You can't talk about gaming mice without talking about Razer. In 2019, we raved about the wireless Razer Viper Ultimate, a high-end spinoff of the light, fast, and ambidextrous Razer Viper. Complete with all the esports fixings you could ask for in a wireless gaming mouse, the Ultimate impressed us with its fabulous feature set despite its high price. Three years later, the company has taken another step toward wireless gaming domination with the Viper V2 Pro ($149.99), which upgrades the Viper Ultimate in almost every way. The new mouse is no cheaper than its predecessor despite replacing the latter's charging dock with a simple USB-C cable, but easily earns Editors' Choice honors in its category.
The Viper's Bite Gets More Powerful
The Razer Viper V2 Pro is mostly identical to the older Viper mouse, but the devil is in the details. First, the V2 ditches the ambidextrous layout and removes the two right-side buttons, bringing the total number of buttons down to six.
This helps reduce the V2's weight to 2.08 ounces (for our white test unit; the black version is an infinitesimally lighter 2.05 ounces) while giving it a cleaner, minimalist design. The remaining two left-side buttons have gotten a bit of a facelift, too, tweaked to be less flush against the mouse compared to those of the Viper Ultimate. Razer also upgraded the mouse's switches, which now promise to last for up to 90 million clicks versus 70 million for the Ultimate's.
At 1.49 by 2.27 by 4.99 inches (HWD), the Viper V2 Pro is almost identical in shape to the older model, as well as other wireless gaming mice that favor palm grips such as the HyperX Pulsefire Haste. It feels incredibly light, even lighter than the Logitech G Pro X Superlight Wireless Gaming Mouse, but its chassis never feels as if it'll break into pieces if dropped.
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The included USB wireless dongle delivers an incredibly stable experience over a 2.4GHz connection, the standard for any wireless gaming mouse, though users who prefer a wired connection need only to plug in the included SpeedFlex cable. The latter utilizes a USB-C port instead of the micro USB port the Viper Ultimate had.
Flipping the mouse over, you'll find a mostly clean underside with three PTFE feet, a power/DPI button, and the new Focus Pro 30k optical sensor. This new design improves on the previous Focus Plus sensor in some interesting ways. It works on a variety of different surfaces, including glass up to 2mm thick, and promises improved power efficiency that helps give the V2 Pro a rated battery life of 80 hours, up 10 from the Viper Ultimate.
Like the Ultimate before it, the V2 Pro makes use of Razer's Smart Tracking, Motion Sync, and Asymmetric Cut-Off technologies. The first helps maintain a consistent lift-off distance no matter the surface, allowing for greater control. Motion Sync aligns with the exact intervals your PC extracts information from the mouse, ensuring it gets the most current updates on your mouse position. Finally, Asymmetric Cut-Off now features 26 granular levels of height adjustment—up from three in the previous version. With a 30,000dpi maximum resolution and a top speed of 750 inches per second, the new sensor does impress.
Replacing the wireless docking station of the previous Viper, the V2 Pro houses a USB-C port right between the main clickers. Using the 6-foot SpeedFlex cable is the best way to charge, as the soft, pliable cord is made to resist snags, but any USB Type-A to Type-C cable should do. In the box, you'll also find the wireless dongle and additional grip tape.
How to Stimulate the Viper's Synapses
For my money, Razer is the brand to beat when it comes to RGB lighting, so it was a bit of a shock to discover the V2 Pro has no RGB at all. Zip. Nada. Not even a small bit of color on the insignia or scroll wheel. Razer seems to be leaning into the minimalist approach with this model, and it mostly works, though I can't say I don't miss the bling. That said, I'd wager a guess that esports players, the Viper's main audience, would happily sacrifice the light show if it cut some weight from their mouse.
But losing RGB doesn't make Razer's customization software, Razer Synapse, any less robust. Sure, there are no lights to customize, but you're free to calibrate, tweak, and adjust sensitivities, power levels, and much more to your heart's content. The mouse offers five DPI settings, though you're limited to just one onboard profile. You can also make use of Razer Hypershift, which temporarily adds a secondary set of functions atop your existing button assignments, effectively adding an additional set of custom key bindings. This is ideal for strategy games and MMOs, where having multiple shortcuts on hand can improve control tenfold.
All this and more is found in the mostly simple-to-navigate software. If you've used a Razer product before, you'll see nothing new here, but newbies can be overwhelmed by just how much there is to tweak. The V2 Pro does feel designed for experts who aren't afraid to wade deep into settings menus, in all the best ways.
I'm no pro by any means, but after a few games of Overwatch, the mouse really started to settle in. Games that require quick swipes and mouse repositioning are the V2 Pro's bread and butter. First-person shooters such as Valorant or Apex Legends are great examples, as well as MOBAs like League of Legends, as they rely on fast-paced, high-DPI movements and a high click rate.
Viper V2: For the Pro in All of Us
The Razer Viper V2 Pro makes a lot of small changes to the 2019 design that all come together to feel like a real step up from the Viper Ultimate, even if it's not a revelation like that mouse was. If you take your gaming seriously, you won't want to skip the V2 Pro, a fantastic gaming mouse with a superb sensor, great customization options, and a clean design that's sure to look good on your desktop. Its feature set is exactly what we look for in a wireless esports mouse, which is why it's our newest Editors' Choice award winner.
Tons of small changes morph the Razer Viper V2 Pro gaming mouse into a perfect match for esports players looking for the lightest and fastest controller.
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