For the average computer user, a
mouse is simply another essential component for
“getting the job done.” But for gamers, the mouse is
more than that—it’s an extensionof
themselves that can spell the difference between
winning and losing when playing some of today’s most
challenging titles that demand speed, and
precision. With that in mind, we’re going to
take a look at a mouse from one of the major players
in the gaming peripherals industry—the Razer
DeathAdder Gaming Mouse.
About the Razer Group
Headquartered in Carlsbad,
California, Razer™ collaborates with gamers to
develop, manufacture and market cutting-edge gaming
peripherals utilizing proprietary technologies that
give gamers the competitive edge. Razer products
have earned critical praise and won multiple awards
from around the world for their precision,
sensitivity, usability and distinctions in product
design. Engineered to near perfection, Razer’s
reputation of being the leader in gaming peripheral
technology is embodied in every single Razer
product. For more information, please visit
www.razerzone.com.
Razer - For Gamers. By Gamers.™
Package
The Razer DeathAdder Gaming Mouse ships in
Razer’s signature satin-black box adorned with their
famous “tri-serpent” logo and letters in bright
green and silver. A photo of the mouse is printed
with a glossy finish which makes it stand out from
the background. Specs in English and nine other
languages and system requirements are on the back.
The right side panel shows a technical comparison
between the DeathAdder and an average mouse.
While it is more than up to the task of
general-purpose computing—web browsing, checking
E-Mail, doing spreadsheets and such—the specs of the
DeathAdder leaves little doubt of its extreme
gaming performance pedigree.
Razer's
damn-sexy black packaging.
Only
serious gamers need apply.
DeathAdder specs in English and nine
other different languages—proof that
fragging knows no international boundaries.
The DeathAdder is ready to rock under
Windows XP/X64/MCE 2005 and Vista.
A message
from Razerguy—Razer's resident gaming
evangelist and marketing honcho.
Five
things that makes the DeathAdder
superior to ordinary mice.
A
detailed tech comparison between the
Razer DeathAdder and a standard mouse...
...while
this chart sums it u nicely.
The front
of the box opens like a book cover so that
you can get a good look at the DeathAdder.
It looks even better in person, so...
...let's
open it up.
Documentation and software are stored in the
back of the tray...
On the opposite side you’ll find a
message on the DeathAdder from
Robert “Razerguy” Krakoff,
Gaming Evangelist and expert on all things Razer.
The top flap of the box has a clear plastic tab so
that it may be hung from a store display rack. No
doubt the DeathAdder would have little
trouble standing out among a sea of “me-too”
accessories at your local computer superstore, with
the simple yet powerful and almost menacing looking
of its very-cool packaging.
...while
the mouse is under a form-fitting,
see-through lid. Overall a very neat and
user-friendly design.
The
Razer DeathAdder. A gold-plated USB
connector insures that the blazing-fast
1000Hz polling rate and 16-bit wide data
channel are properly fed at all times.
The
Quick Start Guide. Plug in, load
drivers, annihilate gaming adversaries.
Works for me!
If you
didn't get the message from the inside flap
on what a bad-ass the DeathAdder is,
here it is again. On the right is the
Certificate of Authenticity that
welcomes you into the "Cult of Razer."
At first
I though this was some kind of funky mouse
pad...
...turns
out it's the Master Guide that tells
you all you need to know on using and
getting the most out of the DeathAdder...
...with
the Driver Disc in the back. Cool!
As you
can see here, the Razer DeathAdder is
strictly a right-handed design.
The Razer
logo, which does something really cool, as
we'll see later.
The left
and right mouse buttons are integrated into
the DeathAdder's body. Click wheel
detents have just the right amount of
resistance for smooth but precise scrolling.
Since the competition usually shows
off their mice through the box so you can get a
gander at the real thing rather than a fancy photo,
you may be wondering why Razer didn’t do the same,
seeing as it’s supposed to be such an elite,
kick-ass gaming mouse. That’s when you notice that
the front of the box is a flap secured with a Velcro
tab, and opens like the cover on a book. Open it and
you’ll see the
DeathAdder in all of its glory
nestled beneath a recessed blister pack. A short and
to-the-point summary of the DeathAdder
representing the pinnacle of gaming performance is
printed on back of the front cover. You’ll find the
DeathAdder stored in a black plastic tray
with the see-through blister pack as a cover.
Documentation and software are stored behind the
tray behind a black cardboard insert.
Overall, Razer’s package design is
first-class and user-friendly when it comes to
unpacking the goods.
The Mouse
The Razer DeathAdder has
evolved from a long and impressive line of
serpent-named
gaming mice
that have won numerous awards and accolades from the
gaming press and community, and continues that
tradition. The mouse has a sleek, ergonomic,
right-handed design with the two main buttons made
into the body; a translucent click/scroll wheel
button, and dual thumb buttons along the left-hand
side. The click-wheel doesn’t side-scroll. But with
little to no support from the majority of game
publishers for this feature for functions like
leaning around corners, the omission is
understandable. All five buttons are fully
programmable.
A side
view of the DeathAdder.
Note the
"hump" in the center of the mouse that
allows you to rest your palm on it more
naturally. This make the DeathAdder more
comfortable to use during long gaming
sessions.
The
DeathAdder also has two fully-programmable
thumb buttons.
The
business-end of the DeathAdder.
Razer's Zero-Acoustic Ultraslick Teflon
Feet insures the DeathAdder
glides as smooth and quickly over any
mousing surface as its reptilian namesake.
The Heart
of the Snake: an 1800 DPI 3G Infrared
Sensor.
Not only
does the click-wheel and Razer logo glow a
pleasing "Nova Blue" when the mouse is
powered-up—the logo slowly pulsates on
and off!
The mouse has a “hump” (I couldn’t
come up with a more fancy reptilian description for
it) in its back designed to provide support for the
palm, is more pronounced than the original
Razer Diamondback mice,
and a little higher than both the pre-3G generation
Diamondbacks and
Krait mice.
Just behind it, is the Razor logo, which not only
glows a very attractive and eye-catching Nova
Blue like the click-wheel when the mouse is
powered up, but slowly pulsates—just like the slow
and steady breathing of a snake. The body has a
smooth, slightly rubberized finish that does a
surprisingly good job of absorbing perspiration,
while the sides of the mouse and the side-buttons
are made of glossy black plastic.
The CD that ships with the Razer
DeathAdder may not have the latest drivers
and software, so you should head to
Razer's Support Page for the DeathAdder
and grab them—Version 1.07 as of this
writing for Windows 2000 and the 32 and
64-bit Editions of Windows XP and Vista.
Extract the 15.13MB .ZIP file to a temporary
folder, run SETUP.EXE and just follow the
installation prompts.
Flipping the mouse over reveals three
Teflon feet, which Razer refers to as
Zero-Acoustic Ultraslick Teflon. I can’t tell
you how much better Zero-Acoustic Ultraslick Teflon
is compared to “plain-old everyday Teflon”—or if
there actually is a difference (or if it’s just
typical marketing semantics). I can tell you that
they allow the DeathAdder to move over just
about any surface as fast and smooth as greased
lightning—or a snake uncoiling to strike its prey.
The heart of the Razer DeathAdder Gaming Mouse is
its 1800dpi Razer Precision™ 3G infrared sensor.
With adjustable polling rates up to 1000Hz, a
faster-than-you-can blink 1ms response time; the
ability to render 6400 frames per second (which
translates into 5.8 megapixels per second) and move
60 to 120 inches per second at 15g of acceleration,
there’s little doubt that the DeathAdder
is the quickest and most deadly-accurate serpent—and
infrared mouse—on the planet.
A 7-foot long high tensile strength
cord that is both lightweight and resists tangles,
insures that you should have no problem reaching a
USB port on the back of your rig whether it’s
sitting on the floor or on top of a desk. As with
all high-performance mice, the DeathAdder is
a USB-only mouse, with a gold-plated connector to
insure maximum signal conductivity. Along with
driver and software updates, firmware updates with
fixes and enhancements for the DeathAdder can
be downloaded from Razer’s support site.
Installation and Testing
It doesn’t get any easier than plug
it in, install the software, and reboot. As always,
I highly recommend that you download the latest
drivers for your hardware, as the ones shipping with
the product usually aren’t the latest. The latest
drivers and control panel software for the
DeathAdder is
Version 1.07
as I write this, available from
Razer’s Support Download Page.
A download in .ZIP format that’s a tad over 15 MB,
Version 1.07 covers Windows 2000, and both the 32
and 64-bit flavors of Windows XP and Windows Vista.
Support for Windows XP x64 Edition, and both the 32
and 64-bit editions of Vista were added with Version
1.05. Release1.02 of the drivers and
software was on the CD with the mouse I received,
which undoubtedly would have caused me some
headaches had I been running Windows Vista on the
test system rather than Windows XP. So you can see
the importance of always checking the manufacturer’s
website for updates before installing your
new hardware.
The
Control Panel for the DeathAdder
sports Razer's signature green hi-tech 2D
motif. An icon for it runs in the Windows
System Tray...
...like
so.
Here's
the context menu for the tray icon, accessed
by right-clicking on it. It must remain
loaded and enabled to take advantage of the
DeathAdder's advanced features.
The
DeathAdder's control panel can also be
launched from the Windows Control Panel, as
you can see here.
You can
assign a number of functions to the mouse
buttons...
...and
the mouse wheel.
Clicking
Save/Load Settings...
...brings
up Advanced Config Options where you
can save and load customized settings for
the DeathAdder; reset any current changes,
configure the Control Panel to automatically
save any changes you make to the current
profile, and reset the current profile to
the default settings.
Click the
little arrow next to Sensitivity, and
a panel that allows you to adjust a number
of the mouse's sensitivity settings, slides
out into view. Clicking the Test Area
for Double-click speed plays a cute
little "breaking glass" animation which
represents your selected Double-click speed
in real-time.
Advanced Settings allows you to fine
tune the DeathAdder's X and Y-Axis
sensitivity, pointer speed and acceleration
for even more precise control. While useful
when using applications like Photoshop,
Razer recommends that you disable
Acceleration for any profiles you configure
for games.
Additional Advanced Functions for the
two thumb buttons (number 4 and 5) can also
be assigned, which makes the Razer
DeathAdder as flexible and powerful with
Windows applications as it is with games.
For
example, you can assign some of the more
commonly used Windows commands like this...
...and
this.
You can
also assign the usual media-player functions
for your default media player. You can also
record a macro and assign it to the
selected thumb button as well.
As with other Razer products, you
should reserve a specific USB port for the
DeathAdder—preferably one on back of your PC
that’s part of the I/O cluster. The reason is that
when you install the Windows XP drivers with the Razer DeathAdder Gaming Mouse connected to a particular port, the
drivers will not recognize the mouse if you
disconnect it and connect it to a different port.
You’ll have to uninstall the drivers and control
panel package and reinstall them to recognize the
mouse on the new port. There is no mention of this
issue using the Vista drivers, but it probably
wouldn’t hurt to take the same precaution.
Reviewed by Barry Little -
August 27, 2007
or
ships in
Razer’s signature satin-black box adorned with their
famous “tri-serpent” logo and letters in bright
green and silver. A photo of the mouse is printed
with a glossy finish which makes it stand out from
the background. Specs in English and nine other
languages and system requirements are on the back.
The right side panel shows a technical comparison
between the DeathAdder and an average mouse.
While it is more than up to the task of
general-purpose computing—web browsing, checking
E-Mail, doing spreadsheets and such—the specs of the
DeathAdder leaves little doubt of its extreme
gaming performance pedigree. 
