Review: Is it second time lucky for his latest iteration of Razer’s wireless flag-vermin, the Mamba?
If you think you’re seeing a second review of the Mamba mouse we looked at way back in September 2009, you can a) relax, because it isn’t, and b) you really should find more important things to worry about. This new Mamba is more or less identical on the outside, but inside it features a shiny new tracking mechanism that Razer claims offers a “a new standard of gaming precision”.
Uh, well... Bollocks.
Okay, that’s remarkably harsh, and we really do have to point out once again that of all the hardware we review, mice are the single most subjective item to look at. It goes without saying (but guess what...) that differing hand-sizes, gaming styles and even surfaces can all queer the way a mouse performs for an individual user. And for this individual user, the new Mamba just doesn’t cut it, even compared to its previous incarnation.
The new tracking mechanism is a dual sensor jobbie that combines both a laser and an optical sensor. It sounds great on paper, but in practice, inside a range of games, the Mamba feels imprecise when trying to carefully track small targets. There’s a touch of wobble to the cursor during small movements, such as scoped in sniping, that can drastically through off your aim. The dual sensor delivers excellent stability when picked up, however, leaving the cursor/reticule exactly where you left it. The sensor also tracks the surface you’re gaming on, and calibrates accordingly.
This is great stuff, but if you can’t aim properly...
As we said, the rest of the Mamba matches its forebear quite closely. There’s new lighting flourishes, though, and you can even fiddle with the settings for lift cut-off. It’s as comfy as ever, however, and certainly didn’t leave us cramping up. The feet are smooth and well-placed, ensuring smooth movements on just about any surface.
Sadly, though, the wired solution, for when your batteries inevitably fail in the middle of pwning campers, is still an awkward affair that requires you to unclip the cable from the base charging station and clip it onto the mouse. That said, battery life has been improved.
We could see this being a great mouse for any gaming other than precision shooting, like MMOs, but the price tag makes it a tough sell. The bodge of wireless-to-wired mousing also seems to ill-thought, and the premium price-tag simply isn’t matched by premium performance. Essential if you’re a Razer fanboy, but otherwise there’s better and cheaper.
Issue: 137 | June, 2012