Custom PC - UK (2020-07)

T

hefirstiterationoftheCorsairDarkCore
impressedwithitsversatileshape,excellent
sensoranddecentwirelessperformance.
However,it stillreliedonolderwirelessstandardsthat
madefora slightlylessresponsivefeelthanwiredmice
orthebestwirelessalternatives.NowCorsairisbackwith
anupdatedversionthatincludesthecompany’smore
responsiveSlipstreamwirelesstechnology,alongwith
a bettersensor,a USBType-Cconnectionand,ofcourse,
moreRGB!
Thestrangeshape,withitstwoflared-outside
sections,134gweightandprofusionofRGBzonesdon’t
makeit lookparticularlyappealingforpuregaming
performanceatfirst,butlookscanbedeceiving.
Itsnearlysymmetrical(butnotambidextrous)shape
workssurprisinglywellfora varietyofgripstyles.The
scoopedsidesprovideplentyofpurchase;alongwiththe
generallymodestproportions,thesemakeit workwellfor
fingertipgrip.Meanwhile,there’sstillenoughofa raised
middlesectiontoprovidea comfortablerestingposition
forpeoplewithsmallerhandstousea palmgrip.Finally,
thegrippysurfaceandsmoothgradientofthebackofthe
mouseworksforclawgriptoo.
Therightsideofthemousecanberemoved,and
thelargerflaredpiececanbeswappedoutfora more
conventionalshape.However,weweresurprisedtofind
wepreferredthelargerversioninuse.
Forbuttons,yougettheusualfive(left,right,middle/
scroll,back,forward)plustwoDPIbuttonsthatsitjust
totheleftofthestandardleft-clickbuttonanda profile
buttonbehindthescrollwheel.Wemuchpreferthis
positionforDPIbuttonsoverhavingthemburiedbelow
yourpalm/middlefinger,asonmostmice.

Thispositioninggenerallymakes

themmuchmoreaccessible,and

it’seasiertopreciselyhitboththeup

anddownbuttons.Thatsaid,these

particularbuttonssittooflushwith

therestofthemouse,soit canbe

difficulttoaccuratelyplacethemand

tooeasytoaccidentallytapthem.

AsforallthoseRGBsections,well,

bythispointRGBissoubiquitous

thattheyelicitedlittlemorethana

shrug.Thisisn’ttheslickest-looking

mouseanywayandthezonesdon’t

particularlychangethatsituationone

wayortheother– it’snoRazerViper

(seeIssue195,p61).Crucially,allthe

zonesarefullyprogrammable,asareallthebuttons,

viaCorsair’sdecentiCUEsoftware.

Wherethismousereallymakesa caseforitself– other

thanitssurprisinglyversatileshape– isitsnewwireless

technology.CorsairSlipstreamfinallyachieveseffective

paritywithwiredmicethankstoa moreefficientsignalling

method,whichcansendmoresmallerpacketsofdata

permillisecondthanpreviousstandards.Quitesimply, we

wereabletoproperlyplaycompetitivelywiththismouse,

whichwasn’tpossiblewiththepreviousversion.

What’smore,youcanpluginthenewUSBType-C

cabletochargeandcontinue gamingatthesametime

ascharging,plusthere’sa Bluetoothconnectionfor easy

usewithlaptopsandtablets.Meanwhile,thetop-notch

sensorislessofanupgradeoveritspredecessor,but it

stillworksflawlessly.

Conclusion

TheCorsairDarkCoreRGBProisa surprisinghit,thanks

toitsuniversalshape,excellentsensorandwireless

performance.Addinthewired/wirelessfeaturesand long

batterylife,andyouhavea verygoodwirelessgaming

mouse.It’sheavybutwefoundthisworkswellwith the

overallshapeofthemouse.

EDWARDCHESTER

WIRELESS GAMING MOUSE

CORSAIR DARK CORE

RGB PRO/£85inc VAT

SUPPLIER corsair.com

VERDICT

A surprisingly capable gaming mouse for its price,

although it’s not without compromise.

OVERALLSCORE

82 %

DESIGN

16 / 20

FEATURES

18 / 20

PERFORMANCE

25 / 30

VALUE

23 / 30

DARK MATTER

+ Versatile shape

+ Excellent

performance

+ Convenient wired/

wireless operation

DARK AGES

• Not the
  most stylish


• Awkward DPI
  button placement


• Rather heavy

SPEC

Weight

134g

Dimensions (mm)

127 x 67/89 (main body/edges of

bottom flares) x 43 (W x D x H)

Sensor

18,000dpi optical custom PixArt PAW3392

Buttons

7 (left, right, scroll wheel, back,

forward, two DPI, profile)

Cable

1.8m braided

Wireless

Corsair Slipstream

Extras

RGB lighting, Bluetooth

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