Product Survey: Mice : Razer Salmosa
7. Razer Salmosa
Settings
In order to change the dpi and polling rate you have to turn the mouse upside down. Forget on the fly! There are two buttons on each side of the sensor to enable gamers to make 800/1800 dpi and 125/500/1000Hz polling rate adjustments.
The Salmosa from Razer is a small, low-cost mouse for gamers, and it's noticeably inferior to other mice from the manufacturer.
- Razer Salmosa 1800dpi...
Like the Death Adder, its bigger brother, the Salmosa has an 1800 dpi 3G infrared sensor, but this mouse is a much simpler product, having only two large index buttons and a scroll wheel (zero thumb buttons). Also, the blue LEDs that are usually found underneath Razer's mice, or beside the scroll wheel, are absent. This small black mouse makes the most of its minimalist design; the ambidextrous shape, making it suitable for left- and right-handed gamers, helps it stand out from the competition.
The Salmosas software utility is similar to other Razer products: simple and only includes the features you really need. You can assign macros to the independently programmable buttons. Unfortunately, there is no control to change dpi and polling rate on the fly, but you can reprogram a button to do just that if necessary. Doing this, of course, means you have fewer buttons to assign to macros.
Handling
You hold the Salmosa in your hand in the same way as Razer’s famed Copperhead mouse. In order to experience real comfort with it you have to control it with your fingertips. This is ideal for certain games like first person shooters, but for strategy games, office work or graphic design, you tend to put your palm over the mouse which is less comfortable. The Death Adder and Logitech’s G5, with their more rounded shape, are a better choice if you want a more versatile mouse.
Like on many gaming mice, you get 1000Hz ultra polling/1 ms response time. This will be much appreciated by graphic artists or gamers who are looking for precision. Unfortunately, it will set you back in terms of CPU consumption (up to 50 % on our Intel Core 2 Duo E7300).
The infrared sensor, like that of the Death Adder, cannot be used on a glossy surface. If you don't believe us, try it on the cover of a magazine and see what happens. Although a laser sensor works better on a wider range of surfaces, Razer is clearly trying to up the resolution for gamers, so this is a reasonable compromise.
The bottom line: if you can find a Death Adder for a decent price, go for it, as you'll enjoy more customization, additional buttons, more comfortable grip and more versatility.
| Razer Salmosa | |
|---|---|
| Pros | Cons |
|
|
The Razer Salmosa works for both left- and right-handers, has an understated black design and 1000 Hz ultrapolling. However, we prefer the versatility of Razer's Death Adder, whose driver also offers more features.
Tom’s hardware this article seems more focused on budget consumers, however you also included the steelseries MMO mouse which is expensive. So why no Microsoft Sidewinder X8, Logitech G9x(most recent and not be confused with the G9 however very much the same), and Razer Mamba. Would love to see a review on those mice and others like them. I mean you did mention gaming a lot and didn’t include mice geared mainly toward gaming. Why not even throw in there the VisionTek XG6 if it was budget based, and for it just being really odd.
I think the the Logitech G9 should be on this list as well along side with the MX Revolution. But I do like how on the side of each mouse they explain some more into the different tech specs and what they mean.
While not a perfect article, this is a major improvement from some of the crap that I've seen from Digital Versus previous to this article.
I have tried several different brands and styles over the years. I always go back to my old favorite I have had for years. It's a Microsoft IntelliEye.
The article omits a discussion and comparison of a profound aspect of mouses, the sampling rate.
Nothing beats gaming like my optical MX510
Nothing beats gaming like my optical MX510
I just bought a MX620 for 20 bucks (they had a instant 15 off and 25 bucks off ontop of that) I am very happy, so happy that I bought a second one for my mac.
Nothing beats my Logitech Click!
Why?
-Light, comfortable, smooth.
-I have had this mouse for over three years now.
-I have long fingers, and they fit comfortably on the mouse.
-The mouse is decently light. I've used lighter, but too light can cause issues. (not durable enogh for example. I have thrown this mouse many times yet it works like a champ)
-Wired (I do prefer wired. I have two wireless mice, but the batteries die too fast, and the batteries make it too heavy. Plus not having extra batteries around when they die is horrible... Even more important, they're easy to lose. Someone like me is better with a wired product. I lose my wireless products frequently. It's not a big loss)
-Comfort. I never have a proper stance while typing. Both my hands, even when one is on the mouse, are resting on the surface if possible. My mouse pad is about 9 years old. I think one of my brothers got it in a parade. Best mousepad EVER. So soft, so smooth. ~1/8 foam with a soft and smooth matertial on top. Extremely durable. It has held out for 9 years. Has had countless drinks spilled on it and a endless amount of oil. Has been brutalized with knives several times, yet the material holds. I currently have this actually stationary at my desk, with 3 nails and 1 screw. Because my wrist is always dragging on it, my wirst has built extra callious skin, which is actually useful. I have never found a mousepad superior to this (actually I don't even know if this is actually a mouse pad to be honest), all being uncomfortable and undurable plastic or crappy foam. /end rant on mousepad
-Infrared. I understand that newer mopdels are superior to what surfaces they can be used on, but regardless, I have used this on my bed, carpet, wglossy wooden table, couch etc. It works like a charm.
-Sexy. Something must be said to the ones that look simple yet elegant. Some of us want something that will look good foir years to come, not just for a month or so. The Logitech Click! Plus (wireless version) is actually less visually appealing in my opinion.
-800 dpi. Even when running a dual screen setup, with one wrist movement, I can get from end to end easily. The mouse is just right for me.
I paid $60 (well, someone else did with my money...) and I haven't regret it since. Nice to know they're like $15 now.
I don't like those fancy super modern mice.
Firstly, expensive.
Secondly, I don't need 20 damned extra buttons. I rarely even use the extra 1 button I have.
Thirdly, design. I am no fan of super modern mice. To me, they look like a gross attempt to show off. Like adding nothing but a bolt-on body kit, spoiler, cheap window tint, and wannabe spinning rims. Excess in a unproductive way.
It's like excessive "gaming keyboards".
The things are damned large, damned heavy, and damned expensive. My keyboard is as basic as it gets. Durable (I like to play with fire...), thin (but structuraly 100% stable), light (but not too light, so it doesn't constantly fly off my desk if I try to move it around), small (while retaining a full size keyboard, by having bottom and side edges less tham a centimetre), wired (I have a wireless keyboard, I even lose that), only the hotkeys I need (1 key I didn't, so I just removed the key), and can be picked up new for less than $5. Heres what it looks like: http://www.geeks.com/imageshare/5/ [...] 2-unit.gif
I have a $100 wireless gaming keyboard. This is a HP cheapo keyboard that I bought with a $600 debranded HP computer. After only a couple hours of use, I never used my heavy, large, wireless (battery wasting), grotesque looking keyboard. It's extremely simple, and works like a charm. The Apple aluminum keyboard interests me. Extremely basic and light, it just needs to have a magnesium option over aluminum (for strength), and to be a lot cheaper...
I want those exact same features in my mouse.
Who can offer that?
/end all rants
I just bought a MX620 for 20 bucks (they had a instant 15 off and 25 bucks off ontop of that) I am very happy, so happy that I bought a second one for my mac.
Good deal.
A actually sexy mouse.
I don't like the sharp tip to it, or that it looks like it's built for small hands, but it's better than anything in this article.
I still like my G5. My old one died (the trigger button started to lag just enough so I was missing a decent amount of kills when sniping). I'm on my second G5 and probably would get another until they stop selling. Imo, the G5 is one of the best mice(mouse?) ever made. The G9 and others are technologically much better, but I don't like the feel of the G9,etc.
Also, the review should have included at least 1-2 track ball mouse as quite a bit of designers (vid editors,CAD,etc) use them.
Mouses!
(mice are animals)