Ratpadz XT

Introduction:

I've had several mouse pads come and go, not ever really having any favorites based on name. The best mouse pads have the most surface area for your mouse to make contact with. If you have a laser mouse, you especially want the best report coming from the surface. The truth is there are so many companies making mouse pads that you can probably find something better than that foam contraption anywhere.

One of the companies creating mouse pads is, well, Ratpadz. They've sent us their RATPADZ XT which is their original pad intended for the extreme gamer in all of us. However, you don't have to game on this pad. You could use it for anything so, that's what I did.

Feature Information:

This Thing is Huge

The GS and the XT offer the same surface area, both 11.5” wide x 9.3” tall. The cut-out design of our GS and XT allows for users to also turn the surface sideways utilizing it on the left and right sides of the keyboard.

Tough Construction

Both the GS and XT are built with very tough polymers and can stand up to all sorts of gaming and LAN abuses. The XT however is built for those that will use it for endless gaming hours. And there is always a GS in my laptop bag.

Closer Look:

The XT mouse pad doesn't weigh very much despite its thick appearance. There are no noticeable fabrication issues. There is very little movement or flex to the mouse pad which shows how strong it is. You should be able to abuse it to some degree as far as gaming and accidental drops or pressures placed on it. It will take some effort to damage its surface.

Top

Bottom

Softer mouse pads I've used, like the Everglide series, have very fine surface areas and tend to flex, bend, and even roll up for storing away. The downside to those pads is the level of abuse they actually take. Being a softer rubber or micro-fiber means it will eventually start to wear down under extreme use. Softer surfaces also dirty up quicker and can't be cleaned as easily as the harder surfaces.

Ratpadz XT and Everglide

XT and Monsterpad

The XT is a very simple mouse pad in design and shape. The GS is made of a polymer material while there is no mention of the actual material used in the XT. The price tag suggests that something more substantial was used, but that's only speculation at this point. Even if polymers were used in both the XT and GS, the price appears a bit higher than some will be comfortable with. What would make the pad nicer and more appealing would be a choice of color.