Kayden
Tech Monkey
This is my review way back in November 2010 when I first got the mouse and I still stick by it. The customer service may have changed on the website since then but I can't speak directly to that so I will not change my review, enjoy. 
First off let me point out that if you are looking to get either the R.A.T. 7 or 9 go to newegg and order it from there, not only will you get either for $30 off but at least they talk to you about any questions that you have. I had the preorder in for the R.A.T. 9 on 11-1 and when I saw it for sale on 11-11 I waited 2 business days to see if they would update my info nothing, I then sent another email 2 days later nothing. Then by some magical happen stance I got it on 11-17 what happened is they sent it on 11-16 and updated my info on their site along with an email saying it was shipped 2 hours after I got it at my door step. I implore you to not buy directly from this company they do not communicate with their customers when they have questions.
Aside from their lazy sales department the mouse is in fact very well designed and has proven to me you can get a wireless gaming mouse with no lag. The problem I am finding is where to begin so with no other recourse I will just go back to the beginning, literally with the unboxing.
The first thing you will notice is the unique box design, which is almost as unique as the mouse itself. When you do manage to get it open you find the mouse in a nice plastic cover and the rest of the accessories in their own foam cut place, I don't know about you but I've never had a mouse come with foam cutouts for just the shipping box. The tin box that holds all the attachments are given the same treatment and give you the sense you didn't just pay for a mouse but for the attachments as well.
When I first grabbed the mouse it felt small and light weight, much like my G9. I quickly made some adjustments, put in some weights and waited patiently for my first of two batteries to charge. I know dual batteries for a wireless mouse isn't new but when you spend $130 on a mouse you don't want it to die on you during a game and obviously they don't want it to either. The average life for one batt is 9 hours of constant game play so you should have no problems even if you have 50% left because most of us can't afford to be in front of the comp that long to play a game.
After the battery was in I started to make more adjustments, the weight did change considerably with the battery in there, though for me this wasn't a bad thing but those who like lightweight mice should look into the R.A.T. 7. I fired up CSS and found myself changing things yet again because what felt good for palm didn't feel so good for my wrist when I was trying to make more precise movements, needless to say I spent about 20min total getting it setup just right but time well spent.
The hardware and accessories are by far the crowning jewel of product and to be fair they didn't boost their software anywhere with their advertisements. I have always had a problem with my pinkie dragging on the side of my G9 it was evident in games after I died and felt my pinkie almost under my mouse, I then had to focus more not letting my pinkie drag rather than having fun playing. This problem has been unequivocally solved for me with the pinkie guard attachment. I had mentioned that I owned a G9 before I made this purchase and when I tried the R.A.T. 9 for the first time in CSS I had noticed a significant improvement in my ability to follow a target. I am not sure if this was because of no more pinkie drag or the G9 not being able to track as accurately but whatever the case maybe it is a lot more precise and if it weren't for the fact that I knew I had to put a battery in it, I could almost swear this is a corded mouse.
The next cool feature on the mouse is the Precision aim mode, this simple little button makes it so if you like taking sniper shots you go down to a lower setting get that shot off and go right back to your normal dpi without missing a beat. I don't snipe much in MP games but in SP I am a sniping junkie and normally after taking that sniping shot you then alert everyone to where you are and without having to take your eyes off the screen then at the mouse to get the dpi right back to where you normally have it set to you just let that button go and get right down to business with that assault rifle again.
I did find the mouse to be a little lighter than what I had wanted it to be so I did put in the full 42g of weight and it feels solid. This isn't ideal for everyone especially since the battery adds a fair amount of weight but for me it is the best configuration. The only 2 complaints I have physically is #1 that I wish the dpi color would have changed with the mode it is by far easier to see it then the mode buttons Cyborg face illumination, #2 I wish the thumb would have moved out wards instead of just arching out but maybe it will come in the R.A.T. 18 when it's all grown up. The auto off feature turns the mouse off after about 5min to conserve battery life which is useful when you have a busy household. It is pretty quick to wake up as well you don't have to push a button like you do with some other wireless mice, just moving it like you normally would to get rid of the screensaver is all that is required to wake the mouse back up.
The drivers, software and setup were all easy to do. The problem's I had with the software were 4 fold #1 could not change the color of the dpi on the mouse, #2 could not change the colors for your mode or change the order they came in, #3 the precision button only goes by percentage of your dpi thus if you increase or lower your dpi the speed it will never be constant this in my opinion is a mistake I should be able to set that to a dpi of my choosing so it remains constant no matter what the dpi is set to, #4 the icon in the task tray could not be changed to reflect the amount of battery life left in the mouse even though in the program you could see how much was left. It isn't easy to get to either, first you have to click on the icon then go to profile editor which isn't very clear in the quick start guide I believe it should be there. I have a X52 joystick from Saitek thus I am familiar with the ins and outs of their software but for others this could be frustrating if it was their first time.
To wrap up what I think about the mouse. If you are in the market for a new mouse where comfort, performance is not something you want to skimp on and you want to cut that cord then get the R.A.T. 9. However if you have a problem with mice being little heavy with a battery and you can't cut the cord just yet then get the R.A.T. 7.
Pros:
Solid design features
Zero lag
Long battery life
Precision Aim
Pinkie guard (where have you been all my gaming life?)
Software is simple & easy to use
Cons:
Software needs a few more features
Lack of LED Color choices
Weight could be an issue for some
Final Verdict is 9.3
First off let me point out that if you are looking to get either the R.A.T. 7 or 9 go to newegg and order it from there, not only will you get either for $30 off but at least they talk to you about any questions that you have. I had the preorder in for the R.A.T. 9 on 11-1 and when I saw it for sale on 11-11 I waited 2 business days to see if they would update my info nothing, I then sent another email 2 days later nothing. Then by some magical happen stance I got it on 11-17 what happened is they sent it on 11-16 and updated my info on their site along with an email saying it was shipped 2 hours after I got it at my door step. I implore you to not buy directly from this company they do not communicate with their customers when they have questions.
Aside from their lazy sales department the mouse is in fact very well designed and has proven to me you can get a wireless gaming mouse with no lag. The problem I am finding is where to begin so with no other recourse I will just go back to the beginning, literally with the unboxing.
The first thing you will notice is the unique box design, which is almost as unique as the mouse itself. When you do manage to get it open you find the mouse in a nice plastic cover and the rest of the accessories in their own foam cut place, I don't know about you but I've never had a mouse come with foam cutouts for just the shipping box. The tin box that holds all the attachments are given the same treatment and give you the sense you didn't just pay for a mouse but for the attachments as well.
When I first grabbed the mouse it felt small and light weight, much like my G9. I quickly made some adjustments, put in some weights and waited patiently for my first of two batteries to charge. I know dual batteries for a wireless mouse isn't new but when you spend $130 on a mouse you don't want it to die on you during a game and obviously they don't want it to either. The average life for one batt is 9 hours of constant game play so you should have no problems even if you have 50% left because most of us can't afford to be in front of the comp that long to play a game.
After the battery was in I started to make more adjustments, the weight did change considerably with the battery in there, though for me this wasn't a bad thing but those who like lightweight mice should look into the R.A.T. 7. I fired up CSS and found myself changing things yet again because what felt good for palm didn't feel so good for my wrist when I was trying to make more precise movements, needless to say I spent about 20min total getting it setup just right but time well spent.
The hardware and accessories are by far the crowning jewel of product and to be fair they didn't boost their software anywhere with their advertisements. I have always had a problem with my pinkie dragging on the side of my G9 it was evident in games after I died and felt my pinkie almost under my mouse, I then had to focus more not letting my pinkie drag rather than having fun playing. This problem has been unequivocally solved for me with the pinkie guard attachment. I had mentioned that I owned a G9 before I made this purchase and when I tried the R.A.T. 9 for the first time in CSS I had noticed a significant improvement in my ability to follow a target. I am not sure if this was because of no more pinkie drag or the G9 not being able to track as accurately but whatever the case maybe it is a lot more precise and if it weren't for the fact that I knew I had to put a battery in it, I could almost swear this is a corded mouse.
The next cool feature on the mouse is the Precision aim mode, this simple little button makes it so if you like taking sniper shots you go down to a lower setting get that shot off and go right back to your normal dpi without missing a beat. I don't snipe much in MP games but in SP I am a sniping junkie and normally after taking that sniping shot you then alert everyone to where you are and without having to take your eyes off the screen then at the mouse to get the dpi right back to where you normally have it set to you just let that button go and get right down to business with that assault rifle again.
I did find the mouse to be a little lighter than what I had wanted it to be so I did put in the full 42g of weight and it feels solid. This isn't ideal for everyone especially since the battery adds a fair amount of weight but for me it is the best configuration. The only 2 complaints I have physically is #1 that I wish the dpi color would have changed with the mode it is by far easier to see it then the mode buttons Cyborg face illumination, #2 I wish the thumb would have moved out wards instead of just arching out but maybe it will come in the R.A.T. 18 when it's all grown up. The auto off feature turns the mouse off after about 5min to conserve battery life which is useful when you have a busy household. It is pretty quick to wake up as well you don't have to push a button like you do with some other wireless mice, just moving it like you normally would to get rid of the screensaver is all that is required to wake the mouse back up.
The drivers, software and setup were all easy to do. The problem's I had with the software were 4 fold #1 could not change the color of the dpi on the mouse, #2 could not change the colors for your mode or change the order they came in, #3 the precision button only goes by percentage of your dpi thus if you increase or lower your dpi the speed it will never be constant this in my opinion is a mistake I should be able to set that to a dpi of my choosing so it remains constant no matter what the dpi is set to, #4 the icon in the task tray could not be changed to reflect the amount of battery life left in the mouse even though in the program you could see how much was left. It isn't easy to get to either, first you have to click on the icon then go to profile editor which isn't very clear in the quick start guide I believe it should be there. I have a X52 joystick from Saitek thus I am familiar with the ins and outs of their software but for others this could be frustrating if it was their first time.
To wrap up what I think about the mouse. If you are in the market for a new mouse where comfort, performance is not something you want to skimp on and you want to cut that cord then get the R.A.T. 9. However if you have a problem with mice being little heavy with a battery and you can't cut the cord just yet then get the R.A.T. 7.
Pros:
Solid design features
Zero lag
Long battery life
Precision Aim
Pinkie guard (where have you been all my gaming life?)
Software is simple & easy to use
Cons:
Software needs a few more features
Lack of LED Color choices
Weight could be an issue for some
Final Verdict is 9.3
