1600 DPI Precision Gaming Mouse

{mosgoogle}The Razer Diamondback Plasma Edition is considered by many to be THE gamer's mouse. You'll know this the instant you plug the mouse in and watch the body light up in a striking neon plasma blue color - this mouse is design to help you win the game and look good doing it.

The Diamondback Plasma Edition features all the latest and greatest tricks found on today's high end gaming mice, like an ultra high resolution optical engine and corded design - nothing upsets a gamer more than having a wireless mouse lose a connection or battery power during an intense LAN gaming session. For true gamers, wireless is still not an option.

Technical Specifications:

• Optical engine powered by kärna precision
• 1600 dpi, twice that of conventional high performance sensors
• High speed motion detection, up to 40ips and 15g
• Frame rate over 6400 frames per second (5.8 megapixels per second)
• 16 bit data path, as compared to 8 bit and 12 bit data paths used by other conventional mice
• Always On Mode – the optical sensor never powers down - provides instantaneous response at all times during gameplay
• Buttons – 7 physical buttons optimized for gaming response and independently programmable
• Ultra large non-slip mouse buttons, tactile response design
• Non-slip side rails and new ergonomic ambidextrous design
• Zero acoustic Teflon feet for smooth motion over any surface
• Gold plated USB connector for maximum conductivity
• 7 foot, lightweight, non-tangle cord
• Award winning Razer drivers featuring On-the-Fly sensitivity adjustment

Where To Buy It

The Razer Diamondback Plasma Edition sells for $59.99 direct from Razer and comes with a 2 year limited warranty. Online resellers will sell it to you for less - at the time of this review the Diamondback is selling for $38.90 to $58.99. The price puts the Diamondback in the same price range the recently reviewed Logitech MX518. The question is, does the Razer match up to the Logitech?

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Technology Behind a Gaming Mouse

{mosgoogle}For the mouse user, performance is experienced through speed, precision, smoothness and accuracy. There are four technical factors that determine the performance of a typical computer mouse, and the Razer Diamondback has been optimized in all these areas to create the ultimate gaming experience.

Encoder DPI

The encoder DPI/CPI (dots/counts per inch) is the most important factor in determining the smoothness and speed of a mouse. This is described by how many discrete signals are sent to the controller chip when the mouse moves one inch. As the number of signals sent to the chip increases, mouse resolution becomes finer and the resulting motion smoother. The Razer Diamondback use a patented encoder technology that allows much higher DPI than current mice. Most mechanical mice perform at 400-800 DPI, while the Razer Diamondback Plasma Editor runs at 1600 DPI.

Connection speed/baud

The next critical link to performance is the connection between the mouse and the computer. USB 1.0 has a polling rate fixed at 125 polls/sec and allows for communication to and from the peripheral. The Diamondback use advanced 16-bit data-rate technology for super fast connection speed.

Driver Software

The driver software converts the signals or pulses that the mouse sends into actual on-screen movement. This conversion is basically an equation that correlates the number of pulses the mouse sends to the number of pixels on the screen. When the user adjusts the speed/sensitivity of their mouse, they are changing the numbers in the equation. For instance from 1 pulse = 1 pixel to 1 pulse = 2 pixels. This would make the mouse twice as fast.

The Razer line of mice offer smooth and controllable movement at all speeds, with speed/sensitivity adjustable "on the fly" by a special key combination. The user can adjust sensitivity settings from application to application, or within game environments, such as land to water or air. No other mouse offers this timesaving function.

Where To Buy It

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Scroll wheel

{mosgoogle}The scroll wheel in the Razer mice is extremely sensitive, providing increased click points per revolution versus the standard scroll wheel. This added capability enhances the current gaming experience and will do so even more as game developers continue to take advantage of advanced scroll wheel technology.

Glowing Body

The Diamondback itself is one of the best looking mouse we have ever seen. When it comes to gaming, looking good is just as important as playing good. The Diamondback features sleek flowing lines that reminds one of a very fast sport car. The mouse scroll wheel is translucent so the neon light coming from inside the mouse housing can shine through and light up the wheel.

The best feature of the Razer Diamondback is the left and right mouse button. They're so big there's no way you can miss hitting them and they feel really good when pressed. The spring tension on these button is just right and they feel like they'll last forever. The sides of the Razer offers up more buttons which can be used for forward and back on a web page or next and previous weapon in your favorite first person shooter. Unlike the Logitech MX 518 gaming mouse, the Razer Diamondback works for both left and right handed users.

Seven Foot Long Mouse Cord

The Razer Diamondback hooks up to your computer via a seven foot mouse cord, which happens to be a 1 foot longer than the Logitech MX518 mouse cord. Continuing the game of one upmanship, the Diamondback features a gold plated USB connector. While the gold plating does make the Razer look fancier it really doesn't improve the performance any. However, we do like the extra long mouse cord as it allows us more flexible placement options for the PC.

Where To Buy It

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Make For LAN Parties

{mosgoogle}The Razer Diamondback Plasma Edition features a free custom design LAN-Pack for storage and transport. The LAN-Pack sells for $10 by itself so this really add value to the mouse. Not only does the LAN-Pack protect your Diamondback during transport but it looks really good as well. As we've stated before, looking good is just as important as playing good.

The Diamondback Plasma Optical Engine

The underside of the Razer Diamondback Plasma Edition holds the 1600 DPI optical engine and super slick Teflon coated mouse feet. The feet eliminate the need for Teflon tape and works on most surfacea. However, for best result, we recommend pairing the Diamondback with a gaming mouse pad like the XtracPads Hybrid or Razer's own eXactMat Xspeed.

The Razer Diamondback use a patented encoder technology that allows much higher DPI than current mice. Most mechanical mice perform at 400-800 DPI, while the Diamondback offers resolutions of 1600 DPI with on the fly resolution adjustment. That means you crack up the resolution during those free-for-all death match, then lower the resolution to line up that perfect head shot.

Where To Buy It

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The Razer Diamondback Software

{mosgoogle}The Razer Diamondback offers up a really nice software suite that allow smooth and controllable movement at all speeds, with speed/sensitivity adjustable on the fly by a special key combination. You can adjust sensitivity settings from application to application, or even within game environments.

The software offers up way more control than the Logitech MX518 software. For one thing the Diamondback software allows you to adjust the sensitivity of the X and Y axis independent of each other. This is something you can't do with the MX 518. Having separate X and Y sensitivity adjustment allows you to truly tailor the mouse to your playing style.

In addition to X and Y adjustment, the Diamondback software allows you to set double click speed, scroll wheel speed, assign actions for each buttons and set the mouse for the right or left hand. For all its magnitude of mouse adjustments, the Diamondback software is extremely easy to use.

Setting Up & Testing

The Razer Diamondback is no harder to setup than the Logitech MX518 - just plug in the mouse to any USB port and install the software. While the mouse will work without the software, it's highly recommended because you won't be able to take advantage of all the mouse features without it.

The first thing the hit us about the Diamondback was how nice this mouse look. If this was a beauty contest, the Diamondback would easily take the crown. This is among the best looking mouse we have every seen. When you plug it in, the entire mouse lights up in a neon blue glow (a neon red model is also available) that gives it an out of this world look. The mouse looks like it's gliding off the mouse pad rather than on it. The translucent glow from the scroll wheel was also super cool. The Diamondback matches up perfectly with any showy Laptop (like the Dell Inspiron XPS M170) or PC.

Where To Buy It

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Conculsion

Like the Logitech MX518, the Razer Diamondback offer on the fly sensitivity adjustments. However, the implementation here is not as well done as the Logitech gaming mouse. The Razer's sensitivity button is located on the left side of the Diamondback and it takes some getting use to. This might be because we've gotten use to the top sensitivity buttons on the Logitech MX518. A users who has never used the Logitech gaming mouse and starts from the get go with the Razer Diamondback may have no problems with sensitivity adjustments.

{mosgoogle}One of the nicest thing about the Razer Diamondback Plasma Edition is the left and right mouse button - they feel great! The buttons are huge and the contours fits our fingers perfectly. And best of all, the Diamondback is designed so both left and right handed gamers can use it and make use of all the mouse buttons. The Razer profile is lower than the MX518 so the Diamondback feels smaller, even though it's about the same size.

We used the Razer Diamondback with some of our favorite 3D games and fell in love with mouse within the first few minutes. The on the fly sensitivity adjustments takes a little getting use to at the beginning, but once mastered, you'll be going up and down in resolution without giving it a second thought. The Teflon coated feet of the Razer, combined with the XtracPads Hybrid created a near perfect mousing experience. The Diamond glide across our mouse pad with a smoothness that has to be felt to be believed.

Choosing between the Razer Diamondback or Logitech MX518 is a tough call. Both are great mice and will put any other mice to shame. The Logitech MX518 is easier to get started with, the Diamondback takes more times to get use to because its software offers far more adjustments and customization features. However, once everything is fine tuned, the Razer Diamondback is hard mouse to beat.

Where To Buy It