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jdbnsn
10-31-2007, 10:41 PM
Hi Modders,

I have ben very impressed and pleased to see each of you willing to write up your impresions of hardware for you fellows to becoome more informed. Great involvement! I intend to bring the member reviews into a larger role here with a bit more attention cast for your courtesy and hard work. If you intend to submit your own review, here is a template written by Cymae which fits the ideal abbreviated review, don't forgetto add a picture! Thanks everyone.


Review: OCZ Equalizer Laser Gaming Mouse (http://www.ocztechnology.com/products/ocz_peripherals/ocz_equalizer_laser_gaming_mouse)

http://www.thebestcasescenario.com/jdbnsn/7-6-07/Equalizer_D.jpg

This mouse is perfect for what I want, though I can see why it gets mixed reviews in the desktop version.

General:
I'm playing at a pretty low DPI setting at the moment, but I’m LOVING it. I've never had a laser mouse before, and it handles beautifully. I didn't actually know laser mice didn't shine any colour but now I do!

Key Features:
This little baby has something called on-the-fly DPI modification, which means there's a handy little button underneath the scroll wheel, indented and neatly outside of all accidental reach, which changes the DPI setting a step when you push it (to more sensitive, or at most sensitive, back to the lowest). BUT, one thing that really got me when I used it, is that the scroll wheel changes colour according to the current DPI setting! with 6 DPI settings that's a lot of colours to remember, so the kind people at OCZ put a colour key on the underside of the mouse for you!
In brief:
Light off = 600dpi, green = 800dpi, yellow = 1200 dpi, red = 1600dpi, then it gets really cool. At 2000dpi, it flashes between red and yellow, and at 2500dpi, it flashes between green and orange, which looks insanely awesome.

Another neat little feature is a button in between your left click button and the scroll wheel called the triple shoot button. I tried the machine gun in COD2 and WOW, did I LOVE this. Instead of shooting once, it shoots 3 times, giving you more time to pick your targets. This little button also doubles as double click in windows, so you can have the convenience of single click browsing without the annoyance of it constantly being active! It's slightly more pressure sensitive than the left and right click buttons too so you can be sure your finger won't slip and do something you'll regret.

Other Features:
The non-slip grip is really comfortable, and is just in the right spot where you should have your thumb. It nicely guides your thumb back to the correct position so you can access the buttons on the left side of the mouse.

The two small thumb-access buttons are nothing particularly fancy. They just perform a basic back and forward function, as quite a few precision mice do these days. BUT, they're never the less pretty handy, and I don't discount them as a standard feature for all mice, so I can appreciate their existence.

I was a little worried that it would be too light, and I'd have to invent some sort of weighting mechanism that would void my warranty, but the worry was in vein! it's a lot heavier than any mobile mouse I've ever used, and the weight is excellently balanced between the size and effort to push it.

Price:
This baby has a recommended retail price of roughly $40USD on the internet. Of course that doesn't include postage, but some places will ship for free or next to nothing (remembering it's a very small package). At about 2/3 of the price of your Logitech G5, It's a fair price considering what it can do. When you pack that into a tinier package than your normal mouse, and take into account that a mobile gaming mouse is pretty rare and there isn't much choice, I’d say it's a pretty good deal.

Cons:
As vain as it may sound, one thing I did dislike about this mouse is the colour. The black with the blue, the silver and the orange make it look slightly tackier than if it was just two colours, especially when your mouse wheel turns any colour on the rainbow. I can see why the tripple shoot button is bright orange and matches with nothing else on the mouse, it does after all make it easier to see, but who's looking at their MOUSE in the middle of a frag-fest? All in all, silver would have looked MUCH nicer and stood out just as well.

Weight is pretty important in a gaming mouse. I've gamed with pathetically light laptop mice which nearly made me cry as they'd fly across the desk and get me killed for the 15th time. Considering the size of the mouse, I thin this weight is perfect for me, and it IS pretty heavy for a laptop mouse, but if the weight of the mobile version is identical in the desktop version, i can see why some people might get irritated. This would seem far too light in a desktop mouse.

As Awesome as the idea of the changing colour scroll wheel for the DPI settings is, and despite the fact that I love it, the flashing lights on the 2000 and 2500dpi setting can be annoying. They don't stop flashing and red orange yellow and green are very bright colours. If you're using a high DPI for an FPS, it can probably get really irritating really fast.

Overall rating: 9.5/10
This rating is for the MOBILE VERSION of the OCZ Equaliser Precision Gaming mouse. The DESKTOP version probably handles and feels quite a bit different. Precision gaming mice in mobile version are very difficult to find, and compared to all other mini mice I’ve tried, this one's by far the leader. Those flashing lights on the higher DPI would have to be what lose this mouse a 10/10 rating, simply because I can see how it would be a problem for gamers.

Other notes:
If I was looking for a desktop mouse, I can see why this model wouldn't appeal. There are other, better brands of Precision desktop gaming mice, which have pretty much the same features (though the glowing scroll wheel is pretty awesome), and on top of it go to a higher DPI, have tilt sensors and custom weighting. So although this mouse is AWESOME for someone with little hands, or gaming goodness on your laptop, I wouldn't throw out the old G5 just yet.

D1337
10-31-2007, 11:42 PM
I intend to bring the member reviews into a larger role here with a bit more attention cast for your courtesy and hard work

Everyones question is:
when and what?
:D

Spawn-Inc
11-01-2007, 12:40 AM
Everyones question is:
when and what?
:D

do people who "inspire" others to get products get anything? i recommended Cymae to get that mouse hehe :D

jdbnsn
11-01-2007, 07:25 AM
Don't get carried away, I'd love to say yeah you'll get free stuff for doing them but it's not that easy. I had more of a spotlight/front page style thing in mind, not hardware payoffs, sorry. But hey, if you can convince a company to send you hardware to review then go for it.

xRyokenx
11-01-2007, 02:57 PM
I should try it with a couple things I have in mind, maybe after I improve my writing skills. This class is tough, it takes some work to learn how to write properly after having been taught insufficiently all your life. Now to stop slacking and get to this draft I've been putting off.

I'll write a review on some stuff I have after I get some new parts that'll make it run to its max, my vid card and all is being bottlenecked by that stupid Pentium D that I have, lol. /procrastinating on homework

jdbnsn
11-01-2007, 06:08 PM
One of the most important elements in the review process is editing. Once you've written one, you should always have someone else who's knowledgable take a look at it because to views is better than one. If you'd like, you can submit the reviews to us and we'll do what we can to look them over, no promises but we'll try.

D1337
11-01-2007, 06:17 PM
Idea: people submit reviews then after we get a LARGE amount of reviews we ask a company to send us a product to review. Then we take the number of reviewers and find the average of how many reviews they submit. If you submit more reviews then the average, then your entered into a drawing to see who gets the product to review.

This promotes people submitting reviews. The more you submit the more your going to raise the "bar" and force the people with low amounts of reviews out, giving you a better chance.

You cannot reject my idea >O

jdbnsn
11-01-2007, 06:36 PM
well, your heart is in the right place but your stragety is a bit off. Why would they send hardware out to someone who has already written the reviews for it? They give the hardware to media that have strong reputations for fair and thorough reviews and the key is a large viewing audience like popular magazines and websites with professional and dedicated reviewers. Maybe if we keep reviewing and keep raising the bar, someon will stand out as someone we want as an official TBCS hardware reviewer and then maybe we could get some goodies.

Jon

D1337
11-01-2007, 06:53 PM
you misunderstood it, we dont ask for stuff we've already reviewed... that would be kinda stupid. Im pretty sure we both know 20 reviews wont really get us far, but if we can get like half our active members to contribute 1 full review (page long) then we'll be starting to get into a good position.

TBCS may not boast large amounts of members or active members, but the fact that we get >500 guests on a day still amazes me. plus some of us are super geniuses.

jdbnsn
11-01-2007, 07:51 PM
Ah, gotcha. I did misunderstand you, good plan too.

NightrainSrt4
11-01-2007, 07:54 PM
Man, you didn't have to compliment me that much D1337.


It would be nice to have some more reviews going. Perhaps I will try my hand at it. I can write pretty well when I try. My issue is condensing my thoughts into a smaller package and not carry on.

.Maleficus.
11-02-2007, 07:08 AM
After seeing this post, it reminded me I was going to write a review. I'm all done with it now, so I'll have it proof read and posted later today ;).


Edit: All posted.

Omega
11-05-2007, 11:53 PM
So what if we say we're a hardware reviewer for TheBestCaseScenario.com? Technically, that COULD be correct... /me fires up GMail

Indybird
11-06-2007, 12:24 AM
How has the layout been on my reviews jdbnsn?

Neeways, I'm going to be submitting another review or two sometime soon. I'm planning on buying a Logitech G9 Mouse and a Razer Barracuda AC-1 Sound Card.

I've been asking around in terms of companies giving me stuff to review. Usually they sound interested, but then I don't ever hear from them again. :(
Well thats their loss, I guess I'll just have to keep making TBCS exclusive reviews...

-Indybird

jdbnsn
11-14-2007, 03:10 PM
So what if we say we're a hardware reviewer for TheBestCaseScenario.com? Technically, that COULD be correct... /me fires up GMail

NO! You cannot claim to be hardware reviewers FOR TBCS, you can however state that your review will be posted on TBCS.

BTW- Xoxide.com offers a $100 rebate on any purchase with a well written review provided you can display it on a website meeting a certain traffic criteria which we do by a long shot. So if you buy from them, write a review according to their criteria (check their site for specifics) and post it here you can get some nice discounts. I am trying to negotiate an even better deal for you soon.

Jon

.Maleficus.
11-14-2007, 07:12 PM
NO! You cannot claim to be hardware reviewers FOR TBCS, you can however state that your review will be posted on TBCS.

BTW- Xoxide.com offers a $100 rebate on any purchase with a well written review provided you can display it on a website meeting a certain traffic criteria which we do by a long shot. So if you buy from them, write a review according to their criteria (check their site for specifics) and post it here you can get some nice discounts. I am trying to negotiate an even better deal for you soon.

Jon
Oh wow, thanks for the tip man! I'm going to check out what I need, and get scheming... :D

jdbnsn
11-14-2007, 10:38 PM
Yeah Mal, I checked yours and it isn't that far off of meeting their criteria.

jdbnsn
11-15-2007, 09:24 PM
I've started to move some of the reviews you guys and gals have written to the front page under the member reviews tab on the right side bar. If you submit a new review be sure to let me know so I can move it over.