Like many products in the gaming industry, gaming mice tend to follow certain trends. If you’ve been following review channels and sites, you know the current hype is all around lightweight gaming mice.
PRODUCT INFO Zephyr PRO RGB Manufacture Marsback Available at View at Marsback Official
Newer companies like Glorious, Finalmouse are starting to make a name for themselves because of this. For example, Glorious has been around for a bit, they started getting real attention with their Model O gaming mouse which we reviewed earlier.
However, the market is starting to mature, and it’s happening quickly. Standing out is becoming a bit more difficult for newer companies. Marsback is taking that challenge head-on. Their newest release, the Zephyr Pro gaming mouse is an all-around solid pick for competitive gamers. Marsback also has a trick up its sleeve, this mouse has a built-in fan to cool your sweaty palms.
This is a one-of-a-kind feature and makes the mouse stand out on any desk. The Zephyr Pro is their second attempt. The original started out as a Kickstarter project and it left quite a bit of room for improvement. It turns out that the noise levels and vibration due to the fan were a bit much on the original.
We’re always keen on seeing smaller brands improve on their products, so let’s see what they were able to accomplish the second time around.
The Unboxing Experience
The gaming mouse market is a lot about appearance and design these days. This idea follows through with the packaging for most companies as well. Marsback is no different in this regard. The Zephyr Pro arrived in our hands in a bit of an unusual box. All of the contents inside the box are arranged vertically, and the box slides open by pulling it from the top as well.
The box itself has a fractal pattern all around, and the front of the box simply has the branding for the mouse. One side of the box says, “We think, we built, we dominate”; quite aggressive. On the back of the box, we have a silhouette of the mouse itself. Enough about the packaging, let’s see what we get inside.
First off you’ll be greeted with an envelope that serves as a welcoming card. This envelope includes two sticker packs, a welcome note, and a promo code as well. The mouse is tucked away vertically in a different compartment. You also get a thick pamphlet which is the user guide.
Design And Build Quality
First off, seeing the surprising quality is what impressed us the most about this mouse. I tried shaking it strongly to see if there is any rattle inside, but there’s no issue of that sort at all. It is impossible to notice any creaking or flexing on the shell itself. Fortunately, the side buttons are in a good position as well, and hard to hit accidentally while squeezing the mouse. More on the buttons later.
We get our two main buttons at the front, along with a scroll wheel that feels a bit familiar to other mice. Underneath we have the DPI button that is used to cycle between different steps. This can be configured in the software. Since this is an ambidextrous mouse, the only side buttons are the two on the left. There is a Marsback logo on the left that uses a minimal font for styling.
Instead of the usual honeycomb texture, we get what you might refer to as a fractal design all over the mouse. This is most likely so that the mouse stands out a bit from the plethora of honeycomb designs out there. It is present on the middle and sides of the mouse. We also get two buttons at the bottom of the mouse.
One is used to cycle through different RGB zones, and the other is used to turn the in-built fan on or off. It is not possible to change the speed of this fan.
Shape, Dimensions, and Comfort
The predecessor to this mouse had quite a distinct shape. A lot of people thought that the previous shape was a bit outlandish. Due to this, the Zephyr Pro feels a bit more familiar if you’ve tried other lightweight gaming mice. It feels extremely similar to the Glorious Model O as it is more rounded this time. It also has a taller rear hump which is reminiscent of a few Logitech mice.
Depending on the grip style, the mouse can feel a bit large. This is because of the shape on the rear of the mouse. The main buttons also have a deep groove to them, which is something quite common in newer esports mice. The skeletal fractal pattern does not feel uncomfortable to the palms at all. While these holes are quite large, they do not interfere during use.
In terms of the grip, it is a safe shape so all three main grip styles should feel fine here. It is best suited to a palm or claw grip, but those with bigger hands might be able to fingertip this one. As a claw grip user, I found this mouse quite comfortable. It never made me feel as if I was missing shots due to the shape or design. In terms of comfort, we approve of the Zephyr Pro.
The dimensions are 131 x 65 x 40mm (LxWxH) and it weighs in at 69g.
The Fan
The fan is by far the most outlandish feature on this mouse. To be perfectly honest, it’s just a cool bonus to have here on an otherwise excellent gaming mouse. It does not rattle all too much, nor does it make a lot of noise. Those were complaints we noticed on the original Kickstarter version of this mouse.
One feature missing here is the speed adjustment functionality. Before, you could set the fan to on, off, low, medium, and high settings. This time around it’s only on/off. Hold the fan button at the bottom of the mouse for three seconds to turn it off. So, the vibration effect is a bit noticeable but much more subtle. You’ll definitely need to get accustomed to the strange effect. Thankfully, you’ll get used to the feeling after a couple of days of use. However, the real question remains: Is it effective?
The real question is, is it supposed to be? While it does have a subtle effect, it is by no means a game-changing feature. Of course, if you absolutely demand a lot of airflows, this should help alleviate the pain of sweaty palms. However, the passive airflow through the holes already does the job quite well.
In my opinion, the fan here does what it says, it looks cool, and it serves as a neat party trick to show your friends. Since it doesn’t add extra cost to the mouse, I appreciate the feature.
Scroll Wheel, Feet, Buttons, and Cable
Let’s start off with the cable. As someone who cares about having a flexible and lightweight cable, I was pleasantly surprised here. The mouse features a paracord-like braided cable. It’s not exactly as good as other cables like the ones found on the HyperX Pulsefire Haste or Razer Viper, but it’s slightly above average.
Considering I don’t like the feel of most stock cables, that’s enough for me. I reckon there won’t be any complaints related to the cable when this reaches consumers. The measured length of this cable is 1.8m.
The Zephyr Pro gaming mouse uses black dyed PTFE feet that glide well on any mousepad. There is also a PTFE ring around the sensor to make sure that the glide is consistent. The mouse feels quick when moving around, despite the larger footprint.
Moving on, the main buttons on the mouse feel excellent. There is little to no pre-travel, while the post-travel is a bit moderate. The result is a firm and satisfying response on either click. These main triggers are separated from the shell, but there is fortunately little to no wiggle. They don’t feel stiff either. If you’re wondering about the switches, they are using mechanical Omron switches that are rated for 50 million clicks. Side buttons are also very good and feel satisfying.
Last but not least, the scroll wheel is also surprisingly good here. While it does produce a lot of noise, the steps have good separation which means tactility is quite good. The feel of the scroll wheel itself is flimsy, similar to Razer’s implementation. Considering the price, we can’t complain here.
Software and Lighting
Even most of the big-budget brands have terrible software implementations. You need to keep the software in the system tray for profiles to be saved, and they tend to hog memory as well. Fortunately, Marsback gets it right here. The software experience is lightweight and intuitive.
The options are separated by different tabs. These include key remapping, performance controls, lighting controls, and macro recording options. There is a lot of flexibility here. You can tweak the lift-off distance, DPI, click latency, polling rate, and more. The best feature of this software is the fact that you can reassign any of the physical keys to whatever you like.
Let’s move on to lighting. We get three physical lighting zone. One is the scroll wheel, the second one is the fan, and the final one is the strip going around the base of the mouse. The scroll wheel is linked to the DPI settings and can’t be changed. The other two zones are easily customizable. The RGB is plenty bright and we get pre-defined effects that can be changed through either the software or with the button on the bottom of the mouse.
Sensor and Performance
Quite honestly, there is not a whole lot to say here. The gaming experience is excellent with this mouse. It uses the PixArt PMW3389 sensor, which is capable of up to 16,000 DPI. As I said, there’s not much to say here. The sensor is excellent and is just as good as what we have seen on other high-end mice.
The shape feels excellent when combined with a claw or palm grip, and taking headshots is easy thanks to the firm triggers. These PTFE feet glide quite smoothly as well. All aspects of this mouse come together to provide a great experience. In terms of performance, we have no complaints.
Final Thoughts
Overall, I was about to be quite quick to dismiss this mouse as another generic gaming peripheral with a new gimmick. While that’s the case for a lot of new companies, their products aren’t that great all around either. This is why the Zephyr Pro is so different. While the in-built fan is the headlining feature that will generate views for websites and reviewers, it ends up being a small bonus in the long run.
What we’re left with is an excellent mouse that performs well, looks the part, and is quite comfortable to hold. If you are someone who suffers from sweaty palms while gaming, this might be the mouse for you. We highly recommend it.
Marsback Zephyr Pro RGB Gaming Mouse
A Surprise Hit
Pros
- Unique built-in fan
- Excellent buttons and build quality
- Surprisingly great cable
- Lightweight and intuitive software
- Alluring RGB effects
Cons
- The fan might be a gimmick to some
Sensor: PixArt PMW 3389 | No. of Buttons: Eight | Resolution: 100 - 16000 DPI | Connection: Wired | Weight: 69g | Dimensions: 131 x 65 x 40 mm
VERDICT:The Marsback Zephy Pro is an excellent example to the fact that even a small company can make an excellent gaming mouse. Overall, there aren't any major flaws that stand out here. For an early attempt, it's impressive coming from a new company. Consider buying it if you want an all-around great mouse with a unique in-built fan
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