I tried Roccat's Kova mouse, a true ambidextrous mouse

The new version of Roccat's Kova mouse, a true ambidextrous mouse, offers an aggressive design that also provides a good grip. Its versatility of programmable buttons makes it a good versatile mouse for both the office and the game, and especially now it's even cheaper since the launch of its little sister Kova AIMO. Delight the fans of FPS and MOBA!

While Roccat has just launched the Kova AIMO to please the RGB fans, since it is compatible with its AIMO lighting system (which we would have suspected by its name!), I studied the Roccat Kova. Why will you tell me? Well, simply because thanks to the launch of his little sister, the Kova, which is still in the manufacturer's catalog, sees its price at € 10. So I found it interesting to see what it was worth of this truly ambidextrous mouse, often acclaimed by lefties.

Optical sensor
Maximum DPI: 7000
Buttons: 12
Weight: 99g

PRESENTATION AND DESIGN

The Kova has been in the Roccat catalog since 2012 and since then has experienced several evolutions, which shows its success! Especially since his reputation with lefties is more than demonstrating. As always we will start with the packaging. Take the standards of the brand; therefore, it will be impossible to see the mouse (and have an idea of ??its size and ergonomics before buying), since it is enclosed in a box with mainly dark and blue colors. Always with a beveled side, we find in the front a large photo of the mouse with its main features, and two mentions: "Approved by FPS" and "Approved by MOBA", which leave no doubt as to its use.

All these features are covered in more detail on the side, as well as on the back of the case and highlight its ambidextrous side, its new Pro-Optic sensor, its RGB dual zone lighting and the famous EsayShift + feature. .

When we opened the box, we discovered that the mouse is well packed in thermoformed transparent plastic and is accompanied by a small brochure of the user's manual and the warranty brochure, also a brochure. So there is nothing silly about the package, but in a mouse of this price, I did not expect more.

Like many Roccat mice, it is available in several colors, here white / black or gray / black, the model I tested is gray / black. Its design is known as it follows the lines of previous versions, but with an even more aggressive style, which is far from indifferent. With his gray helmet, I find him, even a small stealth plane




Obviously, since he is an ambidextrous mouse, everything here is about symmetry! You can not change the sides of the buttons, but the buttons are on both the right and the left in the same locations. So we have no less than 12 buttons (with horizontal scroll) of which 11 are programmable! Which, thanks to the EasyShift + function, will raise the number of programmable functions on the buttons to 22! Basically what to get some brushes during a game change! But who can provide a certain comfort depending on the games you use. This is the reason why, given the number of programmable buttons, I find that the mentions approved by FPS and MOBA are a bit restrictive.

The cover is made of a soft, matte plastic lining that, if it is quite pleasant to the touch, will have an unfortunate tendency to retain the marks of the fingers and the palm of the hand. So, if it is in gray, it is not very noticeable, I believe that in the white it will involve more than regular cleanings. And if this coating can also seem slippery at first glance, the grip is guaranteed by a good design of the slices, which provides good maneuverability.

In the RGB lighting level, there are only two areas that benefit: the wheel and the back of the mouse through a discrete band, so discreet and positioned so that, in fact, it is barely visible. It feels more like having a small triangle on the left and on the right than an edge on the whole back.

ERGONOMICS

Here is a mouse of a fairly compact size, 13.1 x 6.6 x 3.8 (L x W x H), and lightweight as announced by Roccat of 99 grams, cable included. Cable that has a fairly common length of 1 m 80, enough to satisfy most configurations.
The buttons are therefore 12 in number. The two main clicks that are often made, all in one block, have the advantage of lowering very low on the front of the mouse. So, in addition to the good rebounds of our mouse, taking the palm of your hand will not be a problem at all. And, obviously, it will be possible to use the grip of the claw or the fingertip. These clicks are equipped with the famous Omron sensors for which I could not find any indication as to the number of activations they can support. If they are a little noisy with the click, they offer a very good bounce and are very receptive.




In the grip of the palm, these two clicks are bordered by a more prominent button, their indexes and the main ones are well calibrated. And especially it makes these two side buttons easily and quickly accessible. In the same way, they have a good response capacity and are really very well placed, especially in the game for the FPS office, since they give, for example, a double click. In the center we find, as always, the wheel, a 2D Titan, which, although with notches, is very (too) sensitive. Which gave me some excitement when I changed my weapon in FPS. Covered with a soft rubber coating, it offers vertical scrolling and that's it! Finally, not completely, since it is backlit and this lighting is customizable through SWARM software. Behind the wheel, is the DPI change, easily accessible.

On the left side, two buttons have their right side twins, the ambidextrous mouse requires. If they are well positioned, it is unfortunate that they are not better separated. What makes the game, often happened to me, in a hurry, click on both at the same time. The buttons on the right can still be used, provided they assign functions that are used infrequently because they require some gymnastics with the ring finger.

When putting the beast in the back, there are four Teflon papats we discovered, but five, which offer a fairly correct glide.

In short, you will understand that this Roccat Kova offers good ergonomics for a really comfortable grip and the buttons fall naturally under the fingers without having to look for them.

CHARACTERISTICS AND SOFTWARE

As I said before, the buttons fall naturally under the fingers and are easily programmable through the Roccat SWARM software. Software that will have to go to the manufacturer's site and that, strangely, is not the latest version and will ask you to make several updates.

On the first page of the software, you will have access to the main parameters with, in the lower part of the window, access to 5 configurable and recordable profiles in the mouse memory, which will allow you to connect your mouse to another PC and have your profiles already configured directly.

You will also find the DPI change, which can be set from 250 to 7000 DPI, in increments of 50. You can program up to 5 levels of DPI, but you can choose the number to be programmed by checking or unchecking the boxes in front. Of the different bearings. What is interesting in FPS is having to change only between 2/3 different DPI frequencies according to the needs, without having to do a complete cycle to go back to the desired frequency.

On the left side of this window, there are other options available to you, which allow you to change the horizontal scroll speed or the double click speed.

The second tab is where you can configure all the buttons. Since this mouse is equipped with the EasyShift + function, we do not have a single column but two, one corresponding to the main assignment and the other to the secondary assignment. By the way, I want to point out that if, in the box, they tell us, thanks to this function, 22 attributable functions, here we have 12 rows per column or 24 functions! But for once it goes in the right direction, we will not complain.




The assignment of actions to the keys is very simple when you click on the button you want to change, which will open a drop-down menu in which you will only have to choose the desired assignment.

As for the games, if finally there are few options (38), compared to a Logitech G203 that offers 640, all the bigger titles are present. And do not stress because the software offers a macro editor to create yours according to your needs. And it must be taken into account that its use is easy because it is very intuitive, which is an advantage over what some competitors offer in this area.

The third tab allows you to configure other parameters such as the polling rate, even if it will always be left at 1000 Hz, since it allows you to configure the use of the mouse with the left or right hand; Finally, it is also possible to have an audio return, especially for the DPI change, since there is no visual indication available. If, initially, it is a little strange to hear a male voice announce the number of intellectual property rights selected, we get used to it quite quickly in the end! Whenever you understand English because unfortunately you will not have the option of language. And this voice can also announce the profile change if you wish.

It is also in this tab where you can make your RGB settings, which are also very limited, since there are only 4: fixed light, breathing effect, flash or a last called "color flow", which allows alternate colors but, ultimately instance, more flashes that really fluid
One thing to keep in mind about this SWARM software is that by putting some settings in favorites, you will have direct access to them by opening the software without having to go from one tab to another.

PERFORMANCE

In fact, the Kova has a Pro-Optic R6 sensor that can reach up to 3500 DPI, but thanks to the addition of a 32-bit Turbo Core V2 chip, this sensitivity is doubled, equivalent to 7000 DPI.
Its optical sensor is good and reacts very well, especially on a good mouse pad.
Its sounding rate at 1000 Hz will delight the FPS users and this mouse, thanks to its ergonomics, is really comfortable to use because it is very sensitive and takes very well in your hand.

This Roccat Kova has been with me for more than 15 days, in the automation of offices like Battelfield V, Star Wars Battlefront II, War Thunder and some other games and, frankly, I do not have to complain. The clicks are frank and nice, the buttons on the sides of the main clicks are really an advantage and, fortunately, because the side buttons, as I said before, are too close together and that, especially in the heat of the action, can happen to press both at the same time. But with a little habit it becomes less and less common.

It is really a good all-purpose mouse that, thanks to the EsayShift + function, can be used by MMO players.

Call of Duty WWII, New Details About Single Player Campaign And Zombie Mode

While a little while ago there have been leaks about the Call of Duty WWII, here is the Game that we learn new information about the game, specifically with regard to the single player campaign and the zombie mode.

The campaign will rely heavily on collaboration with our comrades, our health will not be regenerated automatically but we will need medical kits for example, so we will have to live the adventure in contact with the allies, the same goes for the Ammunition, co-operation with your comrades will ensure proper refueling.

New to zombie mode, which will present various missions, goals, and the ability to eliminate enemies in a variety of ways.

Call of Duty WWII brings the title to the historical environments of the Second World War but at the same time introduces interesting new elements to you?

We remind you that the Sledgehammer Games shooter is coming on November 3 for PS4, Xbox One and PC.

Should PC Gamers be upgraded to the new AMD Threadripper 1950X?

The brilliant wrists already proclaim a new winner in the high-end processor wars: the AMD Threadripper 1950X.

The new AMD core processor is launched today, with its lenses for the Samsung Chinstrap. There will be blood.

In all respects, the new chip is a beast. The 1950X features 16 cores and 32 wires with a 3.4 GHz basic clock (and overclocker) and supports 64 PCIe channels, four channel memory and eight DIMM slots.

It is a stupid even size, measuring an enormous 72 mm of 55 mm.

Intel's core processor, the Core i9-7900X, offers only 10 cores and 20 wires, and costs the same amount: $ 1,000.

Even the little sister of the 1950s, the 1920x offers 12 hearts and 24 wires and clocks at $ 799.

I will not go into more detail about the specifications of the Threadripper, but it should be obvious to everyone now that it is a powerful chip at an exceptional price.

A price to beat

A few days ago, Intel unveiled the full specifications for its even higher chips, such as the i9-7980XE. This is an 18-pin / 36-wire chip with a maximum clock speed of 4.4 GHz that supports up to 44 PCIe channels. The price? $ 1,999. This is twice as high for a chip than, in terms of data sheet, in any case, has a very thin edge only.

The i9-7920X has specifications nearly identical to 1920X AMD, but costs $ 1,991 - $ 400 more than the AMD offer.

What all this means is that ultimately we have the actual competition in the market for high-end processors, which is a wonderful change over the past few years. Intel has taken the lead for more than a decade.

In 2003, AMD's Athlon 64 processors took the PC world by storm, which allowed Intel to fight to catch up. This happened in 2006, when Intel unveiled its Core 2 Duo processors, and since then Intel has retained an edge, although the progress of CPU technology has never been more spectacular than the fervent days.


With the Threadripper, the tables have rotated again. AMD has a clearly convincing product at the price point that will win consumers and press Intel to lower prices. All this is ideal for consumers and the PC market.

What players need to consider

But the question we ask in this article is whether PC gamers should be upgraded to the 1950X Threadripper (or the 1920X) and the answer to that question is ...

No. Probably not. Almost certainly not.


These multi-core multi-core processors are incredibly effective if you create content, create 3D graphics and run multi-threaded programs. Content creators can undress for several minutes of rendering, increase efficiency and save valuable hours and even days over time.

But players have much less use for this type of chip, and most games only see very low performance gains.

The Intel i7-7700k Intel processor of $ 340 will exceed the Threadripper on many games, although some titles benefiting from more threads will have a small advantage of frame-rate, which is especially true for higher resolutions.

The i7-7700k is far, much slower in terms of rendering time, 3DMark scores, etc., but again, it's a $ 340 chip. If you are not a content creator who is considering using all of these multi-core / multi-threaded features, you have no reason to spend a large amount on the Threadripper even though it's amazing.

Players are better served by upgrading their graphics processor. The good news is that there is a lot of competition in the GPU market. The new Nvidia GTX 1080 will do more to improve your gaming performance than the expensive upgrade of a processor. For a little less, a GTX 1070 or 1060, or an AMD RX 560, you will benefit even more than purchasing a high-end processor.

That being said, if you want to do several tasks, that is to say. Playing games while doing 3D graphics, for example - the Threadripper is a great option. If you have $ 1,000 to burn, that's the case.

For my part, I am perfectly satisfied with my Intel Core i7-6700k coupled with a GTX 1080 GTX - for now, at least. Until I get this itch to improve and throw caution, and money, to the wind.

The good news is that the competition is getting hotter. This means a better price and better products for PC game enthusiasts.