TLDR: The best mouse for mobile productivity and gaming.
Bluetooth-capable gaming mice… that’s usually NOT one of the first things any gamer looks for in a high performance mouse. Features such as an optical sensor, 1000Hz polling rate, and over 9000 DPI (lol) are some of the things that many gamers look for when on the hunt for a new mouse.
The minority of gamers, like me, are in the niche group that looks for mice like these. We own high performance laptops that we take with us to a friend’s house, an internet café, and the local library.
The issue with a Bluetooth mouse is the lag associated with the protocol. An ideal gaming mouse would have a 1ms response time at a 1000Hz polling rate. Most Bluetooth mice have a 8ms response time and 125Hz polling rate. While the slower response time polling rate are ok for some games, it’s not fast enough for competitive play in first person and third person shooter games.
Enter the Razer Atheris.
Specs
7200 DPI Optical Sensor
Bluetooth 4.0 and 2.4GHz Wireless
Battery Life - Up to 350 hours
6 buttons and a 3-position switch
Built-in Onboard Memory
Single LED for battery and connection type
Weight - 113g (with 2x AA Alkaline batteries)
The Atheris is a spiritual successor to Razers Orochi line which was their first dual-use mobile gaming mouse. Unlike the Orochi which had Bluetooth 3.0 and could be connected to a computer via a USB cable, the Atheris utilizes Bluetooth 4.0 and a blazing fast 2.4 GHz wireless connection.
Build
The build of the Atheris is excellent. It is an ambidextrous design made entirely of plastic and textured rubber on the sides for improved grip. Buttons include 4 at the top for left, right clicks, middle scroll wheel with center click only and a DPI button to adjust sensitivity. The DPI button also has an LED to indicate the mode being used and battery life. On the left side are 2 buttons for forward and back. The bottom has a single 3-position switch for Bluetooth, 2.4GHz, and off. The feet are large and rounded off to provide smooth glide across any surface.
The top shell is secured to the body with 2 magnets and is easily removable. Underneath the shell is the USB dongle as well as 2 AA sized batteries. The mouse feels like a premium mouse without the premium price of a traditional wired gaming mouse.
Software
Razer has its own software called Synapse. It’s a cloud based software that stores your mouse’s settings so they can be synchronized across all of your devices. Within the software, you can customize sensitivity, the different DPI levels, liftoff distances, and polling rates.
In the past, it was required to have synapse installed and ran once the computer booted up in order for you to use your settings. With the Atheris, you can uninstall Synapse once you’ve configured your mouse since the Atheris has built-in memory.
Performance
This mouse is amazing in normal use. I can take it out of my bag and started using it within 3 seconds of flipping on the Bluetooth switch. It glides effortlessly on all surfaces I’ve tried and is small enough to not require a lot of space to use. I also use Bluetooth mode when playing casual games that don’t require split-decision making to save on battery life.
When playing faster-paced games such as First-Person-Shooters, I switch to 2.4GHz mode. The mouse performed just as well as my previous mouse, the SteelSeries Rival 310. In fact, I noticed I did better in the games I played, probably because the mouse is much easier to move around due to its weight and size. Also, because the mouse is so small, I have a little more room to maneuver the mouse to line up those headshots. I didn’t notice any input lag when in 2.4GHz mode and the sensor didn’t show any weird traits such as angle snapping and acceleration. This mouse has been my daily driver for the past year and I haven’t looked back.
When it comes to battery life, I think it’s exceptional. I change the batteries every 2 months after mixed use in both modes. I use the mouse about 3 hours per day in both 2.4GHz and Bluetooth modes.
My Improvements
The weight of the mouse is fairly light but I wanted to reduce it further. I bought AAA to AA battery adapters and Energizer Lithium batteries. I was able to reduce weight a full 24.7 grams, dropping the total weight to 88.7g with dongle and 87.2 without dongle in the housing.
I also replaced the mouse feet with Corepad Skatez (Link) and it made the mouse feel even smoother than stock. I highly recommend these mods!
Who should buy this mouse?
This mouse is for both the mobile gamer and any general laptop user. It’s very light, especially with the AAA battery mod. The battery also lasts UP TO 350 HOURS when using it in Bluetooth mode. For gaming, the optical sensor and 2.4GHz wireless performance is FLAWLESS. I feel absolutely NO LAG and I’ve never gotten disconnected while gaming. It’s also VERY AFFORDABLE, coming in at $50 in many retail stores.
Conclusion
I believe that the Razer Atheris is the best mouse for the mobile enthusiast. It’s compact, light, and has long battery life. Bluetooth connects quickly, easily, and reliably while the wireless 2.4GHz mode performs on-par with wired gaming mice. I recommend this mouse to any mobile user, especially the on-the-go gamer.
Have Fun!
-The Everyday Enthusiast
Disclaimer - I purchased this mouse with my own money
@Justin
Great. I just received the mouse. I love it already! Didn't expect the bluetooth performance to be this good- I previously had a Logitech M590 for a little while and that had terrible lag.
Thanks again!
@Milad Battery life is about as Razer specified. I use AAA lithium batteries with a AA adapter and I swap batteries every 2-3 months or so, depending on usage and if it’s in Bluetooth or 2.4GHz mode.
@Justin
Thank you for the reply. I don't intend to use this for gaming, its mostly a productivity oriented portable mouse.
Can you comment on the battery life?
@Milad My hands fit perfectly on Deathadder/G703/Rival style nice. That said, the Atheris is pretty comfortable for my hands and I actually prefer it over the other mice because it’s lighter (after AAA battery mod) and easier to grip/throw around when gaming. Since you say your hands are a bit small for the G305, you may feel better using the Atheris. I hope this helps!
Hey Justin,
I had been contemplating between getting the G305 and the Atheris. Decided to go for the G305 and now have been using it for a day. Been using a G402 for 5 years or so before it started to give up.
Now that I got the G305, I realized that it's not the most comfortable mouse for me- I just realized I have ever smaller hands than I realized. I'm constantly shifting my grip around this thing and I'm not too happy about that. My middle finger is on the right button and I'm supporting the weight using my ring and pinky finger.
The forward and back buttons are not ideal as well, its set a little too…