By: Charles P. Jefferies
Introduction
With more and more gamers moving to notebooks as their platforms of choice, it only makes sense that gaming accessories follow the trend. Razer is first on the scene with Orochi, a Bluetooth gaming mouse designed specifically for notebooks. Features include wired or wireless functionality thanks to its detachable USB cable, a 4000dpi sensor, and on-the-fly sensitivity adjustment. Read on for our exclusive take!
Specifications
The Razer Orochi has the following specifications:
- Bluetooth 2.0 and wired functionality (USB cable is detachable)
- 4000dpi Razer Precision 3G Laser sensor
- Razer Synapse On-board memory
- On-The-Fly sensitivity adjustment
- Powered by 2x AA batteries
- Size in mm: 99 (L) x 67.8 (W) x 35 (H)
The Orochi requires a Bluetooth-enabled PC running Windows XP or Vista (32- and 64-bit) or Mac OS X.
Design
Click on all images for a larger view!
Razer mice have always been centered around design, and the Orochi continues that trend. It has an ambidextrous design that looks sleek sleek, stealthy, and ultra modern. The right and left mouse buttons are sculpted as are the sides, which have finger ledges at the bottom to prevent any finger dragging.
Razer Orochi -Top
The top of the mouse and all of the buttons have a grippy rubberized coating. The sides and bottom of the mouse are slick black plastic that let fingers slide easily up to the side buttons. There are a total of seven buttons on the Orochi – left, right, and scroll wheel buttons in addition to two buttons on either side of the mouse.
Orochi - Bottom
In the center of the bottom is the 3G Laser sensor, and just below it is the on/off switch. The Orochi has the same DNA as its desktop stablemates, inheriting slippery Teflon feet that let it glide easily across surfaces.
Orochi - Front
Under the scroll wheel in the front of the mouse is the micro USB port for the detachable cable. The cable is braided for durability and measures 36 inches in length.
Orochi Cable - 36
The USB cable looks completely natural and fits perfectly when connected.
Orochi - Cable Attached
The scroll wheel is illuminated in blue light; the light is always on when plugged in via USB, but turns on only when in use while connected to Bluetooth to save battery. A small LED battery indicator is located behind the scroll wheel where the left and right mouse buttons split off.
In Use
Traditional notebook mice leave users feeling limited due to not only their inherent smallness but the lack of ergonomics. The Orochi is a game changer – it still feels like a small mouse but the confinement is gone thanks to excellent ergonomics. I can fit all five fingers on this mouse without feeling cramped.
Orochi - Front
It is easy to get used to the Orochi; fingers automatically assume their rightful positions.
Orochi Compared to CD and 2x AA Batteries
The Orochi’s ergonomics are complimented by the build quality and materials. It has a good weight to it thanks in part to a pair of AA batteries. The rubberized surface on the top provides secure grip, and the slick sides allow fingers to move easily to the side buttons. The Teflon feet allow the Orochi to slide across surfaces smoothly and quickly.
The buttons have great tactile feedback and enough resistance that they will not be unintentionally depressed. The scroll wheel has 24 click positions, and center click function is a specific enough that users will not have to worry about accidentally scrolling while using it.
Orochi - Left Side
The sensitivity can be changed instantly by pressing the side buttons. All of the Orochi’s buttons can be remapped in the included software, which I will detail shortly.
Accuracy and responsiveness are phenomenal. The Bluetooth functionality is spot on; I could not detect a difference between wired and wireless modes. I experienced no stuttering or interference while using it via Bluetooth. Switching between wired and wireless modes is seamless – unplug or plug it in at will.
Battery Life
Orochi Compared to 2x AA Batteries
Razer claims the Orochi lasts for one to three months on the included pair of AA batteries; only time will tell. The batteries are not used when the Orochi is plugged in via USB, so running out of batteries will not leave users up the creek without a paddle (or maybe its at the LAN party without a charge).
Software
Orochi Software
The software (available as a 27MB download from Razer’s support site) has a unique but simple interface. It allows users to remap buttons, change sensitivity, and adjust other minor settings. All setup information can be stored in user profiles, which are stored on the Orochi’s Synapse onboard memory.
Note that settings only apply to the mouse when it is connected via wired mode. Therefore, using the mouse on Bluetooth is fine for casual use but for gaming, it is best to plug it in.
Conclusion
An accessories niche must be filled as more and more gamers choose notebook computers as their platform of choice. The Razer Orochi is the first notebook mouse dedicated to gaming and it exceeded our every expectation. It feels great in the hand, has superb accuracy, the sensitivity can be adjusted on-the-fly, and the icing on the cake is the dual wired/wireless functionality for the best of both worlds. We give the Razer Orochi our approval for mobile gaming excellence. The only real downer is the price; at an MSRP of $79.99, it could be tough to swallow.
Amazon: Razer Orochi Bluetooth Laser Gaming Mouse
Pros
- Excellent ergonomics
- Superb accuracy
- Bluetooth wireless and wired modes (USB cable is detachable)
- Stealthy looks
- Seven buttons
Cons
- Expensive (MSRP $79.99)
August 27th, 2009 at 9:49 pm
According to the article:
“Note that settings only apply to the mouse when it is connected via wired mode. Therefore, using the mouse on Bluetooth is fine for casual use but for gaming, it is best to plug it in. ”
Does this mean that all the button presets don’t work while in wireless mode?
Tried chatting with razer support and they said that the button configs are still retained in wireless, but you can only edit it while wired.
Can anyone shed light to this contradiction?
August 28th, 2009 at 2:52 am
i think it can only be changed while wired but since the profiles are stored in the on-board memory, the profiles will work even wireless
heck, the profile will even be carried onto a different rig if you change rigs, elimenating re-setup
my 2 cents
August 28th, 2009 at 3:00 am
Your statement “The Orochi requires a Bluetooth-enabled PC running Windows XP or Vista (32- and 64-bit).” is not correct. According to a statement of razer, the mouse does also allow to connect via Mac OS X. Meaning, there are also Mac Drivers available.
Best regards,
dk777
August 28th, 2009 at 8:31 am
Yes, the mouse needs to be plugged in via USB to change any settings. The mouse button presets work when on Bluetooth. However, there are some things that can only be changed when plugged in, such as the DPI and polling rate.
August 28th, 2009 at 11:27 am
Thanks for the correction regarding Mac OS X support – the Razer Orochi is indeed compatible with it. Download the driver here on Razer’s support site:
http://tinyurl.com/llmhwq
August 31st, 2009 at 7:40 am
“However, there are some things that can only be changed when plugged in, such as the DPI and polling rate.”.
Does that mean, that it is not possible to change the sensibility during BT-use?
August 31st, 2009 at 9:05 am
Edit: I found that you can change the sensitivity in Bluetooth mode.
That is correct, the sensitivity cannot be changed while in Bluetooth mode. In Bluetooth mode it functions like a regular mouse. For gaming it would be best to plug it in, although I have encountered no issues gaming on wireless mode.
September 4th, 2009 at 4:57 am
Hi again,
since changing sensitivity on the fly in BT-mode is a KO-Criteria for me, I asked Razer’s Customer Support – answer:
>Hello,
>The Orochi allows On the Fly sensitivity in Bluetooth but you would not be able >to see the display of the on the fly sensitivity.
>(…)
>Kerwin T. at Razer Technical Support
>support-us@razersupport.com
If you could re-check that feature it would be great (and I guess not just for me).
BTW I’m not going to use it for gaming but for work. It’s just needed to be able to change sensitivity from high for main usagy to low for graphics, visio and so on (using G7 currently)
September 4th, 2009 at 10:33 am
I stand corrected, Matthias – I re-installed the drivers and it works fine now. Razer tech support is correct, the sensitivity can be changed in Bluetooth mode but the on-screen display will not show. No big deal if you ask me.
Thanks!
October 18th, 2009 at 9:55 am
Has anyone had issues with lag in Bluetooth mode? My Orochi seems to enable power saving mode every few seconds, leading to cursor lag when it wakes up. If the pwer save interval was longer it would be tolerable, but as is it makes the Orochi very difficult to use via Bluetooth.
October 20th, 2009 at 11:37 am
Bogdan – update your Bluetooth drivers and see if that fixes the issue. Additionally try uninstalling the Orochi and reinstalling it.
Let me know if that helps – if not I’ll think of something else. For the record I have not experienced that issue with my Orochi.
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:26 pm
Unfortunately I’ve tried uninstalling and reinstalling. I also switched by Bluetooth drivers from Broadcom to Microsoft (which seem more up to date) but nothing has helped. The blue light on top still blinks out every few seconds, even in the PC isn’t on. I’m wondering if it’s my Dell’s Bluetooth that is causing the problem or if I received a defective mouse. Does your light stay on after a few seconds of inactivity?
October 24th, 2009 at 12:14 pm
That’s really strange. The blue light stays on while the mouse is in use and then turns off a few seconds after it is no longer being used.
I suggest trying the mouse with another PC to isolate the problem. I’d bet it’s your PC. You can also test whether it is just your OS – go download Linux Mint: http://www.linuxmint.com/
You can boot it from a USB key and it supports Bluetooth devices.
October 25th, 2009 at 4:21 pm
Thanks for the tips. I’ll try to hunt down another Bluetooth enabled PC. The alternate O/S idea is a good one and I tried booting into Ubuntu a few days back. Same issue. If all else fails, will RMA. Thanks for the help.
October 27th, 2009 at 4:38 pm
Just to clarify, ALL the buttons still work when used via Bluetooth?
October 30th, 2009 at 3:24 pm
Have you solved it out? I have the same problem with my Orochi, it lags after 4-5 sec of inactivity, both on my notebook and desktop (both are version 2.0) ;(
October 31st, 2009 at 3:13 am
hi im using the orochi its gr8 BTW but when the on the fly sencitivity is enabled and show on screen option is also enable i only shows the sensitivity on my desktop not when i have ful screen aplications open does any 1 elce have this probolem or no how to fix it
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:54 am
Cameron – yes, all buttons still work in Bluetooth mode
shadow – I think the software is designed that way on purpose, so that the on-screen display does not interrupt the full-screen application.
November 11th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
I never solved the lag after inactivity issue. Even when I finally managed to pair it with another system running Linux and it exhibited the same problems. I ended up returning it. Very disappointing.
November 19th, 2009 at 7:56 pm
Bogdan, I have the same skip-after-wake problem with my Orochi. Tried it on every computer I own, macbook pro, PC Running Windows 7, PC running Windows XP. Every time I type something then reach back for my mouse, enough time has passed that it goes to sleep…. Basically it was a waste of money.
November 23rd, 2009 at 12:18 pm
Bogdan, Shawn: After I described the issue, Razer techsupport sent me an email:
“It sounds like your product may be in need of an exchange. If you purchased your unit outside the USA or Canada your reseller should be able to assist you with any exchange. If you purchased the product within the USA or Canada and are unable to get an exchange with your reseller, please fill out the following form and we will further assist you with a Return Authorization Number. (RMA) The unit must be within the warranty period from original date of purchase in order to be eligible for exchange.
…
…”
December 8th, 2009 at 2:26 pm
I emailed Razer numerous times about this issue, here is the response I got eventually:
Hello,
During sleep mode, the Razer Orochi will enter a low power mode where
the consumption of battery life will be reduce to a minimum. This would
include disconnecting the Bluetooth connection from the computer. However
during the low power mode, the Razer Orochi is designed to respond almost
instantly to any movement of the mouse or mouse clicks. Although the mouse
will react in an instant, the connection between mouse and computer would
have to be re-established thus resulting in the ‘Lag’. To reduce or
eliminate this lag, we will recommend using the wired mode so as to fully
utilize the capabilities of the Orochi.
Rest assured that our engineers are working hard to further enhance both
the hardware and software components of the Razer Orochi in order to
provide the best gaming experience for you, our valued customer. Thank you
for your kind understanding in this matter.
Best Regards,
Lina S. at Razer Technical Support
support-us@razersupport.com
December 8th, 2009 at 5:32 pm
Thanks for the update, Shawn – you’ve supplied a much-requested answer.
Almost five months in and I am loving my Orochi.
December 22nd, 2009 at 12:53 pm
the lag problem is with the mouse. just tested another wireless mouse and i get no lag. is there anything we can do about it? is there any chance that razer will put an update to fix this (even if my batteries last 1 week, i don’t care to be honest
)?
December 22nd, 2009 at 6:42 pm
Another wireless mouse or Bluetooth wireless mouse? The “lag issue” is just a characteristic of Bluetooth mice in general and is NOT specific to the Orochi. As Shawn noted, Bluetooth mice/the Orochi enter a low power mode when not used for a specific period of time and will react within a second or two of them being moved. Battery life would be quite poor if this feature did not exist.
December 24th, 2009 at 3:21 pm
hey guyz , ive read the comments above and it seems that the orochi has quite a few issues like the lag and mac support .
Would u ppl still recomend buying this mouse , cos imm planning to buy a bluetooth mouse for my macbook pro . Any help is appreciated thanx
December 26th, 2009 at 1:26 pm
floober – see the comments above regarding the lag issues.
I have had zero issues with the Orochi, it’s the best notebook mouse on the market.
December 28th, 2009 at 5:47 pm
hi guys,
does the wired-mode recharge the batteries?
Thanks for anwering
January 2nd, 2010 at 8:29 pm
The Razer Orochi sucks. The engineers of Razer dropped the ball on that one. I just got mine from Newegg and I send it back after just one day of usage.
1) The mouse is supposed to be a gaming mouse, then make it a gaming mouse. Just because you give it a few programmable buttons doesn’t make it a gaming mouse. I knew prior of buying it that BT mouse lag a bit, but this one is ridiculous. The thing go into sleep mode just after 3 seconds of idle time. Mine was also lagging a bit while wired.
2) Most gamers like Medium to Large size mouse, I know I do. I am currently using a Logitech Nano and the Orochi is pretty much the same size which is bad for gaming. The mouse has seven programmable buttons but I couldn’t push any of the side buttons (two on each side) without taking my hand off of the mouse. What good is that when you are playing games?
3) The weight of the Orochi is also an issue. My nano is twice as heavy as the Orochi. I like heavy mouse because it helps me to control the movement more precise.
4) The software needs some improvement. Yes it looks pretty but it has some bugs. I attempted to program the mouse several times and I kept getting this , the mouse is disconnected, click on cancel type of message . After that the program just closed and I had to open it again several times just to turn the light on the mouse. I am done with that nonsense.
I think Razer needs to go back to the drawing board and make a nice full size mouse wire/wireless (Not BT) with a mini USB receiver. Bluetooth and gaming doesn’t go together. Another great mouse that I researched was the Microsoft sidewinder X8. The sidewinder has one big issue. You have to keep the receiver/usb cable attached to the computer. The receiver on the sidewinder or as I like to call it , the hockey puck is big and not good if you want to be mobile. I believe the Razer Mamba has the same problem. The charging or docking station is the receiver. This is not good for laptops.
With Today’s technology I find it hard to believe that they can’t make a wireless mouse (Not BT) with a mini usb receiver and be able to plug it in when you need to play a game. You can make it so the mini USB receiver will disable upon connecting the mouse with the wire. You will lose two USB connection to this mouse but I am sure that most gamers would welcome that to increase then dpi to the 4000 or 5000 level, I know I would. The Orochi is ok, but is definitely not a gaming mouse . I found it unacceptable for the hefty price of $70.00 dollars. Maybe they can cut down on the fancy packaging and make it a bit cheaper. Right now I have my eyes on the Logitech Performance Mouse MX. You know what they say. You get what you pay for. I chose the Orochi over the Logitech over $20.00 dollars and all the great reviews of the Orochi. I don’t understand how a very small mouse that lags and has such a hefty price can get so many good reviews.
January 3rd, 2010 at 11:46 am
No offense but this *is* a notebook mouse and is advertised as such – you couldn’t have expected it to be much larger than a standard-sized notebook mouse. Also, if you read my review beforehand then you should have looked at the comparison pictures I posted. Just about every one had something in there for reference – battery, CD, etc.
“With Today’s technology I find it hard to believe that they can’t make a wireless mouse (Not BT) with a mini usb receiver and be able to plug it in when you need to play a game.”
-Again no offense, but the Orochi has both wired and wireless modes for a reason.
I would try different batteries in the mouse and newer/different drivers for your computer’s Bluetooth device.
January 7th, 2010 at 8:48 pm
Charles, I think you shouldn’t dismiss AZL205’s issues with your “no offence” attitude. He is bringing some serious issues to the table.
I won’t discuss his points on the weight and size, because I simply LOVE both factors in the Orochi. I do a lot of gaming, I’m a finger-tip gamer, and I’ve never had a better mouse than this. I don’t use this mouse with a laptop, I use it as my primary mouse on my favorite machine. First of all I may be a hard customer, but personally I don’t see any particular reason, why an 80 dollar mouse should be cut any slack, just because the marketing team from Razer tells you that it’s for “mobile gaming”. Like the words ‘mobile gaming’ were some kind of absolution of all sins. Razer mice are expensive and we expect proper quality from them regardless of where they’re being used.
The 3 second delay is a major issue.
In my case it’s somewhat funny (although in a black British kind of a way), if we look at the Orochi as strictly a gaming mouse than for me it’s really a non-issue, because I play action-heavy games in which there simply is no 3 seconds when the mouse lies still, if I put it away for 1 second, I get fragged, also Razer has clearly stated that they’ve optimized the gaming experience for the wired mode, fair enough, we’ve been warned.
However, who in they’re right mind buys an 80 dollar mouse for gaming only ???? This is a mouse which (even if we assume laptop use) is supposed to be used for everything, so it needs to be able to handle well in your email, your browser and your office.
Therefore this 3 second standby mode and the resulting start-up lag are totally unacceptable under normal use conditions. I can’t believe that this isn’t annoying you as well. Seriously, when you pause your mouse to read a piece of text on a website, the next time you move it, instead of getting a nice and fluid motion, you get a jerky mouse jump before it reconnects.
This is, and I agree here with AZL, simply put, bad engineering. You can’t do something like this and hope to get away with it, it’s awful.
This can’t even be challenged by saying that it’s the issue with someones bluetooth receiver, or their bluetooth stack, because there are bluetooth mice out there (without special dongles) that don’t show any signs of this issue (I know, I own 3, none of them fight me like this one does).
The second problem is the software. It’s truly atrocious.
I won’t even discuss the simplest issues with the GUI of the Windows version of the driver, because it’s a matter of taste and gamers are well known for having none, but the way it works is just a disaster, have you tried removing multiple items from a macro you’ve created? You can’t, you have to click them one by one, shift/ctrl won’t help. Sure it will remove the press/depress combo automatically, but for the more complex macros, not very helpful. Saving the macros is also flawed, when going back to previously saved macros I’d get on many occasions question marks instead of properly recognized keys.
And then there is the Mac driver… I don’t understand why they even bothered, well, that’s not true, I’m happy they did it, but I’m REALLY hoping that they’re working on this driver, because at the moment it’s just a sad excuse.
Thank god they can’t screw up the Mac OS GUI here, it’s predefined by Apple.
Also, in terms of what is actually advertised – this mouse is not advertised as a notebook mouse – it’s advertised as a bluetooth laser gaming mouse for “mobile gaming”
As far as I’m concerned that means whatever you want it to mean, personally I’m mobile on LAN parties, I don’t play games on my laptop.
January 15th, 2010 at 9:07 am
Razer Orochi was released about half a year ago and should obviously be a lot better than for example Logitech Nano which was released in June 2007. I am mentioning about the Nano because I have been using this mouse for over one year. It is obvious that Logitech Nano is not a gaming mouse. It is a wireless laser mouse with 125Hz polling rate (8ms) and 800 dpi sensitivity. And that is why I finally decided to buy a mouse which would be perfect for general use and for gaming and would offer wireless convenience.
At first glance Razer Orochi looks very rapaciously and if you like to admire the look of a mouse which lies on your desk you will probably be very happy. It looks really good. Well, all that glitters is not gold. This mouse has so many faults that I can only say one thing. This is the worst mouse I have ever used.
The Logitech Nano does not offer a wired mode so I will only compare design, ergonomic and wireless usability of Logitech Nano and Razer Orochi.
1. Razer promotes this product as The World’s First Gaming Notebook Mouse. In my opinion it must be a complete misunderstanding. If you want to play a game, this mouse has to be connected to a computer via USB cable all the time. Only in wired mode this mouse offers 1ms response. In wireless mode the response is limited to 8ms (just like Logitech Nano) which is very small and because of this playing games in wireless mode, especially FPS games, is like a nightmare.
2. In wireless mode Orochi seems to enable power saving mode every few seconds, leading to cursor lag when it wakes up. It makes the Orochi very difficult to use. It could be very annoying.
3. Because of two AA batteries the mouse is too heavy (Logitech Nano works with 2 AAA batteries, also works with only one battery) and centre of gravity is situated on the opposite direction of the main buttons (in Logitech Nano – middle right).
4. Configuration of the Razer Orochi is only available in wired mode which is extremely inconvenient. I do understand that there are some options which can be changed only in wired mode. But when this mouse works in wireless mode the Razer Orochi configuration tool is unavailable.
5. When the mouse stood still and you click for example, left button, almost every time the cursor makes a small movement in a random direction.
6. It is really hard to pull out the plug from the mouse.
7. Low quality Teflon feet which are wearing down too fast – I have already found an information which explains this issue.
Source: Razer Orochi Master Guide
“To get the ultimate experience in movement and control, we highly recommend a premium mousing surface from Razer. Some surfaces will cause undue wear on the feet requiring constant care and eventual replacement.”
The problem is that I do use a high quality mousing surface – SteelSeries 4HD which is by the way very good gaming surface. And I have been using a Logitech Nano mouse and this surface for over a month and there is not even a small sign of wearing on the Nano’s feet.
In general the Logitech Nano is far better mouse than Razer Orochi (general use only). Accuracy and responsiveness (wireless mode only) are noticeably better. The shape of Logitech Nano is more ergonomic than angular figure of the Orochi. Scroll wheel works in two modes, Hyper-fast scrolling and Click-to-click scrolling and you can switch between these two modes whenever you want.
In wired mode Orochi blows the Logitech Nano away but this is not the point. Forget about playing games using the Razer Orochi in wireless mode. If you are looking for a mouse which would be that good in wireless mode like in wired mode – forget about it. For now, this kind of mouse does not exist. If you think seriously about gaming and need a good gaming mouse – buy wired one. I sent the Orochi back and bought the Logitech G500. And now I usually use the Logitech Nano but when I want to play a game I use Logitech G500.
January 16th, 2010 at 10:36 pm
You both bring valid points. It would be up to the buyer to determine whether this mouse works for them, obviously, given some of the shortcomings of the mouse.
Maybe my reflexes aren’t sensitive enough but I haven’t noticed a difference between wired and wireless modes as far as response time goes. The Orochi doesn’t seem to be any different in the wireless regard compared to my Microsoft 5000 Bluetooth notebook mouse.
The Configuration in Bluetooth mode is probably not technically feasible, otherwise Razer would have done it.
Also, the teflon feet on my mouse have little wear. I’m using an Alienware mousepad with a slightly textured surface.
“5. When the mouse stood still and you click for example, left button, almost every time the cursor makes a small movement in a random direction. ”
This I haven’t experienced. Again, probably a subjective difference between you and I – just different ways of using/holding the mouse. Same goes for the weight – I like the heavier weight.
January 20th, 2010 at 7:12 am
The bluetooth mouse i’m using (kensington slimblade) is so poor for gaming due to lag and that I was considering the Orochi. Thanks for the honest comments about it going to sleep so fast, so many laptops have bluetooth and limited usb ports some designer need to get off the battery life at all cost bandwagon and make a mouse that doesn’t lag and polls often for bluetooth.
April 14th, 2010 at 12:44 pm
Can seem to get the orochi work that easy on Windows 7
Yes i have installed and downloaded the driver
Seem to be working fine on wired mode but can’t be detected on wireless.
Any suggestion to Windows 7 OS
Also the firmware update never moved from 0%
April 14th, 2010 at 12:45 pm
BTW the driver i have installed is for VISTA 64
IM using Windows 7 64-bit
May 16th, 2010 at 12:36 pm
Haha all you guys complaining about it going to sleep and its built like that by design. It’s not a flawed mouse at all.
I second notafanboy however. At least make the sleep mode configurable. I’d much prefer the ‘eat my battery’ option over a laggy response when it wakes. Or at least let me say ‘dont turn off bluetooth until x minutes of inactivity’.
I wonder if you can hack the driver and customize it?
July 9th, 2010 at 3:02 pm
i send back the orochi after one day of using. this sleep-lag ist terrible. Lrazor: fix the problem, an i will buy one again.