Patriot Viper V560 Laser Gaming Mouse Review

1. Introduction, Specifications, and Pricing
2. Packaging, Accessories, and Documentation
3. Patriot Viper V560 Laser Gaming Mouse
4. Inside the V560
5. Software
6. Final Thoughts

TweakTown's Rating: 91%

The Bottom Line

The software makes all the difference! While the Viper V560 has been seen before, Patriot took the time to advance the design, delivering the better candidate when it comes to this design. All things considered, for the price, you could easily do much worse.

Introduction, Specifications, and Pricing

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Unless you live under a rock, you may have noticed that just about every maker out there has entered the peripherals game. This time around we are looking to Patriot, who is known for memory, but up until recently, has never had a peripheral in their lineup. That has changed, as they are now offering up a new keyboard, headset, as well as a mouse. All of these products are found under the Viper series naming that Patriot is well known for in other areas, just that now, rather than looking at memory in the machine, we are getting out first look at gaming peripherals.

For now, we will be looking at their laser gaming mouse, which seems to be well equipped. It uses top-notch parts inside including Omron switches, a Sonix MCU, and an Avago ADNS9800 laser sensor, and even when it comes to the outside, this right-handed mouse still has a lot to offer. Rubberized coatings, a sleek style, ergonomic design, a swap out right side panel for comfort, and even offers a trick hidden weighting system. All of this is done to try and get Patriot their piece of the enormous pie that the likes of Corsair, G.Skill, and many other companies are trying to take away from the major peripheral companies that already have a huge following, and are companies that do nothing else outside of the peripherals game.

There is one thing we do need to get out in the open, though. While Patriot takes their first steps into the peripherals game, we do wish that it was done with a completely new offering. The sad part is, however, this is not the case. Patriot has decided to step into the market with this Viper V560 we are looking at today, but it is a clone of another device and an exact copy at that. For those who have been reading reviews on mice for a bit of time, it is no coincidence that this Viper V560 may remind you of another mouse. This is because the mouse you are about to see, is a rebranded Sentey Revolution Pro. While Patriot does add a splash of red to what was an all-black design, there is no doubt when looking at the two side by side, that Patriot is offering a mouse we have seen before, and we saw this mouse two years ago at that.

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Patriot does not provide the specifications in a traditional chart, as they have opted to write things out in story form to kick off what is included. In this message, we see that there is a 29.4-gram weighting system offered, and that the V560 delivers five profiles that can be customized via software. This mouse has nine buttons on and around it and are in easy to reach locations. They move on to the sensor, calling it an Xtreme precision laser sensor with 8200DPI, but it is just the Avago ADNS9800 inside. On the left side of this mouse, we are given a DPI LED indicator with four lights to denote which level is being used. Patriot also delivers an interchangeable right side grip for the V560, which allows users to customize the feel and grip, gaining the best user experience possible. Lastly, we see that this Viper V560 is backed by a two-year warranty, and works with nearly every Windows operating system, and even Mac OS X or higher.

Patriot does offer a small chart on their site as well, but it is not as detailed as we are used to seeing from other manufacturers. This is where we are shown that the V560 and all of the included goodies weighs in at 262 grams, and is in a box 22cm long, it is 16cm wide, stands 6.5cm tall. We see the warranty term again and are told that this has RoHS, FCC, CE, and Class 1M Laser certifications. The V560 itself is 8cm wide, 4.7cm tall, 12.8cm long, and without the weights used, it weighs in at 193 grams.

Pricing is very affordable for the Viper V560. We found that if you are looking at the Patriot website, they have set the MSRP for this device at $39.99, which is something almost anyone can justify. Looking around for retail listings, we found that the V560 can be found in a lot more locations than their memory is found. At the time of writing, Newegg and Amazon are offering the V560 at the same price, and that is at $47.30. Both places offer free shipping as well, but Amazon shows that they are in limited supply, while Newegg makes no mention of the amount of stock available, because they likely don't know since the seller is antonline.com. Since this is a cloned product, we looked for the original design, and here we found that the Sentey is listed at only $27.99. So, if you want to save a bit of loot and even get a hardcover carrying case in the deal that Patriot is not offering, the Revolution Pro is, in fact, a better deal to be had.

Chad's Peripherals Test System Specifications

• Motherboard: ASUS X99-E WS - Buy from Amazon / Read our review
• CPU: Intel Core i7 5930K - Buy from Amazon
• Cooler: Corsair H100i GTX - Buy from Amazon / Read our review
• Memory: KLevv Cras DDR4 3000 - Buy from Amazon / Read our review
• Video Card: ASUS GeForce GTX 980 Matrix Platinum - Buy from Amazon / Read our review
• Storage: Intel 730 480GB - Buy from Amazon / Read our review
• Case: SilverStone TJ11 - Buy from Amazon / Read our review
• Power Supply: Corsair AX1200 - Buy from Amazon / Read our review
• OS: Microsoft Windows 10 Professional 64-bit - Buy from Amazon

Packaging, Accessories, and Documentation

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Patriot ships their Viper V560 is a bright red and black box, with the mouse sitting right in the middle. At the top, off to the left, we see mentions of the 8200 DPI from the laser sensor, five customizable profiles, and the adjustable weight system. At the bottom, we see the Viper head logo in white.

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The front panel also opens up to give customers a look at the V560 under clear plastic. Inside of the front panel section, we are shown five features. First is the optional side grip panel, then we see this comes with Ceramic feet, we see the laser sensor and weight system mentioned again, as well as the five profiles are shown at the bottom.

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Spinning the box a bit, we come to this much thinner side panel. At the top is a ghosted Viper logo, with the V560 shown from the left side. All that is left here is that the product name is at the bottom in white lettering.

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The back keeps the snakeskin effect on the red and black background, but this time, we are offered visual indications of the features. At the top, Patriot covers the adjustable weights, customizable LED panel, the sensor location, feet, and side grips. At the bottom, Patriot then mentions the nine buttons and points to the DPI LED indicator and DPI switch.

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This last panel is back to black for the backdrop, and again covers the three main features of the Viper V560.

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Inside of the packaging, we found a multi-layer insert made of cardboard. Under a plastic insert between layers of cardboard, we find the V560 is secured in the center, with the tin holding the optional weights found in the bottom right corner.

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Inside of that tin we just mentioned, we find six weights held in place with some dense foam inside of the tin. There is a Viper logo added to the top, and we can see in the embossed lettering that this is termed the Gaming Weight Box. Each weight in this box weighs in at 4.9 grams.

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We also found the optional right side grip. The thing is, though; our optional panel is the same as the one already on the mouse. This should be very similar to the original grip, but this optional one should have a protrusion running left to right, to separating the ring and pinky fingers.

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Inside of a red folder found inside of the box, we get the Patriot literature and a couple of Viper logo stickers. The guide offers a contents list shows you how to plug it in, notes all of the buttons and their functions, and then advises you to download the software for complete control. The bit in the middle, when flipped over, offers features and images of their V360 headset, the V560 mouse, the V760 keyboard we will soon see, and even mentions their Viper DRAM.

Patriot Viper V560 Laser Gaming Mouse

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The left side of the V560 offers a rubberized grip covering the majority of the mouse here and provides grooves to ensure your grip even more. At the front, we see a power LED followed by four sections to denote the DPI level. At the top, in red, are the forward and back buttons, and at the bottom is a slider to select the DPI level.

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From the back of the V560, we can see two things. Most obvious is the red Viper logo that is offset to the right of the ridge line. The second fact is that this mouse is designed heavily for right-hand users. The left side is cut away for your thumb, and the mouse tilts to the right for an ergonomic grip with the rest of your hand.

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The right side of the V560 comes with the smooth grip section installed and is the same as our optional panel offered in the packaging. The side panel has a rubberized paint applied, and of course, is removable not only to be swapped with the grooved side grip, but it also offers access to the weighting system.

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From the front we find the cable emanating from the center, keeping in line with the bits on top. There we see a four-way scroll wheel with tilt, and behind that wheel are the Lift Off Distance buttons. There are ten buttons in total, but the left click button is not reprogrammable.

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Using a big red button under the mouse, the right side panel will pop-out for removal. The groove at the bottom holds the tab for it, and the red round tab is what presses the grip out of the mouse for you. Above that we see a clear tray with the word "weight" on it, and just to the left of it is a tiny button with an arrow on it to pop open the tray.

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The tray will then pop out about half of an inch, and you can then slide it out to install the optional weights found in the tin. Inside of the tray is a rubber insert that holds the weights and is designed to allow for offset weighting.

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The cable that comes with the V560 is braided red and black and is 1.8 meters in length. We find the cable to be bundled with a Velcro strap, it has an inline choke to reduce noise and terminates in an ordinary looking, black, USB 2.0 connection, which has been gold plated.

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Under the Viper V560, we can see just how offset the design is. Not only is the top ergonomic, but this entire mouse is also offset, giving the best angle for use without fatigue. The sensor is offset to allow room for the large red button to remove the side panel, and in five locations we see the use of round ceramic feet.

Inside the V560

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Three screws hold the top and bottom together, but once removed, the mouse can be opened up. The top half has a PCB for all of the switches there, and we can also see the spring that releases the weight tray. The lower section is mostly open, but removing the left side panel is nearly impossible without breaking it.

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Looking through the side of the top section, above where the weights sit, we find these red YSA switches in use. We can only assume at this point that the LOD buttons are also backed with these switches, as they have the same feel, requiring a firm press that delivers an audible click.

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Under the left click button, we find a basic five million click Omron switch in use. Under the tilt function, we see a much thinner switch in use, with no discernable naming on it.

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In control of all of the signals and commands is this Sonix SN8F228 MCU. It is hard to tell the difference, but due to the workload, we are assuming this may be the 32-bit version and not the lesser 16-bit offering.

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When it comes to laser sensors, there is likely no other more recognized product to use. In the V560, we find that Patriot chose the Avago ADNS9800 for its high DPI capabilities and well-known performance characteristics.

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The scroll wheel uses a TTC switch to follow the spin but uses another Omron switch for its click function. We also see that under the right click button, is the third Omron switch offered in this design.

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Once the Viper V560 is powered, we found the LED lighting to be set to red to match the logo and buttons. The heel of the mouse offers a wide white insert that allows a pair of LEDs to illuminate it.

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From the front, we see a smaller white panel to either side of the bottom, which are also red at this time. The DPI indicator lights are always white as the two there are shown. As for the small dot in front of it, this light is one of five colors and indicates which profile is in use.

Software

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Once the software is installed, and after a firmware update, this window will load on the PC. This is the main window, denoted as the buttons tab. In it, you can choose one of five profiles across the top, but the main function here is to allow the nine programmable buttons to be remapped. We see at the bottom left, that the left click button is not programmable, on any of the profiles. Also, when choosing the profiles, you are offered a block with 64 color choices to set the profile indicator LED to.

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Clicking on one of the programmable buttons offers this window. There are tabs across the top we will cover individually, but under mouse functions, you simply click on the icon denoting what you want to change the button to.

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If you are looking to add multimedia controls, or just need the mouse to hold a keyboard click, the keyboard functions tab is where you do this. Again, all you have to do is simply click on a key. Once the key is selected, the Select button at the bottom illuminates, allowing you to save that command.

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Advanced functions are simple as well. Here you can use the launch drive menu command to make things so that when the button is pressed, the software opens on the desktop. You also have the option to set a button to address whether angle snapping is active or not.

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The Macros menu is as involved as any others we have seen. You create a Macro and put it in the column to the left. Using the array of commands on the right side of the Window, you can start recording, adjust it in any way needed, and see in the larger gray area, exactly what the commands and timings for them are currently before editing.

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The key cycle can have its uses as well. In this window, you click on add, and press a keyboard button or mouse click, and you can add as many or as few as you want to use. To the left, you are given the option to cycle through them with a mouse button press, reverse the cycle, or use just one individual binding at a time.

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Back to the main window now, we moved to the sensor tab. In this window, you can select what the DPI setting is for each of the four selectable levels. There is also an option at the bottom to unlink the X and Y axis, to allow individual control to each level. There is also a checkbox that allows for an Auto setting. For this, you set a low-end and high-end parameter, and the mouse will adjust for you depending on use at the time.

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We already saw the Macro section, so we skipped over it here, as it is the same. Moving then to the settings, we find the ability to adjust the polling rate, as well as the options to turn on angle snapping, turning off the OSD option, or disabling OS acceleration. This window also shows what the model is, the driver versions, and what firmware is currently on the mouse.

Final Thoughts

How about we just get the bad out of the way, since the pair of issues we have are by no means a deal killer, just things we need to put out in the open. First of all, and we may be beating a dead horse here, but we do wish that Patriot had come out with a product we had not seen before. To us, cloning the Sentey Revolution Pro was the easy way out.

The second issue we ran into was in the packaging. Of course, we could have asked Patriot for the correct replacement grip insert for the V560, but we already know that using the optional side grip afford a much better feel and grip than the stock one, but sending us two identical side grips could be something that also made its way into retail offerings. That all being said, Patriot did choose a great mouse to clone from, and with top-notch components inside, it is still hard to deny what the Viper V560 can do for you.

As far as functionality and options go, the V560 is rich in features and seemed to work as intended for us, no matter how we decided to program it, or in what use we operated this mouse. At first, we did find the sensor to be a bit oversensitive, even at midrange DPI levels, but disabling acceleration seemed to rectify this for us. The software also has its merits. Not only can you change the LED colors, but you are also given the utmost in optional configurations. Remapping, Macros, Cycling, if there is a want when it comes to a single mouse click, this Viper V560 is ready to fill that desire for you. We also like the option Patriot took in making all of the buttons red. Not only does it match the logo, but it also makes finding the DPI selector and the LOD adjusters much easier in a darkened room. We honestly found no issues with how it performed, or what it can do, beyond that of normal mouse functionality.

While we do like the Viper V560 very much, as we did when Sentey released it in its own name, pricing creates a bit of an issue for us. Now, the software of the Viper V560 is more involved, and offers more control than the original, Patriot is also getting near double the cost of the Revolution Pro. $47.30 is still affordable, and based on features, style, and functionality, it still holds a lot of worth. The real problem is that the Sentey is even more affordable, and ships with a hard travel case for those gamers that like to protect their gear when traveling. This leaves us having to remove a few points in the chart that follows in certain respects, but the software does win the day here.

While Patriot may not have gone completely original with the release of the Viper V560, the software does take this design to a whole other level that the original will not offer. Considering all things we have seen and felt with this design, we still have to give credit to Patriot, as this Viper V560 laser gaming mouse is still a serious contender in the massive market of peripherals.

Chad's Peripherals Test System Specifications

• Motherboard: ASUS X99-E WS - Buy from Amazon / Read our review
• CPU: Intel Core i7 5930K - Buy from Amazon
• Cooler: Corsair H100i GTX - Buy from Amazon / Read our review
• Memory: KLevv Cras DDR4 3000 - Buy from Amazon / Read our review
• Video Card: ASUS GeForce GTX 980 Matrix Platinum - Buy from Amazon / Read our review
• Storage: Intel 730 480GB - Buy from Amazon / Read our review
• Case: SilverStone TJ11 - Buy from Amazon / Read our review
• Power Supply: Corsair AX1200 - Buy from Amazon / Read our review
• OS: Microsoft Windows 10 Professional 64-bit - Buy from Amazon