So you’ve got this super popular mouse, right. Like super duper popular, it’s been around forever, and comes in so many different flavours and iterations that everyone and their mother has had one in their hand at some point. Now, you’re about to release the next in your long line of these popular devices, so how do you tell people it’s the latest and greatest? Well if you’re Razer, you call it… “V2”?
I’m not going to pretend I agree with Razer’s naming convention here, especially when a Deathadder Elite theoretically sounds a lot better, cooler, sexier even, than a Deathadder V2. But I do understand the logic employed, because the Deathadder V2 is a vastly improved mouse over its myriad older siblings that it just about makes sense to call it V2 if you’re an absolute madman.
The Deathadder range touts itself as ergonomic. Arguable, given the description only works for right-handed claw-grippers with large hands, but we’ll let that slide for now. The V2 has been doing some intermittent fasting resulting in a slightly thinner frame with reduced flaring, making it a lot easier to grip. This is helped by the new textured plastic that incorporates the rubber side-grips directly into the frame for a quite premium feel while keeping the weight down to just eighty grams.
Further new additions to the classic include the new Focus+ sensor that Razer has been using for their recent mouses (it’s mouses, I don’t care what autocorrect says), a low-power, high-accuracy sensor that is just spectacular, as well as the latest Chroma RGB along the scroll wheel and base. The mouse has onboard memory, and is slightly configurable without needing to install the Synapse software, or you can install and configure then uninstall.
Razer’s new optical switches also make an appearance, with their natural resistance to the double-clicking issue found on contact-based mechanical switches from other brands. Having personally experienced this annoyance, I can confirm I much prefer these bad boys. They’re also softer and quieter, which means my girlfriend can sleep peacefully while I inevitably play another game of Dota 2 when I should be going to bed.
This being the wired edition, we also get the new braided flex cable – a lightweight paracord with absolutely no cable pull whatsoever that makes the mouse feel near-wireless in everyday use. No bungie needed. I don’t understand the physics involved here, but I have tried every possible way to get this mouse stuck or hindered while gaming, and the only limitation so far has been my own arm movement rather than the cable itself.
Is it worth recommending? I’ve been fighting myself on this one. I think if you’re already using a Deathadder, and looking for an upgrade, then the answer is a resounding yes. The new features are more than enough to justify an upgrade, and given how much thinner and lighter it is, going from the older Deathadder to this one feels almost like cheating on someone younger and sexier, and with better RGB.
But what about the rest of us? I personally prefer the medium-sized ambidextrous Viper over the Deathadder, so it’s a hard skip from me. It ultimately comes down to your preference for larger ergonomic mouses. If those are your bread and butter, then this mouse should be on your shopping list. For anyone else, I think you’re better served with something that can actually fit in your hands.
