There is no denying Razer has made a major impact on PC gaming. It was one of the first brands to come onto the scene and offer gaming-focused peripherals, rather than just repurposed general PC devices. To that end, its 2005 mouse, the Boomslang, was nothing short of a landmark release, ushering in an era of PC gaming dominance and a lifestyle brand known across the globe.
Now, for the brand’s 20th anniversary, Razer is bringing the Boomslang back with a special limited-edition release priced at a staggering US$1,337, and, you know what, I kind of see the appeal.
Before we dive into the mouse itself, it is worth touching on that gaming-themed price. If you grew up playing PC games, you are familiar with how gamers talk in chat, and this price point is a nod to Razer’s PC gaming roots. Is it ridiculous? Without question.
But even with that, it was priced at that amount, and Razer leaned into this concept further by releasing only 1,337 numbered mice, so you know exactly how many were sold. It is a fun gimmick, and if it were not the price tag of a relatively decent laptop a few years ago, I would be all for it. But even with this price tag, there is no question Razer put real attention into this mouse.
Now that I have my hands on one, it is worth diving into the overall experience and seeing just what the elite price tag gets you. When you buy the new Razer Boomslang, you, in essence, get two mice out of the deal: one you can actually use and one sacrificed to the gaming gods to make a unique wall art piece. The mouse itself comes in the type of collector’s edition box you would expect from a mouse at this price point.
If you were unlucky enough to miss out on one of these mice, there is still one final opportunity. Razer is releasing a limited number on June 3 and, based on what we are hearing, this appears to be the last drop. A small number of units from the original run became available after orders linked to resellers were cancelled, giving collectors and fans one more chance to pick one up.
With that out of the way, let’s get into the unboxing and see what these limited-edition mice are actually like.
You get the mouse in transparent Razer green, very late-’90s Xbox, the dock in the same transparent green plastic, a rather nice USB Type-C to Type-A cable and the usual manuals, all housed in a round box with a fake leather look. I have to hand it to Razer, it knows how to make a presentation, and the Boomslang is an impressive unboxing experience.
The second part of the unboxing experience is the limited-edition wall art. You have a Boomslang and its dock, torn apart so you can see and hang on your wall, all the tech that goes into this mouse. In this 14-inch x 20-inch framed box, you can show off one of the most expensive gaming mice ever released.
The frame itself is relatively well done and makes for a good display piece. The one the press got is sadly not numbered, but anyone who purchased one of the 1,337 units will see the number at the bottom of the frame. Honestly, it is a nice touch to the full package, and while ridiculous, it leans into the idea in a really well-done way.
Looking back at the Boomslang itself, if you had a chance to use the first iteration of the mouse, this new 20th-anniversary version pays honour to that original in many ways while updating the experience for the modern PC gaming landscape. The 2005 Boomslang was a revolution when it first launched, offering a staggering 2,000 dpi, a major step up from the standard 400 dpi of most of its competition.
Razer has made the wise decision to bump up the specs a bit for this iteration, with the 20th anniversary edition of the mouse boasting a Razer Focus Pro 45K Optical Sensor Gen-2, making it incredibly accurate and fast when you do want to use this mouse in games, as its lineage would demand.
The mouse is now fully wireless, with the overall silhouette and design of the Razer Boomslang made to showcase the various looks and elements that made that first iteration so iconic. Looking at the front of the mouse, the buttons have stitched PU leather over the right and left click, along with the same PU leather around the back of the mouse. Along the sides, you will find two more buttons, also with the PU leather look, and in the centre of the two primary buttons, you have your typical scroll wheel, much like the original mouse had back in 2005.
I have to commend Razer on this design and for reviving the key elements that made the Boomslang so unique when it first launched. I will also have to say that this is a very different pointing experience from modern Razer mice, and the flat, symmetrical design takes some getting used to.
“The mouse is now fully wireless, with the overall silhouette and design of the Razer Boomslang made to showcase the various looks and elements that made that first iteration so iconic.”
That said, once you get the hang of the mouse, it is incredibly easy to use for gaming, work or anything else you would want to use a mouse for. The sensor is incredibly smooth, even when you push the DPI, but that is kind of expected for a mouse that costs this much money. The wireless mouse also features a modern 8,000Hz polling rate, Razer’s fourth-generation optical button switches, and a handy dose of RGB lighting, running under the well-known Razer Chroma light-control scheme.
But since Razer has decided that this new edition of the Boomslang would be completely wireless, unlike its wired origins back in 2005, you need a dock to keep this mouse charged, and this is where the special Razer Mouse Dock Pro comes into the picture.
This does more than just connect your mouse to your PC. With the mouse only working through wireless charging, this is how you keep everything charged and ready to go. The clear green plastic lets you see the copper coil on the dock, with the charging disc visible on the bottom of the Boomslang when you flip it over.
Razer has positioned the new Boomslang as very much a collector’s item first, one that also happens to work as you would hope from a modern mouse. During the briefing for the mouse, the analogy of a sports car kept coming up: something that works very well when you take it out on the road, but also something you want to keep in good condition so it only ever comes out of the garage on special occasions. That is an apt analogy for the Razer Boomslang.
The Razer Boomslang is an incredibly well-made mouse and features all the best features you can find on a top-of-the-line gaming mouse. But at US$1,337, it is not a mouse I would throw in my bag to browse the web at a coffee shop. There are mice that work for that purpose, and they are much less expensive.
For anyone who grew up in the early days of PC gaming, the unique snake-like silhouette and esports-focused features were something special when the mouse first launched. This 20th-anniversary edition of the Razer Boomslang is a healthy dose of nostalgia in the best possible way. This is very much for Razer fans and is marketed as such.
When I first read about the Razer Boomslang coming back at an eye-watering price point, I have to say I was a bit skeptical. And even now, I do not think this mouse is for everyone. It is an extremely well-made and well-designed concept, and it feels much more like a showpiece for an era of PC gaming that has long passed, but also a celebration of what helped build the modern gaming landscape. With the display case, unique design and top-of-the-line specs, this is very much the Lamborghini of gaming mice, and much like that supercar, most people do not need it.
If you are one of those people who looks back fondly on this time in gaming history, the Razer Boomslang may be the mouse for you. It may not come out often and will mainly sit on a shelf as a showcase, but when it does, you know you will be ready for anything a game could throw at you.
