When it comes to computer mice, I am a fiend for convention. My hand knows and appreciates the curves that it craves, the standard of clickiness – how else will I balance the fraught nature of graphical wizardry and sub-par gaming performance? I am the very worst kind of consumer; an individual who wants something new and exciting, but also somehow identical to what I am familiar with.
I even have a chequered history with Razer mouse options – the Razer Deathadder that was thrown in as a freebie with a laptop self-destructed on me with a tiny amount of use, while close friends lamented to me over various voice chat programs that the Razer Naga that they cherished would routinely die on them. So why volunteer to review the Razer Naga V2 Pro? The answer is simple: I love redemption stories.
An infinitely better manicured hand than my own
The Razer Naga series are gaming mice that strive to address a notably difficult gaming question in regards to control, and how much of it can rest within a single hand. The original Razer Naga touted an obscene amount of buttons, hoping to redefine how players would dominate the MMO space – and it absolutely had an impact. As mentioned above, I had first-hand experience with many people who ventured through the World of Warcraft and swore that their success could only be attributed to the peripheral.
The Naga V2 Pro evolves this flexibility by iterating on three different button panels, each with a different configuration of buttons – initially seen with the Naga Trinity. These panels can be easily swapped out by simply pulling off the current panel and snapping on the new one – allowing users to experiment with different layouts and find the one that works best for their current need. The first button panel is the classic, which has twelve buttons arranged in a grid pattern. This is the same layout as the original Razer Naga mouse and is ideal for MMOs that may require a lot of hotkey commands. The second panel makes use of a six-button configuration, targeting battle royale games and MOBAs that have a medium scope of needs. The final panel is a more standard, generic option – a two button configuration that rests comfortably at your thumb, and would be familiar to basically anyone who has used a mouse in recent years.
Spoilt for choice
Initially I was sceptical of the button-swap gimmick. I deal with plenty of plastic piffle, and I find that anything that is designed to come apart ‘sometimes’ runs the risk of coming apart ‘all the time’ with enough wear and tear – it all comes down to design. My first examination of the mouse revealed that the thought put into the panel housing was top-notch, and the actual locking mechanism to keep them in place wasn’t a half-hearted snap-fit effort either. Every panel is anchored with not one, but two magnets at either end of its length, with the precision-shaped plastic housing holding the panel within a micron of its shape. I employed a long session or two of somewhat-rough use, lifting and thumping the mouse while I played FPS titles with low DPI – daring the side panel to come away and prove me right. I was actually quite thrilled to be proven so incredibly wrong.
In terms of comfort, the Naga V2 also delivers a great experience. The mouse is designed to fit comfortably in an average-sized hand, with a shape that is optimised for right-handed use. The surface of the mouse’s hand area is coated with a rubberized material that provides a good grip, even during extended use. It does feel a little on the heavy side, but I’ll be the first to admit that it’s a weight that feels like quality components, rather than ballast and gaff. I worried the rounded nature of the unit wouldn’t gel with my career of using a ‘resting palm grip’ technique, but it had texture everywhere I needed to feel natural and comfortable using it.
The customisable scroll wheel absolutely balances on two extremes – a silky, almost ethereal scroll wheel experience and a ruggedly hard feedback that feels like a lumberjack un-knotting his beard. It’s quite impressive that the spectrum of difference between high and low sensitivity is a great deal more than a footnote – it’s tactile and noticeable in every way, with plenty of mid-range to find a sweet spot that works for your particular scrolling needs, whether they be zooming through websites or fast weapon switching in an FPS. I particularly enjoyed the clutch that would allow me proper finesse when scrolling slowly, but wouldn’t restrict me from an open blast when my finger demanded it. The wheel even has a right and left tilt-click option, which was impressive – though I couldn’t find an immediate use for it.
A ruggedly hard feedback that feels like a lumberjack un-knotting his beard
But what of the side plates? Well I tasked myself with immersing myself into the defined needs of each of them. The twelve-button MMO plate performed every bit as you’d expect – provided your big dumb thumb could find the button you need. I found myself comfortable using the additional buttons to fulfil a series of ‘sometimes’ needs, pushing emergency buttons that facilitated an immediate action. While they absolutely could function just fine as standard rotation inputs, it didn’t suit my personal playstyle. I then moved to the six-button panel, and figured an action-FPS like Overwatch 2 would serve as a fine test bed. The first thing I noticed was the smaller range of buttons feeling more appreciable by my gross man-thumb. Curiously, I did however wonder if I’d have a better time navigating them in a vertical configuration, rather than the included 3×2 horizontal format. It did prompt a thought to whether it would be in Razer’s power to release even more button configuration panels. Using the mouse in this configuration felt the most intuitive, attributed to the lesser number of buttons allowing the inclusion of a rubberised grip for the thumb to rest on when not button pressing.
It was here that I encountered a standout highlight of my experience – making use of editing and design software. With the expanded button configuration, I had the freedom to hotkey my most prolifically used functions and really overclock my software experience. While I initially tried with the twelve-button plate, I found myself desiring the textured thumb rest for the sake of precision – and the six button panel proved to be an ideal number of buttons to cover things like zooming in and out, whipping out selection tools and the like. I was utilising a gaming mouse for work – and it made work feel great.
You may notice I haven’t really mentioned the standard two button configuration much. That is because it’s…fine. If you are using a mouse right this instant, it likely has two buttons on its side. That is what the two button panel feels like – why don’t you feel them now! Press them! Ooh! Interactive portion of the review! It’s like we are really exploring the explosively exciting experience of TWO thumb buttons together. I will mention that it has the same thumb rest grip pad as the six button option, so it feels great when not pressing buttons.
Comfortably fits a variety of hand shapes and grips, as modelled here
While the mouse comes with a gorgeous woven cable, its cordless capabilities are nothing to sneeze at. Navigating my own personal 5m x 6m space, I struggled to find myself in a position where it didn’t perform as expected. Pocketing the device and accessing media via a TV meant I could have full mouse-bound control of whatever I was viewing, the only limitation was finding an appropriate surface to drag across. Much praise also has to be given to the storage space offered for the USB receiver, which can be easily squirreled away within the side panel should you need to take the mouse on a trip.
When in wireless mode, the battery life is touted as ‘up to 150 hours’, and even with Team Fortress 2’s endless games of 2Fort I struggled to exhaust the thing. Even with a marginal amount of charging (not even daily), you’d struggle to put this thing to bed. Perhaps for those who are less fastidious than I, perhaps spending a week of using it before seeing a warning – but even then that comes far in advance of any hit to performance. Even if you had any concern, a rapid detour to plug in the included cable will get you right back on track and carefree.
One of the key box features of the Naga V2 is its accuracy. The mouse is equipped with a 16000 DPI optical sensor, providing incredible precision and responsiveness. The sensor touts a capability of tracking up to 450 inches per second, ensuring that every movement you make is translated accurately in whatever space you are currently pointing within. This clearly translates well to those playing a fast-paced shooter, but it also promises an exceptionally accurate level of control if you are doing something on a smaller scale, such as my editing software offerings.
No-nonsense magnets ensure things remain locked in place
Razer’s Synapse software is a snap to install – it actually prompts itself to be installed upon plugging in the mouse, the ideal of convenience. Within this management suite you can customise a variety of settings, including scroll wheel customisation, bindings, profiles, power settings – you name it. There is also a huge variety of more involved options for the tech heads among us such as polling rate or CPI configuration. Christ, you can even manage the lift-off distance. It’s a very robust piece of software, obviously offering a robust level of control that could be intimidating to anyone just wanting to plug-and-play – but nothing is stopping you from doing just that. The time it took me to set up and get going with the mouse was marginal at best, so if you are feeling anxiety looking at all the options, it may be best to just walk away. The vast majority of things I needed to adjust were listed in the manual, and could be changed with button presses on the mouse itself.
And of course the Naga V2 comes with RGB capabilities. The mouse itself has Chroma lighting, which means you can customise the colour and lighting effects of the mouse to match your gaming setup. This not only looks great, but it can also help you identify the mouse more easily if you perhaps threw it across the room in a fit of rage and it landed under a dresser. I jest – it’s a staple of modern peripherals, and for the short period that I played with the light settings I found nothing to fault.
The Razer Synapse software covers every facet of configuration
Final Thoughts
The Naga V2 is a device that was built from the ground up to try and tick a stunning array of boxes – and the shocking truth is that it has nailed most, if not all of them. While it may advertise itself as the ultimate gaming tool, in reality it actually pushes past those boundaries and offers a comfortable, modular solution to many work-related options as well. Its greatest hook, the swappable button plates, lands with a flourish and offers everyone the chance to find their perfect layout of buttons to maximize performance and dominate whatever environment they are navigating. A solid recommend for anyone willing to part with the bones to own one.
Review unit supplied by the manufacturer
Click here for information on WellPlayed’s review policy and ethics
