Corsair Ironclaw RGB
A massive mouse with many meandering mounds
GRIP IS DEADLY important, particularly when applying the iron claw, once pro wrestling’s most deadly submission hold. If you’ve not seen it, basically it involves contorting one’s hand into a tense shape as if you’re holding an invisible basketball while pretending to be a swamp monster, then placing that hand tenderly on to the bit of your opponent you’ve been attacking for the last 20 minutes. Perhaps you’ll gingerly touch their abs, maybe their skull. Whatever the target, wrestling’s iron claw elicits screams of pain.
Thankfully ( and tenuously), Corsair hasn’t taken even an ounce of inspiration from this mouse’s namesake, beyond trying to make it a match winner. But we do need to question that name. If you’re going to add “claw” to the title of your mouse, we’d have thought that would indicate that it’s firmly in the claw grip category, but the molding here (particularly the fingertip-hugging dishshaped tips of the main buttons) makes us feel the Ironclaw RGB is much better suited to palm grip. That’s not so say you can’t hook your fingers up, particularly when it’s possible to actuate the buttons with a firm press way past the 50-yard line of its shell, but that comfort is hard to ignore. It’s beautifully shaped, with the perfect top-line curve for this reviewer’s slightly gigantic hands, backed up by the silky silicon coating so ubiquitous of mice at this price. Same caveat as usual, here: This is all well and good until the oils in your fingers start making it rub off or turn gummy a few years down the line.
That’s only the top surface, too. The Ironclaw RGB’s edges have curves for days, with a heavyweight knurled silicon ensuring your thumb and ring finger aren’t going anywhere fast. The left edge is, toward the heel of the mouse, just slightly bulbous, contrasting with the concave shape many similar mice offer. That bump is, we assume, supposed to nestle nicely against the first joint of your thumb. That would depend on your thumb; the longer-thumbed might find it causes their wrist to twist during periods of intense play as that joint settles. Don’t think we don’t like it, though: This is the polar opposite of the half-baked edge coating we constantly complain about.
SEE THE LIGHT
The left edge is also home to a pair of large, easily accessed, and very pleasant secondary buttons. Where this often means a visit to sponge town, these are clicky and firm. Just below them is a three-light RGB indicator of sensitivity settings, which can be accessed using the two buttons on the top of the mouse. By default, the frontmost button flicks between three sensible settings, while the rear toggles three more extreme sensitivities for crazy people; as you might expect, this (and the lighting of the mouse wheel and palm logo) can be tinkered with in Corsair’s iCUE app.
Even the mouse wheel is satisfying, with a tire-print finish ensuring grip, a very satisfying click to it, and just enough resistance to make its notching definite without being over-tense. The sensor, which totes an absurd top resolution of 18,000 dpi, is totally over-engineered, and caps off what is an absolutely excellent construction. But here’s the but: Actually using the Ironclaw RGB brings up a few light issues. It’s extrawide, like an ice cream mouse that’s been left out in the sun for a couple of minutes, which makes the dance across your mouse pad that little bit more difficult than with narrower pointers. The main buttons are, at their tips, very light to activate, which isn’t to everyone’s tastes. There’s a grand total of one customizable RGB zone, nigh-invisible when the mouse is held, which is disappointing, given that color-tweaking is basically in the name. Those are minor bugbears, though; despite them all, the Ironclaw RGB is indeed a winner that will make you as deadly in gaming as Baron von Raschke was in the ring.