fUnc 1030 Mouse Mat
This large jiffy bag arrived at my front door and to be honest I had no idea what was in it, and I was worried. I opened it up and there was this large silver metal tin. Inside it was a mouse mat, packed in foam. It was built up of 3 main parts, a rubber edge, a metal clip, and of course a plastic mat. The mouse mat was built up of 2 main features, the double sided system (smooth one side and rough the other) and the fact there was a clip to hold the mouse cord out of the way (kinda like on the Mouse bungee). This piece of art (If you can call it that) was the "fUnc Industries sUrface1030".
This sounds kinda expensive, but at the end of the day why do people pay this extreme price. Well the reason is, because as some Quakenet Quakers would say it is "l33t".
Inside the tin you find a lot of stuff, well OK, a pamphlet about the product, the mat, the rubber edge, and the metal clip.
The main gaming "surface" is simply some plastic, which has 2 different sides, one smooth and one rough. Just like sand paper ;)
This is then mounted in a depression in the rubber base, it is a crisp fit, once this is in you run your fingers around the edge of the plastic and it becomes, well, mega smooth ;) I got the orange base mat. The advantage of the rubber base is that it sticks to the desk. Unlike with the pooh everglide where if you put it sideways and use your mouse on it, it decides to flip up. this is one point which really annoyed me and why I use a ratpad (Yep a quality pimp for a quality product ;P)
Now I know you have been asking what the little metal clip is for, it sits in to one of 6 locations around the rubber base. You dont HAVE to use it, but it is a damn useful idea. You then loop the mouse cable behind it and it stops the tangling which we got before using the mouse bungee. It is a simple and small feature but it is damn useful!
People upgrade there PCS and change there mice, but they loose one point, the fact that the surface which they use for there mouse is very important. People who use old mice have the problem of every dash of dirt gets in to it and gets in the way, and yes, it is most annoying! So using a surface like this avoids it. Also it works very well with a optical mouse.
There are several different mats you can use, either a cheap free one or one of the premium quality ones such as the Func, or the EverGlide or Ratpad or 3M Precise Mousing Surface.
This is a new advance in mouse usage, the PMS (3M) was a damn useful mat as it folded up and was very easy to use. Then moving on to other ones such as the Everglide and Ratpadz which were cuttin board style things, and then this one which is more elite.
The advantage of a mat like these premium mats is that it doesn't collect dirt and dust as quick as other mats, nor does it shift dust around. This avoids friction and other problems, and gives a better gaming experience.
When a mouse has a slight bit of grease or grime in it, it is annoying. It drives me mad personally. This Func mat keeps the area very clean. I like this mat ;-) It is clean. I use this on the rough side as it easier to use and has better contact. There is a little more friction, which is useful for movement.
This mat works fine with optical mouses, like Microsoft's optical IntelliMouse. These mice don't need a super mousemat, like earlier HP based optical mice.
Summary
If you already have one of the premium mats then dont buy this one. It is a damn good upgrade for anyone who doesn't and it is super strong and useful. It has 2 sides and can help any user. Also the metal clip is very useful. Also the mat is large and there is room for movement.
It's washable, it's not easily damaged, it stays put and it doesn't move. So go and buy one ;-)
