If you look around you’ll see you have many, many choices for mousepads, it seems that they are one of the most popular items to make. You’ll find them in all shapes, sizes, colors and materials, but of course they are all not created equal, there are good ones and bad ones. Today for review I have a special mousepad, at least to me it’s special, I have always wanted to own a glass mousepad, so when Icemat said they were sending one for review I got a bit excited honestly… So today for review I have the Icemat 2nd Edition glass mousepad, but I’m not sure if you can really call it a ‘pad’, more like a mousing surface to be specific… anyway read on to learn more about what has to be the best mousing surface on the market today…
IceMat 2nd Edition
Reviewed by: Kristofer Brozio AkA Dracos
Sponsor: IceMat
Tech Specs,Features or the Basic Info:
Icemat 2nd Edition
2nd Edition Lineup. The 2nd Edition is created with the same amazing treatment surface as the original Icemat, but it’s bigger – a lot bigger.
Enjoy the large glass surface of the Icemat 2nd Edition, a mouse pad that’s all about cool looks and top notch performance.
Icemat 2nd Edition is bigger than the original, which makes it ideal for users favoring low sensitivity mouse settings. It is available in a wide variety of colors including black, blue, purple, green, red, silver, gray, yellow and white.
The mouse pad contains six rubber feet which ensures solid and steady use.
At a glance:
Long-lasting
Solid and steady
Looks damn cool
Amazing accuracy
Very comfortable to use
Doesn’t bend or loose shape
Dimensions: 250 x 300 mm / 10 x 12 inches
Find the best price on the IceMat at ShopZilla!
A Better Look at Things
:
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Ok, even the box is cool for this product… it’s a very sturdy, heavy-duty cardboard box, with the specs and features listed on the front.
I especially like the feature: ‘Looks damn cool’ and it does, really…
The back of the box has a couple pictures of the IceMat itself in a few different poses…
Opening the box we find styrofoam packaging, it is glass after all and has to be very well protected.
Removing the top layer of styrofoam we find the IceMat itself, I got the black colored one obviously… The IceMat itself is sitting inside of a ‘bed’ of styrofoam, it creates a sandwich like protection for the IceMat.
Find the best price on the IceMat at ShopZilla!
A Better Look at Things
Continued:
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Included with the IceMat 2nd Edition is a small owners manual and a set of IceMat PadSurfers v2, these are for pretty much any mouse.
The IceMat itself is a thing of beauty to behold…
It is solid glass that is just a bit frosted, in the bottom right corner we find the IceMat logo and their web address.
The IceMat is finished very well, all the edges are rounded and smooth.
Being glass you would expect the surface to be very smooth, but the IceMat does have a faint texture to it, very faint though, you can barely feel it if you run your fingers across it. In the following picture I got the light just right to reflect the surface to get a good look at it, in the picture it looks more rough than it actually is, that is just the sunlight hitting it that way…
On the bottom of the IceMat are six sturdy rubber feet to make sure it stays put while gaming.
Even the feet of the IceMat look cool, they are basically little rubber studs stuck to the bottom.
So far the only critique I could have is the feet, and that would have to do with needing more of them. What I mean is, this is a glass mousepad after all, I would think you might need a bit of support in the middle of the pad to prevent breakage, some guy gets mad and slams his mouse down cause he got fragged might break the pad, I think the added support in the center would be a good thing.
Then again, if you are playing with a glass mousepad and slam something onto it breaking it, it’s pretty much your own damn fault for being stupid…
Find the best price on the IceMat at ShopZilla!
Installation, Testing and Comparison
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Now comes the fun part, I get to play games with my new IceMat 2nd Edition! With my schedule, family etc, it’s hard to really find time to play games anymore, but getting a mousepad for review really gives me a reason to get my game on…
I used the IceMat with my A4Tech X-750F (review HERE), Ideazon Reaper (Review HERE) and Logitech G5 for testing, so I could get a good feel for both optical and laser mice with the IceMat 2nd Edition.
I did use, or install the Padsurfers on the A4Tech X-750F mouse, but I had to trim them just a bit to make them fit, not a big deal really. They are sold as ‘universal’ mouse feet after all.
I’ll be honest though, there wasn’t some super, spectacular difference between the stock feet and the IceMat Padsurfers, the stock feet are actually pretty good to begin with. I did notice a little difference though, the mouse did move more effortlessly across the IceMat with the Padsurfers installed, so there was an improvement overall, and it did seem to make it a little quieter as well.
{amazon id=’B000BCZ8Q8′ align=’LEFT’}
I’ve mentioned it before, I’ve been getting into BF2142 quite a bit lately, it has caused me to loose quite a bit of sleep at night actually, so I really got to try the IceMat out and give it a good testing…
I found no problems at all with the tracking of the IceMat 2nd Edition, all three mice I tested have the feature to change resolution, and in any resolution my mice did not miss a beat on the IceMat. Tracking was perfect for fast movements and slow movements, and everything in between.
Of course gaming is the main area that the IceMat is targeted at, but it also works great in ‘real-life’ as well, anything you do can be enhanced with the IceMat, from photo editing, to surfacing the internet. The IceMat is not only for gamers, anyone that uses a mouse for extended periods will love the enhanced performance and effortless movement the IceMat can offer.
All the mice I tried just literally glided across the surface, with almost no effort, but yet the IceMat does offer the hint of resistance, and creates a nice balance between control and speed that is pretty much unmatched by any other mousepad I have owned or reviewed.
The IceMat 2nd Edition is easy to clean as well, which is very nice, just some glass cleaner and you’re all done. Although, being it is glass , it does easily pick up the oils from your hands, and other gunk that might be on them. I found that I did have to clean it a bit more often than I would with a plastic surface pad, but usually just a wipe with a tissue or paper towel was enough to clean it without using any type of surface cleaner, but that’s really not a big to me…
The IceMat 2nd Edition is just an excellent mousepad, it’s everything I thought it would be and much more. I am extremely happy with it, and I think anyone that gets one will be too.
Find the best price on the IceMat at ShopZilla!
Summary:
I’ve found perfection, and it’s everything I thought it could be. Seriously though, the IceMat 2nd Edition is a mousepad in a league of its own, I’ve owned and reviewed many pads, but this is the absolute best one. There really is no comparison of the IceMat to other pads, hands down it is the best of the best.
DIGG IT!DragonSteelMods gives the IceMat 2nd Edition a 5 out of 5 and our Recommended Award and my Editor’s Choice Award as this is MINE now!
Pros:
-Very cool
-Very, very cool
-Excellent mousing surface
-Perfect tracking with laser and optical mice
-Outstanding piece of craftsmanship
Cons:
-Glass- St00pid people may break it!
I would like to thank IceMat for the chance to review the IceMat 2nd Edition and for their support of DSM.
And especially thank them for providing me with one hell of a mousepad!