Corsair Raptor M40 review

Slotting in just below the M60 in Corsair's gaming mouse range, the Raptor M40 is the result of a merger between the California-based peripherals giant and German manufacturer Raptor.

The Raptor M40 isn't a replacement or update of the Vengeance range, but is intended to live alongside it, offering a slightly cheaper alternative to the all-out performance-focused Vengeance M60 and above.

The first thing you'll notice after a quick play with the M40 is its similarity to the M60's chassis. Built around the same ergonomic and minimalist design, it's slim in the hand and best suited to claw-grip gamers, who'll appreciate the tactile side panels and low-friction PTFE pads at the base of the unit.

Rather than a metal chassis construction, the M40 belies its pricing with a plastic shell, but its impact on the mouse's feel is minimal.

A standard seven-button array is worked into the M40's chassis, along with a notched scroll wheel with a rubberised finish, an LED display that indicates the current sensitivity setting, and a red LED Corsair logo. We found the scroll wheel a little stiff and noisy for our tastes, but we experienced no problems and each scroll worked accurately.

Tech territory

Delving into techier territory, the 4,400DPI optical sensor might not be able to keep up with more expensive laser sensors we've tested, but its feedback is consistent and reliable. Twitch-gamers should find the 10,000Hz sensitivity to their liking.

The M40 lacks the 'sniper mode' feature of the M60 and many other gaming mice, which slashes the sensitivity for pinpoint precision, but this isn't a calamitous oversight - you can always notch the report rate down to 125Hz with a couple of clicks of the sensitivity button.

The underside features three metal weights affixed around the sensor. You can unscrew any or all of these, which means you can not only tailor the M40 by overall weight (though it's a fairly light model even with all the weights installed) but by balance too. Don't like a front-heavy mouse? Just remove the front two weights.

This might be the standout feature of an otherwise capable gaming mouse - not many manufacturers besides Logitech bother with details like this, especially for mice below £50, so its inclusion on this debutant Raptor is still a commendable feat.

This mouse barely puts a foot wrong in terms of its overall design and offers plenty for your money, but we do have some very minor reservations about the hardiness of its thumb buttons and scroll wheel mechanism.

It won't surprise you to hear that there's a tangible gap in quality between this and the M60 given their respective pricing, but the gap is just as wide compared to the similarly priced Sharkoons and CMStorms. Only Mad Catz's R.A.T.3 and R.A.T.5 (yeah, we're still banging on about those) can rival it for build quality, DPI and gaming functionality. We think the R.A.T.5 just edges this battle, but it'll be interesting to see what else the Raptor range can offer us in the future.