There comes a time in every man's life when he has to upgrade to a quality mouse. Thankfully, there are no shortage of killer products on the market from the likes of Steelseries, Razer, Roccat and even Microsoft. You would not immediately assume that mass market purveyor of distinctly forgettable peripherals ‘Mad Catz' would be on this shortlist, but if the Cyborg R.A.T. range are to be considered even on appearance, then they are worthy of some KitGuru time.
The R.A.T. range are the successor to the ‘V.X' products of yesteryear and today we are looking at two products in their range. The entry level R.A.T. 3 and the distinctly more expensive R.A.T. 7. They also sell a midrange R.A.T. 5 and a wireless version of the R.A.T. 7, dubbed the R.A.T. 9.
Visually, we have to give Mad Catz an immediate pat on the back, because they are so incredibly different to anything else on the market right now, that it is hard to stop gawping, especially if you see them in a store. The R.A.T. 7 is also physically adjustable in size and weight, with a removable and adjustable thumb panel and an interchangeable pinky rest.
The R.A.T.3 boasts a 3200 dpi sensor with 20G acceleration while the R.A.T. 7 offers an even higher 5600 dpi sensor with 50G acceleration. The big question however that we will answer today “Are they actually any good?”
Never heard of them, but I read some issues as you said on the earlier versions. I just ordered the Rat 5, Rat 7 costs too much.
I gotta say, these really do look friggin good. I need an upgrade, but id like to try them myself.
Brilliant review KG, i was looking at the RAT3 in pcworld last week and almost bought it, but I saw the madcatz name and didnt bother. shall pick it up at the weekend. news years treat !
They certainly put a lot of effort into the design of the Rat 7. thats phenomenal work. but I still dont trust the name ! I see so much crap by this company that I immediately assume the worse.
Still, good review, and it got me thinking.
I have the RAt 9 and its easily the best mouse on the market. costs a small fortune, but worth every penny. I game in a clan and I wouldnt be without My Rat 7 (which I use for the clan as cabled is better).
I have the RAt 9 and its easily the best mouse on the market. costs a small fortune, but worth every penny. I game in a clan and I wouldnt be without My Rat 7 (which I use for the clan as cabled is better).
Well at least its different. every time I see a new mouse from razer for example it looks like a rebadged older model with a different colour or something.
Well this has certainly perked my attention. I didnt like the XAI and like the author im still using my Ikari as I can find nothing else to beat it. I would like a hands on with the RAT 7. any chance ? 🙂
Hi guys enjoyed your review, the RAT 3 is not entorely devoid of physical adjustment, if you remove the small finger rest by removing the allen key, u will see a small screw which is on the underside of the palm rest, if you remove this screw the palm rest slides back and forth the same as the RAT7 and has numerous holes for the screw to anchor the palm rest at the desired position.
I bought the RAT3 from PCWorld in the UK, and 2 months later it failed.
Technical support told me to return it to the point of purchase, but PCWorld told me it wasn’t classed as “electrical goods”, and therefore only had a 28 day warranty. Just so others understand, “electrical goods” in the UK have a minimum of 1 year warranty, mandated by law.
PCWorld refused to budge, and I didn’t feel like paying for a lawyer, so I opened it up myself (about a bazillion minature screws), and the fault was sooo laughingly simple… The USB lead inside had worked loose from the 01inch headers on the PCB. Just pressed it home again, and the mouse was fully functional again.
HI Allan, I wish I could say i was surprised, but a few people I know have had similar experiences with PCWORLD. Their customer service is shockingly bad. I think this is why Amazon get such a good reputation as they will often accept returned goods and send out a replacement even before the faulty unit is received.