Why Your Mouse Pad Feels Slow & How to Fix It!
Most modern gaming mouse pads are pretty fast out of the box. However, as you enjoy your favorite games, you may find that your mouse pad starts to feel slow after a while. This isn’t something that happens in a few days, and isn’t necessarily a sign to replace your mouse pad either. Here is why your mouse pad feels slow, and how to fix it!
This may seem like a small issue, or a big issue, depending on your exact setup, and if you’re using a lightweight mouse or not. Just know that your gaming sessions don’t always need to be a workout for your wrist, and you could seriously improve your gaming performance by solving this issue.
Why Your Mouse Pad Starts to Feel Slow & How to Fix It
Cause #1 - Dirt or Dust Causes a Sluggish Mouse Pad
As you may know, your hands are some of the best weapons for your gaming adventures. However, they’re also one of the dirtiest parts of your body. Whatever your hand picks up throughout your day, will end up on your mouse pad. This can cause the friction to increase on the pad, as those tiny particles can cause some serious performance issues.
Dead skin cells and other debris will easily collect within the fibers of the mouse pad, and cause more friction and make your cloth pad feel muddy. Dust and dead skin cells and even dirt will accumulate very fast in small rooms, and can easily end up on your mouse pad as well.
A good reason why your mouse pad starts to become slow over time, is because dust and dirt will accumulate over time.
How to Fix and Prevent Dirt or Dust From Making Your Mouse Pad Slow:
A good way to prevent dust from accumulating in your environment is to ensure your room has enough airflow, and even an air filter can help as well. If your hands are the culprit, be sure to wash them before gaming.
Cause #2 - Sweaty Hands Cause a Slow Mouse Pad
One of the largest causes of a slow mouse pad is the fact that people’s hands naturally create oils, and a hot summer (or even an epic gaming session) can intensify this with sweat.
Sweat not only will cause your pad to become damp, it will also cause your mouse pad to become sticky, and will even create a “great” environment for dust to get caught up in. This is why mouse pads can get discolored after a while too.
How to Fix and Prevent Sweaty Hands From Making Your Mouse Pad Slow:
This is quite easy, but can be a bit of a chore if this has already happened.
To prevent this, it’s a great idea to always wash your hands to remove any excess oil before gaming. Additionally, crank up the air conditioner or use a fan if you find that your hands sweat a lot when gaming.
If your mouse pad is turning white color, or is becoming discolored or is already sticky, then you will need to clean your mouse pad!
Cause #3 - Humidity & Spills
Let’s all be honest here… We’ve all accidentally spilled something on our mouse pads or desk area before. It’s not something to be proud of, but it’s definitely not something to be ashamed of.
Worst of all, a humid environment will just cause this to get worse and worse. Humidity can be a real threat to mouse pad performance, and if you’ve accidentally spilled something on your mouse pad, or even condensation from a bottle has leaked onto it, that moisture won’t be drying up anytime soon.
How to Fix and Prevent Humidity or Spills from Damaging Your Mousepad:
First, we would recommend starting with what is easy to manage. Move drinks and food away from your mouse pad. Next, if your environment is humid, try using a dehumidifier or your air conditioner to remove the excess moisture from your room.
Cause #4: Poor Quality / Worn Mouse Skates
One part of a gaming mouse that is often overlooked is that mouse skates (also known as mouse feet) are a consumable item in most cases. Over the lifetime of the product, it’s normal for the skates (the little soft pads on the bottom) to become worn out, scratched, and even damaged. This is due to how PTFE (the material mouse skates are made from) is incredibly soft.
Not to mention, that some brands of gaming mice may not use pure PTFE, which will result in the mouse skates being slow and of low performance.
How to Fix Low Quality or Worn Out Mouse Skates:
Luckily, this is quite easy to do. Most gaming mice sold on the market today will have either aftermarket or first-party skates available. Simply look for replacement mouse skates for your mouse. If none exist, then you can always contact the manufacturer or use PTFE dots as a solution.
Looking for an Amazing New Mouse Pad?
Looking for an amazing mouse pad that provides silky smooth glide, with enough control to give you an edge in your favorite games?? Check out our Fantech AGILE MP903! MP903 features our humidity resistant speedsilk material, herringbone rubberized backing, and more!
Fantech AGILE MP903 is a desk mat sized mouse pad with premium anti-fray stitching and a soft yet smooth surface, and has even been reviewed/tested by FISSION!
AGILE MP903
AGILE MP903 MOUSE PAD
- Water-Resistant SPEEDSILK Surface
- Scientifically Engineered for Maximum Performance
- Non-Friction Impacting Water-Resistant Coating
- Anti-Fray Edge Stitching
- Anti-slip base
- XL Deskmat Type
- Size: 900*400*3mm
