Razer DeathAdder V4 Pro review: Massively upgraded
Razer just keeps outdoing themselves with these Pro mice.
Razer is back at it again with the DeathAdder V4 Pro, making it clear why they’re among the most popular gaming mouse companies around.
When you think of old-school Razer mice, there are probably only a few names that come to mind.
One of those is probably the DeathAdder, as the first version of the iconic gaming mouse was released clear back in 2006 – before some esports pros were even born.
It’s gone through more than a handful of upgrades over the last 19 years, and I’ve been using the latest one – the DeathAdder V4 Pro.
Key Specs
- Weight: 56g
- Connectivity: Wired, HyperSpeed Wireless Gen-2
- Buttons: 8
- Switches: Optical Mouse Switches Gen-4
- Sensor: Focus Pro 45K Optical Sensor Gen-2
- Maximum DPI: 45,000
- Battery life: 150 Hours
- Price: $169.99
Design, features, & performance
Unlike the Faker edition Viper V3 Pro I reviewed a couple of weeks ago, the DeathAdder V4 Pro is just a typical black mouse with a shadow-like Razer logo on the back side of it. Like the other Pro mice, there’s no RGB on this one, and that is a-ok with me.
On the inside, though, is where the DeathAdder V4 Pro really shines. Razer has upgraded it with a new, lower-latency version of its HyperSpeed Wireless. It’s also more power efficient, which I’ll get into a little more later. On top of the new wireless mode, however, is Razer’s HyperPolling technology that gives you full access to an 8,000 Hz response time.
With that polling rate has come a new Gen-2 dongle design that is so much better than the previous trapezoid-shaped dongles. It’s a weighted dome instead, and it stays put on my desk better than any dongle I’ve used before. I love that it gives you more information as well, with three lights on the front that show your connection quality, battery life, and polling rate settings.
That’s not all that Razer has put into the DeathAdder V4 Pro, either. There’s a new, super smooth optical scroll wheel equipped in the mouse alongside their new 45k Gen-2 optical sensor and fourth-gun optical mouse switches. The sensor is a notable improvement over the one used in the Viper V3 Pro, and is my new favorite mouse for FPS gaming.
The new switches are way louder than the ones in the Viper, and left me a bit startled at first. After using the mouse for a few days, it quickly became a nothing-burger for me, but I can see how some people may not like it.
Despite loading the mouse up with a plethora of new hardware, or perhaps thanks to Razer giving us all the goodies, the new DeathAdder is rated to an insane 150 hours of battery life. That is, of course, at 1000 Hz, but I didn’t find myself worried about having to plug in randomly during my Marvel Rivals testing.
Just like most other esports-focused mice, there’s no Bluetooth mode, so it was quite a pain to have to switch between my daily-driver MacBook and my gaming PC. Hard to knock it for that, however, as it’s unfair for me to expect Razer to add a feature most competitive gamers would just ignore.
Software
SURPRISE! The DeathAdder V4 Pro uses Razer Synapse for all of its software-based settings, including performance adjustments and HyperShift shortcut programming.
With HyperShift, you get the ability to program almost all of your buttons to have layers of functions.
The Verdict - 5/5
I’ll be honest here... I’ve gone back and forth on this score for almost a week now.
The DeathAdder V4 Pro didn’t wow me straight out of the box as well as the Viper V3 Pro did, but man, it’s really hard to ignore the massive upgrades that have been put into this mouse.
Razer is among the most regarded when it comes to making high-end gaming mice, and the DeathAdder V4 Pro is a perfect example of why.
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