Razer DeathAdder Review (2013 Edition)

Written by Branton

Last updated Nov 24, 2020

After using the Razer DeathAdder 2013 for about 2 years, I feel that now is the perfect time for a review. The DeathAdder is one of my favorite mice, and I’ve only recently replaced it with a very similar mouse from Zowie.

The DeathAdder 2013 is a great general-use mouse that works especially well for FPS games, I wouldn’t go as far as to say it’s the best mouse for FPS games, but it is definitely up there. It has a highly accurate Avago sensor, a medium-level weight and a lot of comfort.

Razer DeathAdder 2013


Accuracy
90%

Comfort
90%

Durability
80%

Lowest Price
$0.99
At Amazon

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Pros

  • Accurate Sensor
  • Comfortable
  • Braided Cable
  • No Jitter
  • No Prediction

Cons

  • No Sensitivity Toggling Buttons

Summary

The DeathAdder 2013 is a great mouse with very few flaws. It’s comfortable, accurate, and looks great.

The Details

Razer has been making the DeathAdder line of mice for quite a while, and they really got it right with the 2013 iteration. It is the mouse that has lasted me the longest, and it survived a hell of a lot of punishment over 2 years of use. It still works perfect pretty good to this day, and I only recently replaced it with a very similar Zowie EC1-A.

The only complaint that I had over my time using the DeathAdder 2013 was that the middle mouse button started to not respond about 25% of the time, which resulted in having to double click it often. This only started to happen after about a year and a half of use, and honestly, I expected more to break down sooner.

Design

The DeathAdder 2013 has a design that will cater more to minimalists than it will to people who want sharp edges and lots of lights. The Chroma edition of the DeathAdder does allow for customization of the few LEDs that the mouse has, but the 2013 version does not.

deathadder-2013-review-sideThere are only two auxiliary buttons on the left side of the mouse (thumb side) and the DeathAdder falls short if you’re looking for something comparable to the Logitech G502 Proteus Core’s mass amount of buttons. The scroll-wheel only offers one (clicky) scroll type and doesn’t offer any kind of left-right click function like the Naga does.

I mentioned that it was an extremely comfortable mouse previously, and I really mean it. The DeathAdder 2013 is so damn comfortable to use that you’ll almost forget you’re using a mouse sometimes. The buttons feel like they’re perfectly spaced and there is a high-arch in the middle of the mouse that caters to palm grips.

The cable is roughly 7 feet long, and it’s braided in a durable feeling material. Unfortunately, the cable is still prone to fraying if you have a wooden desk with rough edges that the cord will rub on. I would suggest wrapping this part of your cable with electricians tape to avoid fraying. At the end of the cable is a gold-plated USB connector for super connectivity potential.

Performance

The performance of the DeathAdder 2013 is really what you would expect out of a high-end gaming mouse and you can really feel the difference between something this and a basic mouse.

It boasts the highly accurate Avago ADNS-S3988 4G infrared sensor which is capable of tracking up to 6400 DPI, 200 inches per second and 50g acceleration, although you’ll never need it that fast. It runs with a polling rate of 1000Hz and features a 1ms response time. It’s safe to say that the sensor which the DeathAdder uses is optimal.

The DeathAdder also features high-quality Omron 10M microswitches for the left/right/middle-click buttons which won’t crap out on you anytime soon. Not within a year and a half at least. The side button switches are made by Kailh and are also high quality, and actually feel somewhat more responsive than the Omron switches up front.

You can create up to 5 custom sensitivity profiles within Razer Synapse, and switch between them with relative ease. Unfortunately, Razer still hasn’t deemed it necessary to throw sensitivity toggling buttons on the DeathAdder, so you have to either sacrifice a thumb button for this or manually change it in Synapse.

There is no prediction, no jitter all the way up to 6400DPI and it is seriously one of the best mice I’ve ever used.

Accessories and Extras

Aside from the actual mouse itself, nothing else comes with it, but the box sure looks good!

razer-deathadder-2013-review-packaging

Well, I guess you could say that Razer Synapse is an “extra”… Synapse is the program that you have to install to control any Razer product, and it gives you full reign over what your product will do, as well as tying them all together.

Conclusion

Razer DeathAdder 2013

A solid mouse for a good price

Get Yours!

All-in-all, the Razer DeathAdder 2013 is a great mouse which works extremely well for any game as well as any general computing you might be doing. I used mine for an entire two years with only 1 semi-menial complaint that didn’t really effect my experience a whole lot.

If you’re currently considering picking up your own Razer DeathAdder, it’s a mouse that I highly recommend, and I know it won’t let you down. You can even get the Chroma edition for cheaper than the 2013 Essential on Amazon right now! The Chroma edition offers up an (excessively) higher DPS sensor, and the ability to control the color of the LEDs.

My biggest complaints with the DeathAdder is that my middle mouse button stopped working from time-to-time after a year and a half of using it every day for 4+ hours a day, and that it doesn’t have any kind of dedicated sensitivity toggling buttons like a lot of other mice do.

At the end of the day, the DeathAdder 2013 is one of the best mice I’ve ever used, and although it’s not quite THE best mouse for FPS games, it is definitely one of the best. If you’re currently considering it, pull the trigger! You won’t regret it. If you want to look at a few more mice instead, why not take a look at our top 5 best gaming mice under $100 list?

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Damien
Damien
September 9, 2015 6:21 pm

I was thinking about getting this mouse, but since you mentioned that your middle mouse button stopped working properly.. I don’t know anymore. Do you know of any other good mice similar to the Deathadder?

Damien
Damien
September 10, 2015 6:31 pm
Reply to  Branton

Oh oh, thats a pretty long time, I guess. But anything is better then my crappy generic mouse. I think i’m going to go with this one over the other one you suggested though because i like the grips on the deathadder. thanks

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