Steel Series - inside article on Ikari gaming mice

[Death-Speak]

“Another problem with today’s laser mice is that they function using image correlation. Meaning that the sensor snaps pictures of the surface, then compares these pictures to determine the movement of the mouse. If the user performs an “advanced movement”, which can include sudden deceleration, mouse movements at a certain angle or something else weird, that couldn’t be programmed into the robotic testing machines, the mouse will either stall or try to “guess” the intended movement. This is not what we consider “gaming grade”. A gamer requires precision and accuracy from his gaming gear – not software that tries to predict and emulate his intended movements. If these “gaming laser mice” had been tested by professional gamers before their release, the test results would have clearly indicated that they weren’t suitable for high level gaming….”

“When a company mentions DPI in the same sentence as precision, or anything else regarding better tracking, it is simply bulljacknutt. First of all the term DPI (Dots Per Inch) has nothing to do with mice. It’s an expression from the printing world and shouldn’t even be used to describe mouse movement. DPI is meant to describe the fact that for one inch of distance you move your mouse on any surface, the equivalent number of counts are sent to the PC - resulting in movement on your screen. The correct term for this is CPI (counts per inch). You can achieve higher CPI in many ways: By having a larger image, higher sampling rate, better light source quality, adding DSP (Digital Signal Processor) power and having the right algorithm (prediction)….”

The link to the article is: http://www.fragyou.net/?page_id=24

[GooneyBird]

Well in my search for mice I've used alot and not many have matched up for what I need... If anyone follows the forums you will notice the Gonzo's mouse of choice of the Inteli 3.0, its an optical laser and definitly an out of date mouse... BUT IT WORKS!!! For its age its still one of my favorite mice. I used it for a long time and still use one when a new mouse goes out. The Logitech G5 was one of the best for me. It does have problems with picking up the mouse (occasionally vers off slightly). I picked up one of the Steelseries Akari lasers and a glass mat at this years quakecon and I must say its amazing. The shape of the mouse fits the hand flawlessly. It provides a perfect form to help keep the mouse flat while moving it around. The Akari is one of those "High DPI" mice. I keep mine set at the default 800dpi. The research steelseries has put into its Akari line is amazing. They have put it down to the tests to make it the best they can and are improving all the time.

I read this post by DS awhile back but it really didnt mean so much to me. I was stuck on the whole G5 jacknutt awesomeness. My best advice is to really TRY OUT mice. Dont just go get one that someone else likes because it has good reviews. TRY the mouse! Everyone has a different hand and need a different form. I cant sit here and say the Akari is the best choice for everyone but the time they've put into their line sure makes this mouse a top leader on my board. The price is up there ($70.99). I really hate shelling out that kind of money however your getting what your paying for IMO

[haydog_08@yahoo.com]

Well i have been a pro gamer for quite some time now...lol no not really. I picked up the Ikari 12/30/08. In the past I have used the G5, G7, and G9,the cheap razor and the big brother the deathaddar. I completely agree most of these mice these days are all software driven and are not accurate. I am very very picky to what hardware i use. The Ikari is not so much software driven. Its PnP with all computes windows or mac. I also keep my dpi set at 800. With the ability to set my dpi through the built in LCD screen on the the mouse is awesome. Now if i was reading this article and was like what the heck an LCD on a mouse.....i would turn my head the other direction and look for something thats simple and amazing at games. After upon hours of research(and just getting my tax return check in) id thought id pitch in and get a new mouse and headset. I got the Ikari and i have been in heaven ever since. I remember telling gooney and a lot of my other gamer friends that this mouse is the one. Most of them never game it a chance. Like posted before you use to one mouse and u get so adapted to just the way it feels and way it acts, its hard to look at a different mouse. At first I remember gooney saying its just "to big and light weight". Of course we would argue back in fourth but thats how we are haha. We both attended Quakecon 2009 this year and it was a BLAST!! Gooney ended up getting the Ikari or should i say "ironlady" at the Steelseries booth. As you can tell from the last post, he has once again found that mouse we both love.

Well mostly everybody knows i recently made the switch to OS X(Mac) before everyone starts dissin on Mac you have to understand where im coming from. I have been a windows user since i was a a little kid. I have grown up on windows and LOVED the experience it has brought to me. Im current in college taking all computer class and I have my A+, and  working on my MCSE. Im not going to say windows vista made me switch or all the bugs it had. Every OS has bugs no matter what. OS X, Windows, Linux, etc.. Windows 7 was a HUGE hit Microsoft stepped it up and did an outstanding job! This does not mean I don't game any more. I still play games ALL the time on my windows 7 computer. I made the switch because i wanted a new experience and a new learning curve i will have to tackle. And so far my experience had been nothing but AWESOMENESS! What im trying to say is since i have made the switch iv tried to use apple hardware. Like keyboard, mouse etc...to take in the hole "mac experience"  The mighty mouse is awesome! I HATED it at first i mean HATED IT! I gave it a chance and it performed. Is it good for games? No maybe not for some. I don't game with it. Does it impress me for everyday use/comfort/ reliability. YES.

[Fel]

Most mice are a complete gimmick nowadays. All these weight addons, 20 different buttons, changing sensitivity on the fly, high dpi, all pretty much scams to get gamers to shell out more money. I would bet hard CASH that 95% of gamers would not bother with these technologies if they werent swayed into thinking they are necessary.

My biggest problem with the above is that even though these are "top-of-the-line" products, they dont work like one. Tracking issues, uncomfortable designs, and screwed up drivers plague mice nowadays.

even the ime 3.0 which i like is a pos, it has cheap flimsy buttons and the finish is rubbing off after a year of use. I use it because it is cheap(ish), comfortable, tracks well, and doesnt have useless drivers clogging up my system.

Mice making companies know very well what they are doing, tricking the consumer into buying a flashy but inferior product.