Who needs a titanic shiny mousepad? Well, frankly I do, now that I’ve used the QPAD Obsidian Superglide.
Glass mousepads have been something I’ve been curious about for quite some time though. Pairing the Obsidian Superglide with a light mouse immediately felt great, like using a mouse with less than zero resistance.
It looks great with a wavy pattern “underneath” the frosted glass layer. It’s big and impressive, a real statement piece. The frosting on the glass serves more purpose than just looking cool. It reduces glare and fingerprints to keep it that way. It also provides just enough texture to stop your mouse from flying all over the place.
Realistically not even those aiming for eSports level “need” a glass mousepad, but having experienced it, I think going back to cloth might be difficult. It is rather large so you’ll need the desk real estate to use it as realistically you don’t want a glass panel hanging off the edge of a desk. It will require more care than a regular cloth pad because, well, it’s glass.
Regular dusting and wiping down just like a glass table. It is so easy to keep clean, as it requires just a cloth to wipe it down, no hyperspecific washing liquid or detergent like a cloth mousepad requires for cleaning. Dust is a non-issue and if you spill water or something on it, guess what, it’s glass it’ll just wipe off. Unlike a cloth pad where a spillage can really mess with the product. It’s a fair worry if you’re concerned about the fact it is glass, but it’s tempered glass, probably as strong as a car window and I would suggest very hard to smash unless you dropped it from a fair height. It feels strong, basically.
In terms of general positives it makes for super fast tracking, no need to worry about it slipping on the desk itself due to its anti-slip rubber undercarriage. It will literally last forever if you care for it properly which can’t be said for a cloth pad. Generally aiming feels awesome on this thing and the experience is great.
I am raving about it here, but there are downsides. It can be really loud and if not totally clean you might hear a horrible grating sound on every mouse movement due to its totally smooth nature. It also does wear down your mouse skates faster, just not a drastic amount. In the summer when you’re not wearing a jumper everyday you will need to buy a sleeve as your arm is likely to start sticking to it. So I would not recommend a glass mousepad in general to a more casual user as the price is quite a lot on the higher side than a basic mousepad too.
And no matter how obvious this might be and how strong it actually is: don’t hit it. Essentially you do need to remember that it’s glass. It’s also worth noting that not all mice perform the same on a glass mousepad. If you don’t have a high quality mouse, you won’t have a great time as your sensor might not be good enough to get the full experience.
The QPAD Obsidian Superglide mousepad comes in at around £100 making it a premium product but also a really competitive price compared to others. In fact, it’s cheaper than some of the top competitors whilst being a product that matches and exceeds expectations.
