The Razer Viper Ultimate is ideal for first-person shooter games. The click latency is extremely low, whether wired or wireless, and even competitive gamers will not notice any delays in-game. It’s also relatively light, with excellent sensor performance. Its shape lends itself well to a fingertip grip for nearly all hand sizes, but larger hands may struggle with a palm or claw grip.
The Viper Ultimate, like the original Viper, is a high-end take on the seemingly standardized esports mouse. It technically has eight buttons: two main left/right clickers, a scroll wheel, two macro buttons on each side, and a resolution-switching button on the underside of the mouse; however, the placement results in a simple five-button mouse scheme. That’s because you only use the macro buttons on your mouse’s appropriate thumb side.
The additional radio-frequency (RF) components and battery hardware would seem to imply that a wireless mouse would be heavier. It’s only five grams heavier than the original wired Viper: 74 grams (that’s 2.61 ounces) vs. 69 grams (2.43 ounces). When it comes to competitive mice, many argue that weight is everything. The Viper Ultimate isn’t the lightest mouse on the market, but it’s exceptionally well-balanced and light enough that you barely notice when you move your cursor.
The Viper Ultimate also has the signature mechanical component of the Viper: optical switches under the click panels. The optical mouse switch, according to Razer, eliminates some of the mechanical parts that wear out over time, making it more durable. It also theoretically improves performance by eliminating “debounce delay,” a mechanical contact feature that allows the circuit to record when physical contact within a switch is made and ensures your mouse doesn’t misclick. If there is a performance difference, it is negligible, so take that claim with a grain of salt. However, the switches on the Viper Ultimate are as comfortable to click as any high-end mechanical switch I’ve tried, so it’s not a total loss.