Razer seems to be on a mission lately to upgrade and improve its most popular mice by reducing the weight and enhancing the specs in a number of ways.
We've seen this with the Razer Viper V2 Pro and now it's the turn of the DeathAdder. For this update, in the form of the aptly named V3 Pro, Razer has smoothed some angles, enhanced the specs and made some other tweaks to the mouse.
Is all this enough to make it worth buying? We've been gaming and grinding to find out.
The first thing that struck us about the Razer DeathAdder V3 Pro was the change in shape. The previous DeathAdder V2 Pro had classic flared angry angles that have now been tamed slightly.
The frame of this mouse has been tweaked in subtle but pleasing ways. It's larger and pushes up into the palm in a satisfying way. The main left and right buttons are less flared at the edges, making it easier to grip and the side buttons have been rethought and re-positioned too.
Razer DeathAdder V3 Pro
The DeathAdder V3 Pro is lightweight and sports great ergonomics to match its serious gaming specs.
- Comfortable grip design
- Durable optical switches
- Serious gamer specs
- Fewer features than the previous model
Enhanced ergonomic shape
- Ultra-lightweight design (25 grams less than the V2 Pro)
- Mid-large form factor
- Grip tape included as an option
- 63g design (black) or 64g (white)
The Razer DeathAdder V3 Pro has lost weight, with the white model weighing 64 grams and the black coming in at 63g. That makes it comparable with the Logitech G Pro X Superlight, which is a solid favourite among gamers and pro players. That's also 25 grams less than the previous model, yet this version doesn't feel cheap or flimsy.
It boasts a comfortable shell with a slight matt finish to it which makes it easy to hold onto. If you're hot-handed though, you'll be pleased to read that there's also grip tape included in the box that you can apply. That tape barely adds extra weight but makes the mouse even grippier.
The large side buttons are also pleasingly easy to access and it's comfortable in various ways because of it. The less flared edges make it a much nicer fit in the hand and brilliant for gaming sessions.
Obviously, the DeathAdder V3 Pro is lighter and that makes it easy to flick about on the desk, making it perfect for fast-paced shooters and easing stress on your wrists.
To shed this weight though Razer has had to remove some of the functionality. The DeathAdder V3 Pro only works with 2.4GHz Hyperspeed wireless and doesn't offer the option of Bluetooth.
Also gone are the charging pins on the underside that would let you pair it up with a charging dock for that convenience. However, it does have some upgrades as well.
Upgraded internals
- Focus Pro 30K Optical sensor
- 100-30,000 DPI
- 70G max acceleration, 750 IPS max speed
- Optical Gen-3 switches
- 90 hours battery life
Despite losing some functionality, the DeathAdder has been upgraded in various ways. It now has a higher max DPI with Razer's Focus Pro 30K Optical sensor. It has higher max speed and max acceleration too, making it nippier and more responsive than the previous mouse and many other gaming mice on the market.
It also uses Razer's gen 3 optical mouse switches which means 0.2ms response time and zero double-clicking issues. In other words more reliable and responsive clicks.
The DeathAdder V3 Pro has around 90 hours of battery life, which we certainly found to be the case. It lasts for a fair amount of time and when you do need to plug in it has a USB-C connection, which is a welcome upgrade from the previous micro-USB cables. The USB-C cable is nice and floppy too, so even when you need to plug in it's not frustratingly restrictive.
There's a small indicator at the front of the mouse that changes colour to let you know when the mouse has run low on power, so you can see at a glance when it needs charging. This means you don't need to worry about running out while you're in the middle of a game.
Upgrade potential
The Razer DeathAdder V3 Pro already has some great specs, but you also have the option to purchase the Hyperpolling Dongle and upgrade it some more. With that, you can push the mouse to a 4,000 Hz polling rate, which is insane for a gaming mouse.
This is only really worth it if you're playing fast FPS games and have a fast refresh-rate monitor to make the most of the boosted specs as well.
Verdict
The Razer DeathAdder V3 Pro is another interesting effort from Razer that follows on from the logic of the Razer Viper V2 Pro by shedding weight but improving the specs and design in a number of ways.
We really like what Razer has done with this version of the DeathAdder. It's comfortable, capable and packs some decent specs too. Fans of the DeathAdder V2 Pro might be disappointed by the loss of charging dock capabilities and Bluetooth, but in our mind, it's still a great mouse. However, it's not cheap as it retails for around £149.99 or $149.99.