Razer Copperhead

Print

Email

Bookmark

Share

August 3 marked the worldwide launch of the first laser gaming mouse made available--the Razer Copperhead. While last year's Razer Diamondback was a revelation in the gaming community, the more advanced Copperhead looks set to emulate its predecessor in 2005. Razer also highlighted its involvement as the official peripherals sponsor of the upcoming World Cyber Games (WCG) 2005 to be held in Singapore, where competitors will be equipped with the San Diego-based company's mice, keyboards and headsets.

Editors' note:

The Razer Copperhead will retail in August 2005. The local price has yet to be announced. Please check with your local distributor for more information.

Upside: The new Razer boasts an unprecedented 2,000dpi laser sensor for even more precise tracking than the 1,600dpi optical-based Diamondback. By contrast to standard mice which offer 8ms response time, the Copperhead stakes its claim as the fastest mouse, with a 1000Hz polling rate and a very fast 1ms response time. Interestingly, the mouse incorporates 32KB of onboard memory which serves to accommodate up to five user profiles. You can deploy the useful Synapse Configurator interface to customize your settings. To illustrate this, all the seven mouse buttons are programmable; the dpi rate and even the polling rate can be adjusted. There's even a weights system which allows users to fit up to three different weight levels for their comfort, and the option to replace the side buttons with dummies to avoid accidental clicks. Aesthetically, the Copperhead is almost similar to the Diamondback with the exception of its non-see-though casing and the Razer logo which emanates a pulsating blue light, similar to the Creative Zen Micro. To top it off, the backlight of the Razer is available in three colors--tempest blue, anarchy red and chaos green.

Downside: Did we mention the cost? Well, we'd like to announce that the Razer will be made available at a price of US$79.99, not too affordable when compared with other mice, but hey, it is a gaming mouse. Another qualm we have is the inaccessability of the side mouse buttons. Assuming you're a right hander, reaching the two right-sided buttons is not an easy task, and if you're a lefty, the problem applies on the other side. If five buttons are enough for you, feel free to close one eye to our comment.

Outlook: Based on the specs, the Razer Copperhead looks like it's a worthy follow-up to the Diamondback. Its degree of customization will definitely suit gamers who would want different levels of sensitivity and response. We can definitely expect the Copperhead to be a hit with gamers with the coming of WCG 2005.