QPAD 8K Gaming Mouse Review

Conclusion

Something we often mention when reviewing peripherals is the consistency of the underpinning parts. Just like nearly every keyboard utilises Cherry MX switches, so nearly every mouse uses an Avago sensor (either optical or Laser) and Omron switches.

The good part of this is for the consumer. You can purchase almost any mouse around and know that the meat and potatoes of it will be of equal quality to any other. It is, however, bad for the manufacturers. With the security of the main elements being excellent the things that differentiate one from another are design choices. Aesthetics. Additional elements from the manufacturer are really what sorts the wheat from the chaff. The QPAD 8K is generally let down by these additional elements.

Size is always a matter of personal preference, but we don't mind the chunky feel of the 8K in the hand. Everything is within easy reach and the design is comfortable enough for long spells without finding yourself fatigued. The coating is equally good at keeping the 8K firmly in your grasp even if you're in the world 1v1 deathmatch final, in Florida, in the summer, suffering from influenza.

The Avago 9800 sensor and Omron switches are as brilliant as they always are. There is a crispness to the clicks that is difficult to express without having ever used them. You'd really need to do a side-by-side comparison with poor quality switches to full appreciate the benefits of the Omron offerings. Sadly for QPAD they provide such a side-by-side comparison with the side buttons and DPI buttons. They're like pressing jelly. Squidgy and wobbly. Almost everything you don't want your switch to be. Normally this wouldn't be quite such an issue but when the LMB and RMB are of such high quality the contrast is jarring.

The software is not the most fully featured we've ever tested, but it's responsive and easy to use with everything being where you'd expect it to be. We like the included profiles that match the colour scheme of the QPAD MK keyboards. It's very disappointing in its colour reproduction though. Even the most heavily saturated colours were washed out. Your choices very much boil down to red or blue, and even the blue isn't a deep royal blue. For this price we'd expect much more.

Easily the biggest problem the 8K faces is the plethora of other mice in the market that also boast the Avago Omron connection. There are lots of them that are cheaper, many which offer better colour options, and few that have the other buttons being so squidgy. Some of this could be excused if the 8K was exceptional value for money, but it's not priced competitively enough. Of course the Omron/Avago combination is always great, but it's just not enough to bring the QPAD anything more than our Bronze Award.

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