Final Score: 83 out 100
As long-term PC Gaming enthusiasts we must admit that we have used basically every mouse design on the market. Some were terrible, some were great… but all were at the end of the day a mouse. A design that caused RSI and forced us to move over to a trackball for all but the rare occasion. The RBT on the other hand actually does impress us and while it may have a significant learning curve (one that puts the typical trackball to shame) … it does work. It is odd, it is funky looking… but it works for what it was designed to do – more on this caveat in a moment. Put another way it easily justifies its $80 asking price for ‘trigger finger’ sufferers.
Now with all that said you can easily tell this is a first-generation device. It is not quite a ‘one trick pony’ but there is significant room for improvement. For example, the lack of even more buttons means that Real Time Strategy enthusiasts will be less than enthused with this mouse. Even the preference you have in how you hold a mouse will dramatically impact your final impression of this mouse. While claw and finger grip mouse users will love how blazingly fast and responsive this mouse is… the same can not be said of palm users who will have a heck of a learning curve filled with frustration as they relearn how to hold a mouse without accidentally activating the main mouse buttons.
Put bluntly it is not a well-rounded, highly refined mouse. It feels and acts like the first-generation device it is. Don’t get us wrong this is a ground-breaking design that really is the first major design change we have seen in a long, long while. It just is the designers set out to create a unique ‘gaming ergonomic mouse’ with single minded determination. Anything that would reduce its PC Gaming abilities or jeopardize its abilities to reduce RSI were quickly frogged marched out the nearest airlock. This includes being versatile and useable by all types of hand grip users in all types of scenarios.
We fully expect that QuadraClicks will plow back a lot of the RBT 1.0’s profits into creating an even better mouse. A mouse that will fix these first gen issues and really change the mouse landscape. In the meantime, it is a fantastic idea that does do a lot to fix the underlying issues with the typical mouse, but it is not perfect. It will not be a ‘plug and play’ affair, instead it does come with a learning curve. If that does not scare you… than the RBT is the mouse you probably want to think long and hard about before opting for similarly priced ‘gaming’ mice from more firmly established brands.
The Review
QuadraClicks Gaming RBT Mouse
Overall this is a unique mouse that in testing did impress us. We used it exclusively for nearly two weeks on our primary system and after the first few days of figuring out its quirks – aka the dreaded learning curve – we walked away impressed enough to keep on our primary gaming rig.
