Equate and Equate Plus Comparison Review from Reddit
The review from Reddit : https://www.reddit.com/r/MousepadReview/comments/fpp50h/equate_and_equate_plus_comparison_review/
Equate
Branding and close-up of weave
Pad Type, Glide Feel/Speed, and Comparison to Other Known Pads
First up is the original Equate! There have been a ton of reviews on this one already so I will try to keep it short and simple. This is a unique control pad due to the speed and smoothness of the glide while providing great stopping power. They boast it has the same X and Y friction/speed but I have not been able to test this accurately enough to say if that is true or not. The best pad I can compare it to in terms of feel is the Zowie GS-R-SE. For me, the Equate is an improvement over the GS-R-SE due to the smoother and faster glide while having similar stopping power. Both the Equate and GS-R-SE have this unique drag feeling that almost doesn’t feel like pure cloth. There is almost a smooth silicone-like feel to it. I will say I live in a VERY humid area so the glide may feel different to you.
The surface of the Equate has this soft, almost fuzzy feeling to it. The pattern or the weave reminds me of the surface of a basketball. The texture is certainly unique in terms of weave and how much give there is to the cloth in terms of X and Y movement.
The backing is rubber and I had no issues with it staying in place on my laminate, wood desk. There are a lot of pads that do not do well on my desk and I am happy to say the Equate passed the test.
The pattern is a nice monochromatic galaxy theme that also looks great in terms of print quality. The design is UV printed onto the surface. The image should not fade nor should the UV printing effect performance or longevity in any way.
Stitched Edges
The Equate comes with very well done stitched edges. They don’t stick up too much and they use a very soft material that does not irritate my sensitive skin. None of my review copies nor copies I personally purchased have ever come with frayed stitching nor has fraying developed over time.
Fresh Out of the Box
Taking it out of the box, the pad immediately laid flat on my desk. This is what initially impressed me about the pad as almost every other one I have tried I have had to counter roll in order for it to lay flat. I think the looseness of the fabric coupled with the style of rubber base they used both contribute to this. The chemical/rubber smell out of the box was pretty strong but no where near the strongest I have smelt. It also dissipated quite quickly, within 48 hours I no longer noticed the smell.
Performance and Personal Opinions
I will preface this by saying this pad is not for me personally. I am not a fan of control pads as I find it difficult to make micro adjustments. That being sad if I was going to use a control pad, I would definitely choose the Equate. The glide feel is much smoother than pads with similar control. In terms of control pads, I definitely performed the best with this one due to the reasons I listed above. I felt my snap targeting was quite good but my tracking after suffered due to micro adjustments being more difficult for me.
I play mainly EFT, PUBG, and CoD:WM. I felt my snap targeting was quite good but my tracking after suffered due to micro adjustments being more difficult for me. This was most noticeable in MW due to the fast paced gameplay requiring more adjustments during a gunfight. My main pad is the Hyper X Fury S (non-speed edition) which is a medium speed cloth pad. The glide speed on the Equate was much slower in comparison but the stopping power was much better. I will be sticking with the medium speed cloth category for now as I simply couldn’t get used to the control of the Equate.
Who is this pad for?
This pad is for people who love their control pads but want to try something a little different. It offers a unique combination of smooth glide, control, and stopping power all in a beautiful design. The quality and uniqueness of this pad alone make it a high recommendation for anyone. The price for all of this is very modest and just another selling point for this pad.
Longevity
I can not speak directly to the longevity of this pad due to lack of personal use over time but it is built well, priced great, and feels amazing. I cannot say how much humidity affects this pad but other pads on the market with similar feeling surfaces have been known to be affected by it.
Release Date
This pad has been out for a little bit now at https://shop.x-raypad.com/shop/equate-mouse-pad/ . You can buy it today and don’t forget to use the discount code for 15% off: EQPLCKBP
Equate Plus
Branding and close-up of weave
Pad Type, Glide Feel/Speed, and Comparison to Other Known Pads
This is the second iteration of the Equate series of mousepads, the Equate Plus. It is aimed to offer a faster glide while maintaining the control and stopping power of the original Equate. It feels similar to the Equate in terms of the cloth used but it has a noticeably tighter weave. The fabric they used is being deemed “Micro-Amundsen” which my research found is apparently a type of polyester with a specific weave. I think they hit the nail on the head for the feel they were going for. It is more of a balance between speed and control than the original Equate. The glide still feels smooth but is noticeably faster while maintaining most of the stopping power. The glide speed feels more similar to my preferred medium speed cloth pads which immediately appealed to me. The bizarre, yet catchy pattern printed on the pad is also a nice addition. I like the fact they tend to stick to monochromatic color schemes as it should match more setups. The glide still has that slight feeling of silicone drag to it but is easier to make micro adjustments over the original Equate. This pad feels the most unique to me out of the 2, I honestly can’t think of one to compare it to. The closest thing would be an Artisan Hien with a much softer, less coarse fabric and slower. They also seem to have dropped the main adverting point from the original Equate, this being that the pad has the same X and Y friction/speed.
Stitched Edges
The Equate Plus also comes with very well done stitched edges. They don’t stick up too much and they use a very soft material that does not irritate my sensitive skin. My review copy had no issues with frayed stitching nor has fraying developed over these 2 weeks I have had it.
Fresh Out of the Box
Taking it out of the box, the pad immediately laid flat on my desk. This is still impressive to me seeing as my review copy is 4mm thick and not their standard 3mm. The fabric is a tighter weave but has the same rubber base as well. The chemical/rubber smell out of the box was pretty strong but no where near the strongest I have smelt. It also dissipated quite quickly, within 48 hours I no longer noticed the smell.
Performance and Personal Opinions
The performance on this pad not only impressed me but is also unique enough for me to have to adjust to it. The speed of the glide coupled with the stopping power is not something I am used to. It has similar glide speed to my main pad but the stopping power is much more abrupt. You can really stop your mouse on this pad. The original Equate has a bit more stopping power but the glide speed you get with the Equate Plus really accentuates the stopping power despite it being a little less.
In my gaming sessions I was able to make micro adjustments more similarly to what I am used to while having more stopping power. It was an interesting experience using this pad and getting used to it. I am very much looking forward to the production version of this pad and it just might take over as my main mousepad!
Who is this pad for?
I think this pad would suite more of a variety of gamers than the original Equate due to it not polarizing people to choose between speed and control. Like the Equate, it is truly a unique feeling pad that I would recommend to anyone who wants to try something new or anyone who enjoys medium speed cloth pads. Them adding the 3XL size to this pad will only appeal to more people as well.
Longevity
Again, I cannot speak to the longevity of this pad as I have only had it for 2 weeks now. It being the same cloth as the original Equate makes me worried about issues with humidity but I have yet to have any issues with either pad personally. The tighter weave should help with the life of this pad in general.
Release Date
This pad is available now at https://shop.x-raypad.com/shop/equate-mouse-pad/ and should be releasing on March 30th. You can pre-order it today and don’t forget to use the discount code for 15% off: EQPLCKBP
The next mousepad they plan to release is the Minerva, a speed pad. I will do my best to get my hands on a copy for review of that one as well.
Feel free to ask any questions in the comments below and I will do my best to answer them all 🙂
I have not done reviews in quite a few years so please feel free to give me feedback on anything (points to talk about, what I missed, formatting, etc.). Thank you for your time and I hope you were able to make it thru this wall of text! I plan on doing video reviews here in the near future. I am currently purchasing the equipment to make that happen.
Nice info