bapenguin
10-21-2005, 05:50 AM
Gaming Mice Review: Part 3 The Razer Copperhead
by: Nicholas "bapenguin" Puleo, Editor-in-Chief
Welcome to part 3 of my 5 part series of gaming mice reviews.
It’s been a while since the last review, but I finally got a Razer Copperhead sent to me last week. It seems both Logitech (G5) and Razer (Copperhead) have had some supply issues getting these bad boys out.
Last time we looked at the Logitech MX518 (http://www.evilavatar.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5415&highlight=gaming+mice). The MX518 was comfortable, accurate and had a very usable on the fly resolution adjustment feature.
This week we’ll be looking at the Razer Copperhead (http://www.razerzone.com).
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/reviews/mice/copperhead.jpg
The Razer Copperhead (and my desk)
Technical Specifications:
• 1000 Hz Ultrapolling™ with 1 ms response time as compared with 125Hz/8 ms response time used by other conventional gaming mice
• 2000 DPI Laser Engine Powered by Razer Precision™
• 32KB Onboard Memory Powered by Razer Synapse™
• 7 independently programmable buttons optimized with Razer’s Hyperesponse™ technology for ultra tactile button feedback and maximum actions-per-minute (APM) gameplay
• Zero-Acoustic Ultraslick™ Teflon feet
• 16 bit data path, as compared to 8 bit and 12 bit data paths used by other conventional mice
• High speed motion detection, up to 45ips and 20g / Over 7080 frames per second
The review and impressions of the Razer Copperhead will be from someone with average sized hands.
Style/Comfort:
The look of the Copperhead is pretty sleek. It is available in 3 glowing colors; red, green and blue. The mouse I used was blue. The mouse is all black with several surfaces that are illuminated blue from internal LEDs. There’s a “snake like” edge around the mouse that glows blue (the GlowPipe™ non-slip side rails) as well as a Copperhead logo that “breaths” from blue to black while the mouse is plugged in. The buttons are similar to the Diamondback; they are large and rubbery. The side buttons are a bit bigger this time around, and the mouse doubles well for lefty or righty gamers. The edges of the Copperhead stick up a bit more than on the Diamondback. The mouse has more curve to it than the Diamondback, and it makes it feel a bit more comfortable for my wrist. Unfortunately the GlowPipe™ non-slip side rails are extremely uncomfortable. They stick out on the sides of the mouse, causing my ring and pinky fingers to wrap underneath it. Moving a mouse around with your last to fingers stacked on top of each other is not the best feeling in the world.
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/reviews/mice/2mice.jpg
Razer Diamondback and Razer Copperhead side by side.
A unique feature of the Copperhead is the 32kb of onboard memory. What does a mouse need 32kb of memory for? The memory is used to store gaming “profiles” in hardware. In theory, if you bring the mouse to another PC that doesn’t have the Copperhead drivers, you can easily switch between these profiles without the need for installing the drivers. The profiles are in essence on the fly resolution adjustments. The difference between the two is in the profiles you can change the polling rate as well as the DPI. The problem with these fancy features is this; the on the profile button is located on the BOTTOM of the mouse. It’s sort of inset and difficult to press, and after pressing it the mouse “reboots” for a second until your profile is switched. You can only cycle forward between profiles, so if you are on profile #1 and want to get to profile #5, it’ll take a few button presses and reboots to get there. In addition to the profiles you can still adjust the DPI on the fly using the right or left side buttons. It pretty much defeats the entire purpose of the 32kb of memory.
The mouse is a fairly light mouse, though it’s not quite as light as the Diamondback. For those of you who like a heavier mouse there is an optional weighting package (The Razer Pro-Tools) that can be purchased. This is all well and good except that by using the Razer Pro-Tools you void your mouse’s warranty. Let me say that again, by using Razer’s Pro-Tools product on Razer’s mouse you void your warranty. That is like buying a new car, and buying a different set of tires from the dealer and voiding the cars warranty.
Gaming/Windows:
On the gaming side of thing the mouse was solid. It performed on par if not SLIGHTLY better than the other two mice. The difference between a 1600DPI mouse and a 2000DPI mouse is minimal at best. I tried the mouse in Battlefield 2, the F.E.A.R demo, Guild Wars and the Serious Sam 2 demo. It was really a solid performer in all of those titles. In everyday Windows use and graphical editing use it did the job it was supposed to do.
Other Impressions:
Here is fellow Evil Avatar reader Knite’s impressions: (someone with large hands)
The Copperhead reminds me a little bit of a love child between the MX518 and the Diamondback. I prefer its looks to the 518, and its higher arched back and more prominent side buttons seem to be an improvement at first glance. Movement accuracy is fantastic and on par with the Diamondback, while possessing more heft than its little brother. The top of the mouse as well as the buttons are both covered with the same no-slip substance as the Diamondback, but for some reason, I did not like the way this felt in my hand and preferred the slick plastic of the older model. The side buttons again are a point of contention for me, being too far back in the mouse to get good contact. Add to that a raised area above the buttons making them hard to get to. This raised area around the rim of the mouse also causes some discomfort to me with my ring finger and pinky feeling moved together by the shape.
My buddy Gus had moved away, so I had to find a replacement for my small hands man. So instead of a man I got a woman’s opinion, my wife. She thought the mouse was too big for her to use and didn’t really care for it at all.
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/reviews/mice/3mice.jpg
The Logitech MX518, Razer Diamondback and Razer Copperhead. You can really see the Glowpipes sticking out on the Copperhead.
Conclusion:
All in all I have to say I’m disappointed with the Razer Copperhead. The mouse is priced at a MSRP of $79.99. That’s over 30 dollars more than you can currently get the MX518 or the Diamondback for. Not only that, if you want the weighting tools and dummy buttons you have to pay extra and void your warranty. The mouse offers little more over its older brother, the Razer Diamondback. While the onboard memory and profiles are a good idea in theory, the implementation of it is lacking. It doesn’t have any use above and beyond an already solid implementation of on the fly resolution adjustment like the Logitech MX518. If you have the Diamondback or the MX518, there’s no reason to “upgrade” to the Razer Copperhead.
Rating:
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/icons/e3.jpg
3 out of 5 Evil Eyes.
Purchase the Razer Copperhead from GoGamer! (http://www.gogamer.com/)
by: Nicholas "bapenguin" Puleo, Editor-in-Chief
Welcome to part 3 of my 5 part series of gaming mice reviews.
It’s been a while since the last review, but I finally got a Razer Copperhead sent to me last week. It seems both Logitech (G5) and Razer (Copperhead) have had some supply issues getting these bad boys out.
Last time we looked at the Logitech MX518 (http://www.evilavatar.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5415&highlight=gaming+mice). The MX518 was comfortable, accurate and had a very usable on the fly resolution adjustment feature.
This week we’ll be looking at the Razer Copperhead (http://www.razerzone.com).
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/reviews/mice/copperhead.jpg
The Razer Copperhead (and my desk)
Technical Specifications:
• 1000 Hz Ultrapolling™ with 1 ms response time as compared with 125Hz/8 ms response time used by other conventional gaming mice
• 2000 DPI Laser Engine Powered by Razer Precision™
• 32KB Onboard Memory Powered by Razer Synapse™
• 7 independently programmable buttons optimized with Razer’s Hyperesponse™ technology for ultra tactile button feedback and maximum actions-per-minute (APM) gameplay
• Zero-Acoustic Ultraslick™ Teflon feet
• 16 bit data path, as compared to 8 bit and 12 bit data paths used by other conventional mice
• High speed motion detection, up to 45ips and 20g / Over 7080 frames per second
The review and impressions of the Razer Copperhead will be from someone with average sized hands.
Style/Comfort:
The look of the Copperhead is pretty sleek. It is available in 3 glowing colors; red, green and blue. The mouse I used was blue. The mouse is all black with several surfaces that are illuminated blue from internal LEDs. There’s a “snake like” edge around the mouse that glows blue (the GlowPipe™ non-slip side rails) as well as a Copperhead logo that “breaths” from blue to black while the mouse is plugged in. The buttons are similar to the Diamondback; they are large and rubbery. The side buttons are a bit bigger this time around, and the mouse doubles well for lefty or righty gamers. The edges of the Copperhead stick up a bit more than on the Diamondback. The mouse has more curve to it than the Diamondback, and it makes it feel a bit more comfortable for my wrist. Unfortunately the GlowPipe™ non-slip side rails are extremely uncomfortable. They stick out on the sides of the mouse, causing my ring and pinky fingers to wrap underneath it. Moving a mouse around with your last to fingers stacked on top of each other is not the best feeling in the world.
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/reviews/mice/2mice.jpg
Razer Diamondback and Razer Copperhead side by side.
A unique feature of the Copperhead is the 32kb of onboard memory. What does a mouse need 32kb of memory for? The memory is used to store gaming “profiles” in hardware. In theory, if you bring the mouse to another PC that doesn’t have the Copperhead drivers, you can easily switch between these profiles without the need for installing the drivers. The profiles are in essence on the fly resolution adjustments. The difference between the two is in the profiles you can change the polling rate as well as the DPI. The problem with these fancy features is this; the on the profile button is located on the BOTTOM of the mouse. It’s sort of inset and difficult to press, and after pressing it the mouse “reboots” for a second until your profile is switched. You can only cycle forward between profiles, so if you are on profile #1 and want to get to profile #5, it’ll take a few button presses and reboots to get there. In addition to the profiles you can still adjust the DPI on the fly using the right or left side buttons. It pretty much defeats the entire purpose of the 32kb of memory.
The mouse is a fairly light mouse, though it’s not quite as light as the Diamondback. For those of you who like a heavier mouse there is an optional weighting package (The Razer Pro-Tools) that can be purchased. This is all well and good except that by using the Razer Pro-Tools you void your mouse’s warranty. Let me say that again, by using Razer’s Pro-Tools product on Razer’s mouse you void your warranty. That is like buying a new car, and buying a different set of tires from the dealer and voiding the cars warranty.
Gaming/Windows:
On the gaming side of thing the mouse was solid. It performed on par if not SLIGHTLY better than the other two mice. The difference between a 1600DPI mouse and a 2000DPI mouse is minimal at best. I tried the mouse in Battlefield 2, the F.E.A.R demo, Guild Wars and the Serious Sam 2 demo. It was really a solid performer in all of those titles. In everyday Windows use and graphical editing use it did the job it was supposed to do.
Other Impressions:
Here is fellow Evil Avatar reader Knite’s impressions: (someone with large hands)
The Copperhead reminds me a little bit of a love child between the MX518 and the Diamondback. I prefer its looks to the 518, and its higher arched back and more prominent side buttons seem to be an improvement at first glance. Movement accuracy is fantastic and on par with the Diamondback, while possessing more heft than its little brother. The top of the mouse as well as the buttons are both covered with the same no-slip substance as the Diamondback, but for some reason, I did not like the way this felt in my hand and preferred the slick plastic of the older model. The side buttons again are a point of contention for me, being too far back in the mouse to get good contact. Add to that a raised area above the buttons making them hard to get to. This raised area around the rim of the mouse also causes some discomfort to me with my ring finger and pinky feeling moved together by the shape.
My buddy Gus had moved away, so I had to find a replacement for my small hands man. So instead of a man I got a woman’s opinion, my wife. She thought the mouse was too big for her to use and didn’t really care for it at all.
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/reviews/mice/3mice.jpg
The Logitech MX518, Razer Diamondback and Razer Copperhead. You can really see the Glowpipes sticking out on the Copperhead.
Conclusion:
All in all I have to say I’m disappointed with the Razer Copperhead. The mouse is priced at a MSRP of $79.99. That’s over 30 dollars more than you can currently get the MX518 or the Diamondback for. Not only that, if you want the weighting tools and dummy buttons you have to pay extra and void your warranty. The mouse offers little more over its older brother, the Razer Diamondback. While the onboard memory and profiles are a good idea in theory, the implementation of it is lacking. It doesn’t have any use above and beyond an already solid implementation of on the fly resolution adjustment like the Logitech MX518. If you have the Diamondback or the MX518, there’s no reason to “upgrade” to the Razer Copperhead.
Rating:
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/icons/e3.jpg
3 out of 5 Evil Eyes.
Purchase the Razer Copperhead from GoGamer! (http://www.gogamer.com/)