Hi all,
Looking at all the nice desk setups on Youtube, I see most of them have multiple products from Grovemade. They do look nice but are very pricey such as their wooden headphone stand, desk mats, desk shelves etc.
I'm looking for an alternative to a Grovemade Wool Felt Desk Mat for my new sit/stand desk.
Can anyone please advise of any recommended ones which are reasonably priced? Thank you.
I got this one from Amazon, like you I was after a dupe for the Grovemade/Oakywood versions. It’s not wool, but no big deal. As others in the review mention, it will arrive folded and therefore creased but a quick iron on low heat completely removes the creases.
What's the benefit of a desk mat?
saves the desk from scratches and looks nice :)
Ah okay makes sense. I have an untreated pine desk so no scratches and a quick scrub with soapy water will get it looking new again.
They dampen sound if you're a heavy typer, and mice move more smoothly on them. They're basically like a mouse pad, except instead of being a little pad that you accidentally run your mouse off, they're huge and go across your desk, under your keyboard and mousing surface.
IMO if not an orbitkey one you might as well just get a generic
i got one from Amazon.. is basically like a huge mouse pad
There are multiple options on Amazon and eBay
1. High price: https://www.amazon.com.au/Gallaway-Leather-Desk-Pad-Protecto… for $74.14
2. Medium price https://www.amazon.com.au/OfficeOzone-Blotter-Protector-Leat… Discounted price $21.99
3. Low price https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/162632281842?hash=item25dda3aef2… in eBay for $14.15
I believe all of the above are made of faux/PU leather
Some fancier ones include a magnetic flap to hold documents/papers, a pen holder, or a cable management thing..
can someone please explain whats the real use of a desk mat ? I struggle to understand its value
Acts as a giant mouse pad in my case (I have an Orbitkey Desk Mat)
Mostly seems to be a millennial thing. There's been a big rise in popularity of peripherals, e.g. overly fancy mechanical keyboards, LEDs that have no function, and giant mouse pads are also popular.
I've got a couple of themed mats for my kids, I've got one because it was on an OzBargain deal (Lenovo Legion a couple months back) and cheaper than replacing my normal sized but grotty SteelSeries mat.
It's okay. It doesn't dampen the keyboard noticeably on a wooden desk. It's probably going to be a bit harder to keep uniformly clean. It offers… no real advantage to a smaller mouse mat, but not really much downside either. So it's just aesthetics.
Bunch of reasons here
Perhaps the one I find most compelling:
Create a Clutter-Free Zone
The Desk Mat creates visual structure in your work area, helping you organise your work tools in a defined space.
Necroing an older thread but my main reason it's effectively "Cathodic protection" for my desk :)
After months of use my mouse wears down whatever I'm mousing on (also keyboard scratching up the surface to a lesser degree)
Desk pad is cheap, replacing a desktop can get a lot pricier.
Looking at all the nice desk setups on Youtube, I see most of them have multiple products from Grovemade
Ah, social media influencers. Who get free product or are paid to promote stuff on the internet.
I’m also looking but not seeing much quality mats that are in Oz mainly from overseas. Any one bought one lately
$20 one from ebay. It's the black, world map one, but they're all pretty much the same. They all get grubby eventually, give them a wash every now and then.