I love Wirecutter, the site founded by Brian Lam that is now owned by The New York Times Company. It’s an indispensable resource for what to get, and what not to get in every product category… from air purifiers and routers to credit cards and tax preparation services.
While Wirecutter has a recommendation for almost everything, they do not yet have an article on mouse pads. Fortunately, I’ve already found what I believe to be the best mousepad in the world: the Ergo-Mat by HandStands.
I have been using an Ergo-Mat as my mousepad for over ten years, and I can say without reservation that there isn’t anything better out there.
This is it.
If you want the best experience with a mouse, then get yourself one of these. They don’t cost very much and they can last you an extremely long time. I forget exactly when I bought my first Ergo-Mat, but I remember where. I was walking down an aisle in Fry’s Electronics when I spotted the Ergo-Mat on a shelf, and I was immediately intrigued.
You see, the Ergo-Mat is unlike most other mousepads out there in that it doesn’t have what I’ll call a wrist bar. Nor is it thin and flat.
Rather, the whole pad is a raised, gently sloping surface that doesn’t slide around at all. It has a no-slip grip.
When I saw the Ergo-Mat, I said, I have to try that. It was an impulse buy. But it has been my primary mousepad ever since.
I long ago lost the packaging and there are no identifying marks on the Ergo-Mat to indicate who makes it.
But recently, I decided to see if I could find it again. And I was successful. The Ergo-Mat is still fortuitously available, at least as of the time I made my purchase. I was so delighted when my package came and I opened it up. My new Ergo-Mats are entirely identical to my old ones.
Now I have several – one for each computer workstation I’ve built. No matter which machine I’m sitting at, there’s now an Ergo-Mat there. Hurrah!
I’ve rested my right wrist on my first Ergo-Mat for thousands of hours over the past ten years. It is very comfortable. I also use a sculpted Logitech mouse — I recommend you get yourself one of those as well (there are many models available). If you spend any amount of time sitting in front of a computer, then you should also have an ergonomic keyboard, a high end office chair, a monitor that can slide up and down on a stand, or a monitor attached to a re-positionable arm.
Most product reviews I’ve read are based on a few days or weeks’ experience with the product. I’ve had this mousepad for a decade. While it might be overkill to call it rugged, it will last you a very long time if you take reasonable care of it. Give it a try… I think you’ll like it.