Performance in gaming is increasingly important, whether in software with graphics cards, processors, RAM; the hardware also has the right to its share of improvements (DPI, weight, buttons, etc. materials).
Roccat presented its new mice, the Kone Pro and the Kone Pro Air. The first is wired, the second is wireless. Let’s see what the famous brand’s new mouse is worth.
Razer Viper 8KHz, the manufacturer, has chosen a high-performance optical sensor offering a polling rate of 8000 Hz! The whole thing is accompanied by a light and pleasant mouse in the hands.
Let’s check out what the mouse offers us in this Roccat Kone Pro vs. SteelSeries Rival 5 comparison.
Pros and Cons
| Roccat Kone Pro | Razer Viper 8KHz |
| Low click latency | 8000 Hz polling rate |
| Absence of holes | A strong, ambidextrous design |
| Unique scroll wheel, RGB look | Low click latency |
| No dedicated DPI button | Only one lighting zone |
Specification
| Roccat Kone Pro | Razer Viper 8KHz | |
| $ | CHECK PRICE | CHECK PRICE |
| Sensitivity | 19,000 DPI | 20,000 DPI |
| Number of buttons | 6 | 8 |
| Sensor | Optical (LED) | Optical (LED) |
| Acceleration | 50 G | 50 G |
| Sensor Model | Owl-Eye | Focus+ |
| Lighting | RGB | RGB |
| Colors | White, Black | Black |
| Weight | 66 grams | 71 grams |
| Supported OS | Windows, Mac | Windows 10 / 8.1 / 8 / 7 |
| Software Name | ROCCAT Swarm | Razer Synapse 3 |
Design
Roccat Kone Pro
Roccat has changed a lot of things! Goodbye, ubiquitous RGB, and hello to a mouse with the simplest design. Indeed, the Roccat Kone Pro is designed for aesthetics but does not offer RGB effects galore on all corners or unnecessary buttons. It only offers two clicks, a scroll wheel, and two configurable buttons on the left edge of the mouse.
The surface of the mouse is made of ABS, which, unlike a Razer Viper 8K made of PBT, really gives a nice impression of quality. The only problem is that ABS is a material more sensitive to any traces you can leave on it, unlike other materials. However, this concern remains fairly light and has no impact on the performance of the mouse.
The shape is simple but ergonomic. On the left, we can find a brushed plastic effect, with very discreet little lines. For once, they are so discreet that you cannot feel them on the finger; you have to tickle the area with a fingernail to really feel the relief effect, which you don’t do every day. We find the same thing on the right.
But Roccat has not succumbed here to the fashion of the mouse with holes, like the Xtrfy M42 or the SteelSeries Aerox 3. The Roccat Kone Pro remains a full mouse, without holes, apart from a few cells allowing the RGB light to pass through at the end of the clicks. The wheel is not backlit either, like the part where you put the palm of your hand. It’s a bit confusing to find yourself with such a sober mouse, but you get used to it very quickly, even when you are a big fan of RGB.
We also appreciate the small details that Roccat has placed everywhere, such as the almost empty dial, which has only the bare essentials to hold properly on itself; the weight is optimized everywhere.
Under the Roccat Kone Pro, there are two huge pads and a third that surrounds the sensor. These allow a good glide but are protected by a film so as not to scratch them during transport. The manufacturer provides a set of additional pads, should you wish to change them.
Razer Viper 8KHz
Razer is used to providing us with quality packaging, and the Razer Viper 8K Hz is no exception. A matte black face on which we find a visual of the mouse, in slight relief, and some information about the product. We also find some information such as their technology called “HYPERPOLLING,” which manages 8000 Hz, “FOCUS +,” which manages the 20,000 DPI of the mouse, as well as “Razer Chroma,” the functionality which allows the management of the backlighting via Synapse. On the right side, we have the inscription RAZER, and on the left side, we find some additional information on the onboard technologies, which can also find at the back of the box.
Let’s talk about the design, as Razer always does in aesthetic sobriety, that is to say, that the mouse is in black plastic and very light, but above all, the parts are well assembled and remove any cheap aspect that could show through. It almost looks like an aerodynamic assembly such as an automobile. The “Razer” RGB logo has good brightness and will blend perfectly with your gaming decor or not.
There are two buttons on the left side of the programmable mouse that you can use with the pressure of your thumb, but also two on the right side, just as programmable.
Performance
The Roccat Kone Pro has a Roccat Owl-Eye sensor amounting to 19,000 DPI. This is a sensor based on the PAW3370 from PixArt. The latter offers an acceleration amounting to 50G, which prevents the mouse from stalling at all costs during swift movements in large FPS-type games.
The sensing distance is adjustable, allowing you to configure your mouse really the way you want it.
As for clicks, these are Roccat Titan switches, allowing up to 100 million clicks, which will give you certain durability and longevity in the use of the mouse. We particularly appreciate the tactile and very discreet feeling, with a nice click sound.
It also has a built-in memory to save the mouse settings that you can choose through the software. However, the button allowing to adjust the sensitivity of the sensor is located under the mouse, which is not very practical certainly, but which makes it possible not to change the sensitivity of the sensor suddenly by a simple miss click.
The Roccat Kone Pro can go up to 1000 Hz in polling rate, in stages, namely:
- 125 Hz
- 250 Hz
- 500 Hz
- 1000 Hz
To benefit from better fluidity and reduced response time, we obviously recommend that you stay at 1000 Hz, which the mouse is configured on by default.
Razer promises us absolute control, which is true thanks to the combination of technologies. First of all, we find the 8000 Hz HyperPolling for unlimited reactivity. We know full well that to play the best you can, your equipment doesn’t have to be what sets your limits.
Associated with “ Focus +” technology, the 20,000 DPI optical sensor allows us to adjust the movements to the nearest pixel, even if playing at 20,000 DPI seems to me something infeasible. Indeed, this technology is there to say that it exists and allows it, but rare are the gamers who exploit it fully.
Its weight of 71 grams is therefore very light, which allows control without effort and resistance. It is helped by 100% white PTFE mousepads to be used regardless of the support (mouse pad, worktop, fabrics, metal, etc.).
The weight and ergonomics and the 8000Hz HyperPolling of the Viper 8K Hz fully correspond to my use. However, the only essential criterion is to have a minimum 144 Hz screen to perceive the change.
The use in 8000 Hz does not pose so many problems, but it is necessary to compose with a good adjustment of the sensor’s sensitivity. As the scrolling is smoother, you will need to be more precise about your DPI selection, which is configurable in Razer Synapse in any case.
Back lighting
The Roccat Kone Pro is backlit on only two areas, left-click and right-click. That’s all. Roccat does not offer another backlight zone. For RGB fans, it can be awkward; for others, it doesn’t matter. The mouse has backlit in RGB 16.8 million colors. However, we see a few cells on the clicks present, despite Roccat offering a full mouse. It is possible to activate the AIMO lighting, specific to Roccat, which offers pre-configured effects.
Backlight level, on this one, we only have the logo on the palm of the hands, which is lit, this does not pose much of a problem, and we prefer a fairly discreet mouse, but not without choice, so you will have more 16.6 million colors at your disposal.
Conclusion!
The Roccat Kone Pro is a great wired gaming mouse. It’s very lightweight as well as its perfect switches, give it optimal comfort of use. The braided cable and treatment to twist very easily are also very pleasant, and the only small negative point would be the software to update.
The Razer Viper 8K is a good gaming mouse with a response time that will offer exemplary responsiveness to all gamers. If on a 60 Hz screen, the difference is hardly noticeable, on a 144 Hz or more screen, it is obvious and significantly improves playing comfort!
