Razer Ouroboros Gaming Mouse Review
Conclusion
Published: 11th February 2013 | Source: Razer | Price: £115 |
Conclusion
There are many things to cover with the Ouroboros, so let's crack on. The packaging is incredible, the Ouroboros comes in probably the most blinged-out package of any mouse, ever. Just a shame this will not be the retail packaging. You would need a certain level of confidence if you took it to your local LAN party so you didn't look like a ATGNI guy as you undid the briefcase.
The software is, as we expect from the Synapse 2.0, brilliant. It's intuitive, fast and has a small footprint. With the cloud storage you're not only able to use your settings wherever you are, but don't need to worry about backing them up before a reformat. We can't be the only people who have reinstalled Windows and then realised with horror we'd forgotten something. You can be up and running in moments thanks to the speedy battery installation solution and ease of the cable connection. The Ouroboros can be run in a play-and-charge mode, so no waiting around when you first get it either. Although it's worth noting that there isn't a spare battery provided, nor a method to charge one whilst using the Ouroboros. Of course, as it uses AA batteries, most of us have some on charge somewhere nearly 24/7.
The sensor is spectacular. Really something special. At every sensitivity from the bottom of the scale all the way up to the 'mere mortals need not apply' maximum of 8400DPI, it's responsive, smooth and certainly could never be used as an excuse for why you're dead. Amazingly it's just as capable when you're wireless as it is when tethered. The days when choosing a wireless mouse would impede you at the highest level are nearly history, and certainly the lines are getting blurred. We're not good enough to notice the performance drop off, and we're damn good.
The design of the Ouroboros is a little harder to quantify. Like all mice it can be used with any grip of your choosing. The adjustments available to the back, both length and height, imply it should be used with a palm style of play. However, the positioning of the forward and back buttons definitely are designed for a claw grip, because they're too just far back. If we didn't know better we'd have thought the designer had lost their thumb at the joint. They are perfectly placed for a claw grip though, which makes the adjustable back section pointless because nothing ever touches it.
The Ouroboros has been one of the harder things to decide upon an award. The packaging is stunning, the sensor is exceptional, the software brilliant and the buttons have a solid, reassuring click to them. The battery is centrally mounted and uses the common AAs so it's easy to replace if needed. The wireless is probably the best we've experienced and the choice of slender or shelf-style side panels mean it's everything you could want. All things that would lead to a Gold. Except the placement of the side buttons is wrong if you're using a palm style and the adjustable back, and right if you're using a claw style which renders the adjustable back needless. This isn't helped by the adjustability leading to a design that's very much a love it or hate it thing.
If the Ouroboros was priced with other high-end mice at £80 or £90 then we'd be slightly cautious but the positives would be enough. When it's £120 it has to be flawless, and it just isn't. For £120 we'd want to be able to change the colour of the LEDs, and if you're going down the customisation route we want to be able to move the side buttons too. Finally although the changeable side-panels are nice you'll know which you want straight away and the other pair will just gather dust. In the end the Ouroboros is nearly brilliant, but all adjustability leads to compromise and at £120 we don't want any compromises at all, and for that we award it the OC3D Silver Award.
Thanks to Razer for supplying the Ouroboros for review. Discuss your thoughts in the OC3D Forums.
Most Recent Comments
Now that I know the mouse is good, I think i'm going to get one.
I'm going to wait for it to drop in price first though, £115 is too much for a mouse. £80 is the highest i'm willing to go, seen as you can get a R.A.T 9 for around £70 - £80, which is just as customizable.
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Originally Posted by SieB
I've been looking forward to this review
Now that I know the mouse is good, I think i'm going to get one. I'm going to wait for it to drop in price first though, £115 is too much for a mouse. £80 is the highest i'm willing to go, seen as you can get a R.A.T 9 for around £70 - £80, which is just as customizable. |
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Originally Posted by Ulijin
It really does look like the R.A.T 9 but without a bunch of optional adjustments and it costs more. Why not just get the Cyborg?
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I'll just wait till they drop in price or a better mouse is released.
I find mice like these to be absolutely horrible. It's like some one couldn't be bothered so just threw loads of bits on a frame. It also looks terribly uncomfortable.
I'll stick with my 2007 CE Boomslang. About the only Razer mouse I would bother to own.
Only had Logitech before that (the G700 to be precise) but i wanted to try something new and the razer hasn't dissappointed me - yet!
The price is hefty, yes - but combined with the brilliant razer-customer support I found it was worth it. Don't know about the Cyborg-Support though, but the green glow from the Ouroboros is looking need
My Boomslang developed what I thought was a fault. I contacted customer service who gleefully informed me that it was out of warranty. Hmm funny that they should keep tabs on what they are selling to whom.
Proved it was in warranty at which point they ignored me so I contacted them again. In the end they got stroppy and sent me a nasty email telling me to get hold of the retailer I bought it from and not to expect anything because they didn't have a replacement.
That's not good enough on a £130 mouse.
And then we come back to pricing. Who set these rules that £100+ for a mouse that cost peanuts to make was worth buying? It's pretty crazy if you ask me.
I also question the build quality as I have owned three Razer mice and they seem to wear very quickly. I had a 'budget' mouse from them (by budget I mean £38) and it fell to bits within six months after developing a terrible squeak when you clicked. Maybe it thought it was a literal mouse?
I'm done with spending out an arm and a leg on peripherals that are nothing but marketing hype. Give me a decent Dell keyboard any day with a Dell mouse.
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Originally Posted by blair
I think the RAT 9 looks better and performs better than this, and £120 is just ridiculous, i think Razer has lost the plot.
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I think a lot of these companies need to restructure and look at the stuff they are selling. We are in a recession,and the number of people who are prepared to pay this sort of entrance fee for a mouse are dropping like flies by the day.
I actually ended up with a fake Razer mouse.Forget what it's called I got a refund via Ebay when I discovered it was fake. But, hilariously it has lasted longer than the first genuine Razer mouse I bought with far less headaches
I gave it to my fiancee.
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Originally Posted by AlienALX
full quote in post
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I always was more of a Logitech guy and the Ouroboros is my first razer product. I never had problems with them on keyboards though and just heard great things about them alltogether, so i thought i give them a shot.
Hopefully i will never need the customer service though.
I think the mouse name fits nicely. Not for the reasons you mentioned, but because of the customizations that is possible with it. there are circumstances that will make the user change the mouse configuration without having to buy a new one.
What circumstances you might ask? For example, children still growing up, their hands get bigger, not smaller. Another? Broke a finger recently? Could help you configure it so it won't be as painful or inconvenient to move around.
Think about it.
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Originally Posted by blair
I think the RAT 9 looks better and performs better than this, and £120 is just ridiculous, i think Razer has lost the plot.
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Incidentally, my nephew also has one and he has the same problem with his right click mouse button.
Sorry, but those people can keep their junk.
This product is a shame!
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