Rapoo VT9 Air 4K Wireless Gaming Mouse Review

The humble computer mouse, often overlooked in the realm of everyday technology, plays a pivotal role in enhancing work efficiency, particularly in gaming where a fraction of a second can determine victory or defeat. Consequently, gamers have become increasingly discerning, seeking mice that are lightweight, aesthetically pleasing, low-latency, and offer superior performance at an affordable price. In response to these demands, Rapoo, a renowned expert in wireless peripheral technology, is dedicated to delivering high-performance, high-quality wireless peripherals to users globally.

In this review, we turn our attention to Rapoo’s latest innovation, the VT9 Air wireless gaming mouse. Rapoo VT9 Air features dual-mode connectivity and is equipped with the advanced PixArt PAW3395 sensor, supporting a 4KHz wireless and 8KHz wired return rate. The mouse’s translucent shell not only reveals its intricate internal components but also enhances its sleek, modern aesthetic. Despite its lightweight design, weighing in at just 59 grams, the VT9 Air boasts Rapoo’s signature meticulous craftsmanship, embodying a robust sense of technological sophistication. Join us as we delve into the performance and features of this impressive gaming accessory.

Thanks to Banggood.com for providing the review sample. Purchase the Rapoo VT9 Air from Banggood for just $45.99 with free shipping! Use coupon code BGVT9PRO for US customers and BGVT9PRORU for RU customers to get this special price.

Unboxing

The Rapoo VT9 Air packaging features a sleek pull-out design with a minimalist approach. The laser cover, adorned with product features and characteristics, exudes a futuristic and fashionable vibe. The mouse box itself is visually striking, reflecting different colors when viewed from various angles. The front of the package displays the mouse model on the left and its appearance on the right, along with some hardware parameter introductions.

The package includes a variety of accessories along with the mouse, such as a data cable, a receiver extension base, foot pads, anti-slip stickers, and an instruction manual. These additions are comprehensive and cater to the diverse requirements of different users, ensuring an enhanced and customized experience for players.

Design

The Rapoo VT9 Air mouse features a symmetrical body design with a right-handed layout, though it has been tested and found suitable for left-handed use as well. This compact mouse weighs only 59g and measures 120*65.7*37.5mm, making it ideal for small to medium-sized hands. Whether you prefer a claw grip or a palm grip, it offers a comfortable and natural feel. The shell’s surface utilizes a frosted fine-grain finish, providing a skin-friendly, comfortable touch that resists dirt and fingerprints. Its ergonomic, symmetrical design ensures a secure and pleasant fit in hand.

The VT9 Air mouse embodies the signature style of the VT9 series with its ergonomic design. Its natural and elongated lines ensure a comfortable fit in the hand, promoting an enhanced user experience. The seamless transition from the waistline to the back and tail provides superior tactile feedback, catering especially to gamers. Moreover, the translucent material used enhances its overall aesthetic appeal, further elevating its recognition and appeal.

The Rapoo VT9 Air wireless gaming mouse is available in three colors: White, Black, and Green, offering players a range of choices. The Green variant stands out with its fresh and minimalist appearance. For this review, we received the black color option. The mouse’s surface is crafted from translucent matte material, providing excellent anti-skid performance and effectively preventing slipping. The color scheme of the mouse is uniquely striking, offering a more atmospheric and natural look compared to conventional pure black or white designs.

The left and right buttons of the mouse are independent buttons, which is good and the buttons feel lighter. The left and right buttons feature Omron micro switches designed to withstand up to 60 million clicks. These buttons offer a light and crisp feel, delivering excellent responsiveness. Enhanced by Rapoo’s C+click separate button pre-load calibration technology, they maintain a consistent feel regardless of how they are pressed. The quick rebound feedback ensures effortless operation, making it easy and comfortable to use.

The Rapoo VT9 Air features an e-sports grade scroll wheel with an impressive lifespan of a million times rotations. The wheel is wrapped in a rubber material, providing excellent anti-slip properties. Its design includes a hollowed-out center to reduce weight. While the scroll wheel’s noise levels are somewhat high, its tactility is above average, with well-separated steps. The wheel utilizes a Kailh encoder (orange, GE 2.0) with a height of 11 mm, and the middle click requires medium force for actuation. Additionally, the middle click employs a Kailh switch with a black plunger.

Behind the scroll wheel, there are dedicated DPI± buttons—one for increasing and one for decreasing DPI—allowing gamers to swiftly adjust the DPI level to suit different game requirements. The mouse features a frosted surface that feels dry to the touch, and the Rapoo logo is prominently displayed on the back.

On the right side of the mouse, adjacent to the right mouse button, there is a translucent area. On the opposite side, there are two additional buttons—typically configured for forward and backward functions by default. These side buttons are ergonomically designed with a ridge in the middle, making them easy to press.

The mouse is equipped with six anti-slip pads strategically placed on its bottom surface — at the front, back, left, right, and middle — ensuring exceptional stability during daily use. A physical red button located on the underside allows for easy adjustment of the polling rate. Additionally, Below is a magnetic wireless receiver storage compartment, which contains a 4K wireless receiver. It is small in size and easy to carry.

The Rapoo VT9 Air gaming mouse features a Type-C port cleverly integrated at the top. When the battery runs low, simply connect the charging cable to transition it into a wired mouse. The charging port’s discreet design ensures it remains unobtrusive, preserving the sleek appearance of the mouse while allowing for simultaneous use and charging. This thoughtful design enhances both functionality and aesthetics, making it a standout feature.

The standard cable of the mouse is exceptionally soft, allowing it to be easily routed in any direction without hassle. Encased in a braided net, the cable is highly resistant to scratches, ensuring durability. Both the Type-A and Type-C ports are gold-plated for enhanced connectivity and longevity. Additionally, the plugs are designed with a larger size, making them convenient to plug and unplug.

The extended base of the mouse receiver has an aesthetically pleasing design, featuring the Rapoo logo prominently in the center. A rubber anti-slip pad is situated on the back, ensuring that it remains securely in place when positioned on a table.

Features and Performance

The Rapoo VT9 Air features the PixArt PAW3398, a variant of the PAW3395 renowned for its exceptional performance. With capabilities like 11 levels of silent height adjustment and a DPI range from 50 to 26000, it ensures precise tracking and ultra-low latency. It boasts a maximum tracking speed of 650 IPS and 50G acceleration, ensuring every movement is accurately captured without frame loss. The mouse offers seven pre-defined CPI steps out of the box: 400, 800, 1200, 1600, 3200, 6400, and 26,000 DPI, catering to various user preferences and capturing even the minutest user interactions.

The Rapoo VT9 Air mouse incorporates Rapoo’s advanced 4K wireless and 8K wired return rate technologies, ensuring minimal latency even in wireless mode with the OTA type 8K driver report rate enabled. To optimize performance, start by updating the firmware for both the mouse and receiver through the driver software; ensure the mouse, receiver, and cable are connected to the computer during the upgrade process. Once the upgrade is complete, disconnect the wired connection and access the [Parameter Settings] page in the driver software to customize your settings.

With a return rate of up to 8000, I can clearly feel the smoothness and swiftness without any sense of delay. In wired mode, the stability and speed of data transmission are further improved, allowing me to operate the game more accurately and enjoy the fun of gaming.

The Rapoo VT9 Air mouse stands out with its thoughtful custom button design. Featuring a total of 9+1 customizable buttons, it offers exceptional convenience to users. These include essential buttons like the scroll wheel’s upper and lower buttons, along with standard side buttons on both sides of the mouse, all intuitively placed for easy access. The pink button near the switch defaults to adjusting the polling rate and can be further personalized using Rapoo’s GameDev exclusive driver.

In practical use, these customizable buttons empower me to tailor them to my preferences and gaming habits, significantly enhancing both the efficiency and comfort of my gaming experience. It’s truly impressive!

The mouse features an LED indicator light on its top, providing visual cues for various states like battery level and DPI settings through different colors and display effects.

Besides this, the mouse’s micro-nano 4K receiver is equipped with an LED indicator light that shows the battery level in real-time. This functionality is highly practical, allowing users to conveniently check the battery status by simply glancing at the receiver. The color of this indicator light corresponds to the remaining battery percentage of the mouse, so you can know the battery level of the mouse at a glance.

• 100%-80%: The green light is always on;
• 80%-60%: The yellow light is on;
• 60%-40%: The orange light is always on;
• 40%-20%: The red light is always on;
• Less than 20%: The red light flashes quickly, twice per second.

In addition to the battery reminder, this indicator light can also indicate the status of the mouse:

• To connect or disconnect with the mouse: A green light flashes slowly;
• Pairing with the mouse: The red light is on, the pairing timeout or pairing is successful, then the pairing mode is exited and the indicator light is switched back to the original state;
• Charging Indicator: The green light breathes during charging. The green light turns on when fully charged.

Software

The VT9Air dual-mode wireless gaming mouse by Rapoo comes with dedicated driver software. The first step after launching the software is to update the mouse’s firmware. Begin by plugging the mouse receiver into the computer and connecting the mouse via a USB data cable. This setup allows you to start the firmware update process. Typically, there are two firmware components to update: the firmware of the mouse’s micro-nano 4K receiver and the mouse’s own firmware. Once both updates are completed, the mouse will be ready for normal use.

The mouse driver interface is straightforward, featuring a main menu on the left and various content options on the right. The first menu is the configuration menu, allowing users to customize different mouse settings to suit various games. This includes the ability to quickly switch between different configurations. The second menu is for adjusting the mouse’s DPI settings, offering 7 preset levels. Users can set these levels according to their specific needs, ensuring optimal performance across different applications.

The parameter setting interface serves as the primary hub for configuring various mouse parameters. Users can adjust settings such as mouse correction, sensor height, report rate, and anti-shake features—all of which enhance the mouse’s performance. Notably, the mouse supports a maximum report rate of 8000Hz, meaning it can report its position every 0.125 milliseconds. This high report rate is particularly beneficial when the mouse is connected to the computer via a wired connection, providing highly responsive and accurate tracking.

The mouse supports a maximum 4000Hz polling rate in wireless mode and an impressive 8000Hz polling rate in wired mode. When using the 8000Hz polling rate, the mouse feels incredibly responsive, almost as if it anticipates your movements. However, this heightened sensitivity can also exaggerate subtle, unintended movements. Ultimately, the choice of polling rate comes down to personal preference. For instance, Mushroom finds the 4000Hz polling rate in wireless mode more than adequate for their needs.

The final aspect to consider is the macro editing interface, which allows users to store various operations as macros for convenient one-click execution. The driver software’s firmware update interface ensures that both the receiver and the mouse firmware are updated simultaneously. This streamlined update process helps maintain optimal performance and compatibility.

Battery

The Rapoo VT9Air wireless gaming mouse features a built-in 800mAh lithium battery and utilizes the newly upgraded low-power wireless technology. This mouse also incorporates V+Wireless gaming technology and uses Realtek’s low-power chip. Additionally, it includes an intelligent power-saving algorithm independently developed by Rapoo to extend battery life in wireless mode. It can last for approximately 180 hours at the lowest 1000Hz return rate and around 55 hours at the highest 4000Hz return rate. This durability ensures users don’t need to worry about frequent recharging.

The design of the Rapoo VT9Air finally includes a battery-level display, making it easier for users to monitor the remaining power. An indicator light on the receiver provides a clear indication of the battery level, adding convenience and reducing the risk of unexpected power loss during critical gaming moments. This thoughtful design feature enhances the overall user experience, ensuring that gamers can focus on their gameplay without power concerns.

Conclusion

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