Optical Mouse Pad

An optical mouse pad is, quite simply, a mouse pad that has been optimized to work well with an optical mouse.

Heeding the complaints of consumers, the optical mouse no longer relied on a ball and rollers to detect motion, replacing them instead with a light-emitting diode or infrared diode and photodiodes.

In the earliest days, this new technology needed a specialized optical mouse pad with a reflective face.A modern optical mouse doesn't require a specialized optical mouse pad.

Equipped with an image-processing chip, an optical mouse essentially uses a camera to take successive pictures of the mouse pad surface.

An optical mouse can even function without a mouse pad. Conversely, the friction of a traditional mouse pad is essential for using a mechanical ball and mouse. Although an optical mouse can be used on a wide variety of surfaces, it may have problems registering motion over glossy or transparent surfaces.

PC gamers who seek out great response time, speed, and sensitivity will value an optical mouse pad with a wide surface area that offers smooth gliding.