Mad Catz R.A.T.1 – Hardware Review
Over the years many gaming peripherals have been featured on the site, the one sturdier than the other, while some excelled in design, others were more comfortable or practical. Nonetheless, it has been quite a while since we last reviews a gaming mouse, thus we felt it was time to try out some new goodies. Today we are able to present you with our findings of Mad Catz’ R.A.T.1 gaming mouse, which has a whole lot of quirky design and practical features. We pretty much went ‘mad’ after seeing how such original design features could be combined with a proper gaming mouse.
Design
Mad Catz opted for a barebones design for the R.A.T.1, which simply looks very modern and quite amazing. You’ll only get yourself the motor of the device, which is linked to the two mouse buttons (and wheel), while the rest of the device is a small but well finished palm rest and the ‘skeleton’ that puts all pieces together. This means that you’ll actually have a mouse with a slim base and gaps and holes in it, making it look like a piece of art, rather than a gaming peripheral. (In a way the base resembles a snowmobile.)
The R.A.T.1 looks a bit like a trimmed down version of GAMDIAS’ APOLLO, when it comes to the open space and the adjustable palm rest. The flashy colored exoskeleton does make it rather unique, as the color is extended to the mouse cord, the sides of the mouse wheel and the print(s) on both mouse buttons. Both buttons also have small ‘wings’ going through their sides, slightly in an upwards curve, which gives the device another small unique touch.
Comfort
Even though there’s not that much ‘mouse to go around’, the R.A.T.1 does not lack the basic comfort many other gaming mice tend to have. The palm rest provides enough support for your palm, making the lack of other substance to hold rather negligible. Those with bigger hands will find some comfort in the fact that the palm rest can actually be moved back a little, in order to create some extra space between the buttons and the palm rest.
Those who usually control the right mouse button with their middle finger (or the left one for the lefties) will find some small discomfort in the fact that their ring finger can’t relax properly next to the base of the mouse, due to the small wings on the mouse buttons, which is especially so for those with smaller hands. Nonetheless, in the end this is pretty much all up to personal preference and your ability to adapt.
Overexcited gamers might want to tone down their enjoyment from time to time, because the small backside of the base is rather slim, making it possible that the mouse might tilt a bit. While this hardly ever happens, it’s something to keep in mind.
With a weight of only (approx) 50 grams, you’ll never experience a strain from using the device for longer periods of time. The light weight also makes sure that navigating with the mouse feels rather smooth.
Specs
- Tripod chassis
- Detachable sensor module
- Adjustable palm rest
- Dpi sensitivity up to 3500 dpi
- Lightweight device
Overview
Connecting the R.A.T.1 for the first time proves to be very straightforward, as the device is pretty much plug and play, that is if you don’t want to customize your device. If you want to work with different settings you’ll have to go and download the drivers and the specific software for the R.A.T.1. A small remark might be that one program would have been a lot easier, if you have several of Mad Catz’ products in your gaming setup.
As the mouse only has one extra button outside of the two normal buttons and the mouse wheel, there isn’t that much customizing to do. Nonetheless, you can still program different settings like the dpi, making this a rather versatile, entry level piece of hardware. Your dpi can be adjusted from 250 to 3500, making sure that you have a proper mouse for most genres. The software to adjust these settings is rather easy to use, and you can pretty much change everything you want with the press of a button.
While this is often reserved for higher priced devices, it would have been nice if the cable was braided, as the current one feels a bit on the light and thin side. Nonetheless, the length of the cable proves to be sufficient and thus this is probably only a matter of personal taste.
Conclusion
Mad Catz does a great job in providing a proper gaming mouse for those who have a smaller budget to work with. The R.A.T.1 holds itself well against more expensive models on the market and above all, it looks a lot better than many standardized designs that are flooding the stores. While the mouse might not have loads of special features, it does offer a lot of value for its price.
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