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Since Teb asked me to write a review of ten Razer Orbweaver, I thought I would start a thread.
I'll go first with my prelim thoughts on the Orbweaver.
Packaging
As usual, Razer packages their peripharals in windowed box so you can see what you are buying. It comes with a lot of paper but no driver disc and no real manual. I'll get to the drivers a little later.
Look and feel
The Orbweaver is a slick looking device, relatively angular, almost like a stealth fighter. It is matte black, so no fingerprints. unlike my BlaFwidow keyboard that is glossy on the frame, the thing shouldn't be a dust magnet either.
The feel despite the angular look Is very comfortable. Your hand sits pretty comfortably on the device. The major improvement here on the Nostromo is that the device is now adjustable along along two pieces, the palm rest and he heel of your hand rest. The first swivels forward and back and the other moves back and forth to adjust your reach to the keys. This is where the first problem arises, my hands are not large so like Nostromo i cannot get that sweet spot where I can reach the top row of keys and not have my thumb cramp up to use the side button and the 8 way thumb pad.
Synapse 2.0
Razer has decided to unify their device control software into themSynapse 2.0 system. At first glance it is a godsend, all your Razer devices and software controlled from one place and it syncs to the cloud so your settings follow you between systems. This was best part of setup, all my custom profiles were immediately assigned to Orbweaver through the import command. No need to reprogram all my profiles. Also you can assign a profile to an executable,so that it automatically launches and the shuts down between programs.
One word of caution various reviews have stated thatSynapse is prone to crashing and causing all peripharals to stop,working. That hasn't happened to me but you never know.
Performance
I have only played with it for an hour or so, but so far he backlighting is an improvement on the Nostromo as I feel as if I can readjust when I lose my place much quicker than on the non-backlit board.
The mechanical keys are also a plus to me. I love mechanical boards, and this is no exception. The satisfying click feels "right". It's not for everyone as it is noisy, but with headphones on, who'd notice
For those who don't like mechanical keys I see that Razer have just released the Tartarus, a membrane key version.
Value for Money?
Like all Razer products it isn't cheap, it cost me R1500, with the lowest I have seen being R1300 through online stores. At this price point I think that unless you really want the board and would use it with every game, then it isn't for you. There are other uses for it, I am using my Nostromo for a lot of my Excel work and have set it up to work with Chrome and iTunes, but it is mainly a gaming device.
Will it improve your gameplay? That's subjective, it makes it easier for me to not lose my place on the board in the heat of gameplay, but any improvement is probably in my head. I can see MMO players getting the most out of the boards especially with the macro recording function, as would RtS players. Be warned that any really complex macros will get you banned by Blizzard and other publishers as that would give you and unfair advantage in game play against other players. I didn't have issues with BLIZZARD in D3, but I didn't set up any complex Nostromo macros for that game just in case.
Prelim conclusion
For the serious gamer with cash this is a good investment. It is comfortable, responsive and useful if you put time into mapping keys and learning to use it. For not so serious gamer, it is too expensive, to get value for money you need to use it often.
Next up, I will review my new GFX card.
I'll go first with my prelim thoughts on the Orbweaver.
Packaging
As usual, Razer packages their peripharals in windowed box so you can see what you are buying. It comes with a lot of paper but no driver disc and no real manual. I'll get to the drivers a little later.
Look and feel
The Orbweaver is a slick looking device, relatively angular, almost like a stealth fighter. It is matte black, so no fingerprints. unlike my BlaFwidow keyboard that is glossy on the frame, the thing shouldn't be a dust magnet either.
The feel despite the angular look Is very comfortable. Your hand sits pretty comfortably on the device. The major improvement here on the Nostromo is that the device is now adjustable along along two pieces, the palm rest and he heel of your hand rest. The first swivels forward and back and the other moves back and forth to adjust your reach to the keys. This is where the first problem arises, my hands are not large so like Nostromo i cannot get that sweet spot where I can reach the top row of keys and not have my thumb cramp up to use the side button and the 8 way thumb pad.
Synapse 2.0
Razer has decided to unify their device control software into themSynapse 2.0 system. At first glance it is a godsend, all your Razer devices and software controlled from one place and it syncs to the cloud so your settings follow you between systems. This was best part of setup, all my custom profiles were immediately assigned to Orbweaver through the import command. No need to reprogram all my profiles. Also you can assign a profile to an executable,so that it automatically launches and the shuts down between programs.
One word of caution various reviews have stated thatSynapse is prone to crashing and causing all peripharals to stop,working. That hasn't happened to me but you never know.
Performance
I have only played with it for an hour or so, but so far he backlighting is an improvement on the Nostromo as I feel as if I can readjust when I lose my place much quicker than on the non-backlit board.
The mechanical keys are also a plus to me. I love mechanical boards, and this is no exception. The satisfying click feels "right". It's not for everyone as it is noisy, but with headphones on, who'd notice
For those who don't like mechanical keys I see that Razer have just released the Tartarus, a membrane key version.
Value for Money?
Like all Razer products it isn't cheap, it cost me R1500, with the lowest I have seen being R1300 through online stores. At this price point I think that unless you really want the board and would use it with every game, then it isn't for you. There are other uses for it, I am using my Nostromo for a lot of my Excel work and have set it up to work with Chrome and iTunes, but it is mainly a gaming device.
Will it improve your gameplay? That's subjective, it makes it easier for me to not lose my place on the board in the heat of gameplay, but any improvement is probably in my head. I can see MMO players getting the most out of the boards especially with the macro recording function, as would RtS players. Be warned that any really complex macros will get you banned by Blizzard and other publishers as that would give you and unfair advantage in game play against other players. I didn't have issues with BLIZZARD in D3, but I didn't set up any complex Nostromo macros for that game just in case.
Prelim conclusion
For the serious gamer with cash this is a good investment. It is comfortable, responsive and useful if you put time into mapping keys and learning to use it. For not so serious gamer, it is too expensive, to get value for money you need to use it often.
Next up, I will review my new GFX card.
Tebulot 
31 March 2007
6439
31 March 2007
6439
Tebulot said ...
On the crashing issue, I had the problem with the Nostromo. Drivers would interfere with mouse drivers and everything goes loopy. Strange they idn't fix it yet...
Razer's software support is definitely below par. I use one of their most popular mouses, the Imperator, and that still isn't linked to Synapse yet. I also had an issue where the Imperator software was not recognising my mouse so I couldn't access the profiles etc and all support said I should do is reinstall the software, change my language settings to match the software's and see if that works. If not then it is a faulty mouse. I figured out that if you run the software as an admin it works. Simple solution, but they didn't know that.
Tebulot 31 March 2007
6439
31 March 2007
6439
Tebulot said ...
Razer makes BEAUTIFUL hardware, but had some bad experiences... considering the price, these things should be perfect
I can't disagree with you completely, but that beauty makes up for a lot of software flaws
Also I find that their hardware is just better than their competitors. They are durable and take a fair amount of abuse and just tend to be more responsive than their competitors.
Tebulot 31 March 2007
6439
31 March 2007
6439
Ok, so I bought the Razer Sabertooth last week, and have been using it a few days.
Here are my first thoughts...
To give a bit of background, I got the Razer Onza a while back. That lasted 4 weeks. Sent it back, got a new one, that lasted 2 weeks. Got a Mad Catz Xbox 360 F.P.S. Pro GamePad. Lasted... maybe three months? Bought a new one, lasted a week, after much hassle, got a replacement, buttons where buggered right out of the box.
Every time I fell back on my wired Xbox controller
Last week, it sadly succumbed to old age and spilled coffee...
So as you can see, I have not had much luck with controllers. I don't mann-handle them, but it seems controllers are just not built to last (apart from the M$ one)
ANYWAY, I decided to give Razer one more chance, since I heard good things about the Sabertooth. Thanks to some Tea magic (Seriously, service was awesome
) O got it.
First Impression... GOOD LORD ITS BEAUTIFUL!
The packaging is just amazing. The controller comes in it's own carry case, with a screw in cable and rubber stick pads.
The thing is ridiculously comfortable to hold. You hands just automatically slide around the slick sides to the waiting folds and caress the slick...
Wait what? No seriously, this is the most comfortable controller I ever held!
The buttons are mechanical, and satisfying to click. Good response on ALL buttons and triggers.
The sticks are a bit tight, but since you can set the responsiveness with a few clicks, you quickly find a comfort zone.
In fact, the customization options you can do on the fly is just so schweet I pause games for 10 minutes on end to fiddle with the settings
My only gripe right now is the rockers at the back. It will take some time to get used to them, since I tend to push them by accident, or when I rest the controller on my lap.
So far I am very happy with it, and as long as it doesn't break any time soon, I can highly recommend it for Xbox and PC
Here's a video (not mine) of the unboxing. so Puuuuurdy
Here are my first thoughts...
To give a bit of background, I got the Razer Onza a while back. That lasted 4 weeks. Sent it back, got a new one, that lasted 2 weeks. Got a Mad Catz Xbox 360 F.P.S. Pro GamePad. Lasted... maybe three months? Bought a new one, lasted a week, after much hassle, got a replacement, buttons where buggered right out of the box.
Every time I fell back on my wired Xbox controller
Last week, it sadly succumbed to old age and spilled coffee...
So as you can see, I have not had much luck with controllers. I don't mann-handle them, but it seems controllers are just not built to last (apart from the M$ one)
ANYWAY, I decided to give Razer one more chance, since I heard good things about the Sabertooth. Thanks to some Tea magic (Seriously, service was awesome
) O got it.First Impression... GOOD LORD ITS BEAUTIFUL!
The packaging is just amazing. The controller comes in it's own carry case, with a screw in cable and rubber stick pads.
The thing is ridiculously comfortable to hold. You hands just automatically slide around the slick sides to the waiting folds and caress the slick...
Wait what? No seriously, this is the most comfortable controller I ever held!
The buttons are mechanical, and satisfying to click. Good response on ALL buttons and triggers.
The sticks are a bit tight, but since you can set the responsiveness with a few clicks, you quickly find a comfort zone.
In fact, the customization options you can do on the fly is just so schweet I pause games for 10 minutes on end to fiddle with the settings
My only gripe right now is the rockers at the back. It will take some time to get used to them, since I tend to push them by accident, or when I rest the controller on my lap.
So far I am very happy with it, and as long as it doesn't break any time soon, I can highly recommend it for Xbox and PC
Here's a video (not mine) of the unboxing. so Puuuuurdy
SupaPhly 
09 February 2007
1128
09 February 2007
1128
