believe me, it won't slide around.
<B>The Comparison</B>:
<center>
</center>Now, I know this is a really unfair comparison. How can you compare Duke Nukem to Steel? Nukem would rape Steel all over the place. Anyway, the normal Nukem mouse pad is a soft rubbery type, while the Steel Pad is a hard metallic type. The normal mouse pad does not have any problems with any mice what so ever, but the Steel Pad has trouble with Logitech mice (except the MX series). I tried about 5 of my mice and the only one that worked was my MS IE v3 mouse, so that might be a factor in your decision. This is including 2 non wireless optical mice.
<center>
</center>The normal pad also does not feel cold, while the Steel Pad does. And the Pad also condenses wetness on your hand and creates some more friction. That's just what metal does in general.
The normal back glides smooth, but the Steel Pad has a very large coefficient of friction. This might be suitable to people though. Some people don't like to have a slippy mouse. The problem is that the mouse also make a bad noise on the Steel Pad so you'll have to use some Teflon tape.
<center>
</center>This tape goes on your mouse feet, and it gives the mouse a nice and smooth surface, with a lot less friction. It does raise the height of your mouse. You'll have to get used to it.
Tracking with the pad was really good, but without the tape, was loud. I was afraid to use it because I thought it would scratch the surface. I shouldn't have cared to much, in the end I dropped a screwdriver on it which made a scratch in it. So much for being careful.
Remember that metal shows marks and fingerprints well, so you'll need to clean it. Some Windex or other type of all purpose cleaner will work with a non abrasive cloth.
<B>Conclusion</B>:
I'm not going to lie, I don't use the pad. It doesn't work with my Logitech Elite Duo. Also it is quite expensive at around $47. All in all, it is a nice mouse pad, and if you have a load of money burning a hole in your pocket, consider picking one up. They also have a smaller version of the pad which might be better for some people. It is really hit or miss if your mouse will work with this pad. If you have a third generation optical mouse, it should work fine.
I'd like to thank Mads Onesburg from <a href="http://www.steelpad.com">Steel Pad</a> for sending this for review.