Razer Viper Mini Review

Razer Viper Mini specs

Alternatives

If you want a wireless Viper mouse instead: The Razer Viper V2 Pro uses the same familiar Viper design but is wireless, larger, and has better specs under the hood. The higher DPI optical sensor will be more precise, with slightly better switches that feel crisper and are rated for more clicks. The Razer Viper V2 Pro is considerably more expensive than the Viper Mini.

If you want a bigger mouse: The Razer Viper 8K Hz is the same design in a larger chassis. You’ll also get better switches and a higher DPI sensor, plus it’s ambidextrous with buttons on both sides. The Viper 8K Hz weighs more, though.

If you want a different shape: The Glorious Model D is lightweight and fast, though it does weigh more. The slanted, ergonomic design is bigger and does fit more hand sizes and grip styles.

Performance

Weight

One major selling point of the Razer Viper Mini is its weight. The Razer Viper Mini weighs only 61 grams and does so without the need for a honeycomb design or open-bottom structure. This is among the lightest weights available in a quality gaming mouse. The weight can provide a nice performance advantage in fast-paced titles and helps to reduce fatigue over longer sessions.

Sure, there are ultralight gaming mice under 60 grams, like the Razer Viper V2 Pro, but perspective is important. Among the best gaming mice, 61 grams is featherlight.

Sensor

The Razer Viper Mini includes a PMW-3359 8,500 DPI sensor. Perspective is important regarding the sensor as well. There are high-end gaming mice with DPIs of at least 20,000, but 8,500 is still relatively high and is sufficiently precise for most casual gamers.

That said, the sensor doesn’t include some of the capabilities of Razer’s newest generation sensors, such as Smart Tracking and Asymmetric Cut-off, which allow you to customize things like lift-off distance to enable more consistent tracking across surfaces and when lifting your mouse.

Polling rate

The Razer Viper Mini has a 1000 Hz polling rate that is customizable in presets of 125, 500, and 1000 Hz. The upper end of the range puts the Razer Viper Mini among elite gaming mice competitors but isn’t on par with models like the Razer Viper 8K Hz, which has an 8000 Hz polling rate.

Regardless, the Razer Viper Mini is lightning fast, with very low click latency. A higher polling rate could decrease the latency further, but the expected improvement is fractions of a millisecond for a slightly higher cost.

Switches performance and sound

Razer included some quality switches with this gaming mouse for the budget cost. The Razer Viper Mini uses Razer’s gen-1 optical switches. Razer does not state the durability of these switches, but we can ballpark it by reviewing the company’s stated durability for its gen-2 and gen-3 optical switches, which are rated at 70 million and 90 million clicks, respectively. It’s likely the gen-1 switches are durable enough for roughly 30 to 50 million clicks, but that’s not confirmed. Competing lightweight gaming mice at higher price points are rated for similar durability.

Beyond durability, the Razer Viper Mini’s switches have a clicky feel that register crisp clicks, albeit sounding hollow. Importantly, we didn’t encounter any double-clicking issues during testing for a budget gaming mouse.

Gliding

The Razer Viper Mini has good to excellent gliding performance, especially for a cheap gaming mouse. It has two 100% PTFE feet, one spanning the width of the back and one spanning the width of the front of the mouse.

Some Razer gaming mice add an additional small foot around the sensor, but that’s not present with the Razer Viper Mini. You can also find aftermarket feet for replacements, but we haven’t tested them to know if they perform any better than the stock feet.

Design

Buttons

The best FPS gaming mice stick to five to six buttons, which is the case here. The Razer Viper Mini has 6 buttons, including two on the left side, a scroll wheel, and a s only on the left. Alternatively, the Razer Viper 8K Hz and the Logitech G Pro Wireless do have buttons on both sides.

Scroll wheel

Since the Razer Viper Mini focused on fast performance, you won’t find features like a tilt scroll wheel and free-scrolling capabilities. The outside of the scroll wheel is surrounded by a grippy rubber material and small knobs along each step. This design creates the right amount of friction for easy scrolling. Some other gaming mice don’t include similar texture, which can make precise scrolling difficult and too slippery.

Shape

Razer has a deep lineup of Viper gaming mice, and they’ve all become popular picks among casual gamers and pros. One reason is the design language carried throughout the Viper lineup.

The Razer Viper Mini’s shape is best described as narrow, low, and compact. It is a “Mini” gaming mouse, so that characterization is unsurprising. But gamers with large hands will start to feel that the Razer Viper Mini doesn’t provide much palm support, their fingers will hang over the front L/R buttons, and they’ll feel the need to move the mouse forward in their grip.

Of course, the size is one of the selling factors for this gaming mouse. If you have small to medium-sized hands or just want a light mouse, then the Razer Viper Mini will likely be a great fit.

Hand size and grip style

Gamers with small to medium-sized hands are perfect for the Razer Viper Mini. The Viper design language is well suited to different grip styles as well, though some palm-grip users may desire a higher profile for additional palm support. The Glorious Model D may be a better fit if you want a higher-profile hump to support your palm, all while staying in the budget wired category.

The slight recesses on both sides of the Razer Viper Mini are a good enhancement if you use a claw grip. The shape provides additional gripping power, making it easier to make micro-adjustments with your fingers while your wrist is stationary.

The Razer Viper Mini is not suitable for large hands, regardless of your grip style. Gamers with larger hands will constantly need to hold the mouse in a forward position under their hand so their fingers sit well on the L/R buttons and to put the two side buttons in a comfortable position. In our testing, hand fatigue was common for larger hands trying to grapple with the compact size.

Customization and software

RGB

There are limited RGB options on the Razer Viper Mini, including just one RGB zone at the back of the mouse. This limited RGB trend is consistent in Razer’s performance-focused gaming mouse lineup to forego bells and whistles in favor of performance and cutting weight. You’d think Razer would throw in RGB regardless. But the restraint is important for fast gaming mouse performance and RGB isn’t a death sentence in games.

Memory profiles

The Razer Viper Mini has onboard memory with five profiles that can be configured in Synapse. This way, you can game (and even work) seamlessly to change profiles on the fly.

Synapse software

Razer’s Synapse software is the program where all of your Razer peripherals are managed. Synapse’s gaming mouse software is excellent with its feature-rich capabilities and simple-to-use UI. You can customize a wide range of Razer Viper Mini settings, including the items below.

• Remap your mouse buttons and enable HyperShift for an added layer of customization
• Adjust the DPI presets in increments of 100 from 200 to 8,500
• Adjust the polling rate from a list including 125, 500, and 1000 Hz presets
• Customize the RGB effects in Razer’s Chroma software
• Set custom configurations to automatically change profiles when opening specific games

It’s worth considering that the deepest customization options offered in Synapse are only available on PC. The Razer Viper Mini can be used in macOS. Your custom profiles configured in Synapse do work in macOS, but you’ll need to start on a PC, regardless, if you want to reprogram the buttons at any point.

In the box

• Razer Viper Mini mouse and cable (1.9m length)
• Rubber cable tie
• Sticker pack
• Operating manual