Ideazon is out to offer gamers exactly that, and by that we mean a high performance gaming mouse on the cheap, not a pretty girl for you to date (sorry). The company's first mouse offering, the Reaper, is a 1600 DPI optical engine driven mouse that looks and feels a lot like its race-horse competitors, but won't have you relying on Ramen for sustenance thanks to its $29.99 MSRP. Ideazon is the company responsible for the rather cool Zboard line of gaming keyboards, which includes the MERC, FANG, and original Zboard swappable keysets, all of which are pretty sweet, so we know the Reaper at least comes from a good family. Is it really the mouse you want to fondle throughout your PC gaming, however? Let's find out.
The Reaper is a relatively narrow mouse that curves in an asymmetrical tear drop shape that is relatively ergonomic, though far less contoured than mice from Logitech and even Razer. It isn't uncomfortable by any means, but if you're accustomed to a deep thumb groove (a la Logitech) or main buttons that cradle your fingers (a la Razer), the Reaper feels a little basic. The outer shell is composed of rubberized plastic that feels nice to the touch, and there's also an illuminated "Z" logo for Zboard in the center that glows a relatively subtle red.
The Reaper rocks seven action buttons, including the two primaries, a single DPI switching button aft of the scroll wheel, a scroll wheel-click, and three thumb buttons on the left side of the mouse. All of the buttons can be customized (including the DPI adjuster) via the Reaper's software, which we'll discuss more shortly. The two main mouse buttons have a pretty soft throw and a much softer click than other gaming mice (especially Razer's). They aren't squishy or inexact, but they do feel more like a regular mouse as opposed to a premium gaming edition.
The three thumb buttons are oblong black bumps that are actually pretty easy to differentiate between via touch. The fact that there are three of them is one of our favorite things about the Reaper. PC gamers typically love extra buttons wherever they can get them, and we think they're quite useful. We'd honestly like to see more gaming mice go for three or maybe even more thumb buttons-options never hurt.
The Reaper's optical 1600 DPI tracking engine exhibits the budget nature of the product. Optical engines need a better surface than laser engines, which means you'll likely have to use a mouse pad with the Reaper. The 1600 DPI is also somewhat less than the 2000 DPI that has become the standard among premium gaming mice. For some this isn't a huge issue as even 1600 DPI is pretty sensitive. Personally speaking, however, I've become accustomed to using 2000 DPI settings for both work and gaming, in part because I've got a dual-LCD arrangement with 40-inches of horizontal real-estate, and kinda miss the extra sensitivity. The Reaper can also alternate to 400 and 800 DPI on the fly, but nothing in-between. Overall the tracking engine is limited compared to premium gaming mice, but this is a budget option after all.
The Reaper software is unobtrusive and has a fair number of options. Each of the 7 buttons is configurable and the usual double-click and scroll wheel speeds are available. The software also offers a fixed DPI option if you know the sensitivity you like and want to free up the button for something else. It's also possible to set the mouse to alternate between just 2 of its available DPIs rather than all three if you want to save time in transitioning between sniping and run-and-gun. There's also an interesting "Roller Menu" option that allows various programs to be set to a quick-launch selection menu tied to one of the Reaper's buttons, which is useful if you're into launching programs like that.
Conclusion
The Reaper isn't a super model, but it's also not a mouse you'd be ashamed to have your friends see you with. For $30 it's definitely preferable to a non-gaming mouse thanks to its on-the-fly DPI adjustability and three thumb buttons. Casual PC gamers, those on a budget, or peeps that simply don't need a 2000 DPI laser engine will be happy with it.