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For power, the R.A.T. DWS uses a AA battery, which you insert into a semi-hidden tube in the mouse's base. According to Mad Catz, a single cell should supply 200 hours of play time when using 2.4GHz WiFi, and up to 300 hours when using Bluetooth. Those are strong numbers, even among cell-powered mice that tend to get more than one hundred hours of battery life per charge. B.A.T. 6+ is the first gaming mouse to implement the Mad Catz Cyborg Engine. The Cyborg Engine is designed to have less impact on your gaming mouse while handling all of your important game settings. The software aims at combining your complex setup into an extension of the game with one integration while giving vivid lighting effects throughout the mouse chassis. Given the hardware issues, maybe the R.A.T. Air's software is good? Nope. Mad Catz's software offers the usual features -- CPI settings, acceleration, et cetera -- as well as the ability to create multiple profiles for use with different games. But it's also a buggy mess that's frustrating to install, let alone use. With the RAT DWS being exclusively wireless, it’s great for those gamers who just want a bit more freedom, even if that comes at the cost of it being powered by one AA battery. Related Story IOGEAR KVM Roundup Review: IOGear 2-port full HD KVM with HDMI/USB connections; 2-port 4K KVM with HDMI, USB, & KeyMander Nexus! Do You Need A KVM In 2023?
The R.A.T. DWS' dual connectivity options are also welcome, as too the neat design touch where the mouse's WiFi dongle can be stored and transported in the bottom of the mouse itself.
Wireless gaming mouse
So, the first thing you'll likely notice is what at first appear to be three wheels. There are only two, the one at the very base of your palm is actually a system that lets you increase or decrease the weight of the mouse. The other two are actual wheels, scroll wheels to be precise. You heard me right, two. So there's the regular scroll wheel in the middle of the two buttons, the second is a side-scroll wheel so awkwardly placed that I keep getting cramp in my palm & thumb. None of that is great. Neither is the fact that loading the EXE prompts Windows 10 to warn that it's from an unverified developer -- a warning I haven't received when launching any other manufacturer's software companion for the first time. Next, a Mad Catz logo appears on screen for what feels like forever before the software actually becomes usable. The RAT DWS isn’t available anywhere on UK shores right now, with a launch expected in the coming weeks. The most problematic issue in my time with the Mad Catz R.A.T. Air was the frequent wireless connection issues. The mouse can be used with a wired connection, sure, but Mad Catz only included one microUSB-to-USB 2.0 cable that can either be used with the R.A.T. Air itself or the Wireless Activation Board. The board doesn't light up if it's not connected to a PC, of course. Being a true gamer, I want the best RGB mouse pad, or at least as much RGB as possible, so I left the Wireless Activation Board plugged in. Plus, the wireless aspect is one of the key features of the pricey peripheral.
The first thing I did was change the CPI setting. I changed it, saved it and then received a notification saying the profile was saved. That's when the R.A.T. Air stopped working. I tried a wired connection to no avail. Eventually I had to restart my PC before I could use the mouse again. And even after that, the CPI setting wasn't saved. But at least the mouse started working again after the reboot. The shape also adds weight. At 4.80 ounces, the R.A.T. DWS is among the heaviest mice I’ve reviewed. That isn’t necessarily a problem, but it indicates that the design favors extra inputs and customization over competitive performance. This may not be your preferred esports mouse. The big caveat to this design choice is the possibility of debris and dust getting into the mouse. You can actually see the circuit boards inside if you look closely, and if there’s one thing that is dangerous to electronics besides water, it’s dust. While we didn’t experience any issues regarding debris affecting the mouse, it is a concern for long-term use. However, with a good dust blower and regular maintenance, this shouldn’t be that big of an issue.The RAT DWS features a 16,000 DPI sensor right out of the box. This is comfortably sensitive enough for competitive gamers, although you can get a higher DPI with rivals such as the Razer DeathAdder V2. In theory, the R.A.T. Air's Wireless Activation Board means you can game wirelessly forever, so long as the mouse pad is plugged in. And while you could also stay charged forever by using a Qi wireless charging mouse and mouse pad, that's not a cheap endeavor either. Despite the RAT DWS’ rather marvellous battery life of 200 hours through the receiver and 300 hours via Bluetooth, there’s no ability to recharge. This is largely thanks to the power source of the RAT DWS being an included AA battery. This cheapens the look and feel of the mouse, especially given that the rest of the competition is rechargeable. Software and Lighting – Great for one side of the story Basically, when just looking at the performance of the mouse, you’ll be able to keep up with just about anyone out there. It easily keeps up with our frantic gunning and running (away) in Doom: Eternal and Metro Exodus while also moving accurately in first-person games like Cyberpunk 2077 and Firewatch. The RGB is limited in the same way. There’s no software to really customize the colors or effects on the M1. All you can do is press the front side button and right mouse button at the same time to cycle through four effects: static color, off, breathing, and spectrum. Since there’s only one RGB zone emanating from inside the shell, it’s not the biggest deal. However, RGB fans would have appreciated a little more effort here.
Adding to the actual feel of the mouse is the weights system I've already mentioned, giving a fair bit of adjustment between reasonably weighty to what can be a very light piece of kit. Personally, I have to have all the weights on because the base of the mouse is so well designed it skims across any surface like it's covered in grease. The base is a solid piece of metal, with a few pads. Strong, smooth. I'd actually argue it's perfect, offering the best movement I've found from a mouse. At 70g, it seems to have worked. It’s a very lightweight mouse that still has enough weight to it for easy control. By taking off that extra material, Mad Catz makes it possible for the inclusion of a thumb wing – something that’s usually missing from ultralight mice like this. Gamers are going to want to use the 2.4Ghz connection over the Bluetooth, though. The Bluetooth connection is kinder to the battery life of the R.A.T. DWS, with up to 300 hours possible on a single AA battery, while the 2.4GHz connection means you only get up to 200 hours instead. However, the 2.4Ghz is more precise and stable. Using the scroll wheel on the R.A.T. Air was a lesson in frustration as well. Sometimes it scrolled too much, which left me cycling through weapons like a fool, and at other times it wouldn't scroll enough. I was never able to find the sweet spot where I could reliably use the scroll wheel to switch between weapons (or, you know, browse the web) on the first try.
Lightweight, unique and great for most gaming
The old Mad Catz was primarily known for 'good enough' game controllers in recent years. Most people probably didn't choose to use them over a first-party controller, but the controllers did what was expected of them. But despite a high price and busy design, the R.A.T. Air failed in some of its most basic functionality when running wirelessly. Even with this claim, I didn’t feel too much difference when testing, but the mouse buttons on the RAT DWS remain tactile and solid to the touch, as do the extra buttons – although the scroll wheel doesn’t feel as smooth as those on other mice. Mad Catz created a bespoke configuration app for customizing the R.A.T. DWS' settings. The app, which looks nearly identical to the F.L.U.X. app Mad Catz used for the R.A.T. 8+, lets you remap 14 inputs. The remapping UI, which lets you drag and drop action icons into slots that point to their inputs, is surprisingly unintuitive. Some of the slots don’t correspond to their buttons you’d expect, so you must be cautious when changing settings. In addition, the software doesn’t show you the default icons, which makes it difficult to switch default functions. Let's get this out of the way: I couldn't find a single reason to use the Mad Catz R.A.T. Air's thumb barrel. That's partly because of its placement, which was difficult to reach when using a palm grip, and partly because it didn't seem any more convenient than the scroll wheel. I couldn't get the tilt wheel to work reliably enough to judge its effectiveness for myself, either. From a tech and customisation perspective, though, the R.A.T. DWS will clearly appeal to all gamers, as the adjustable palm and pinke rests, as well as super fast and precise 16,000 optical sensor and Dakota button switches, making for an excellent gaming experience.
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