At first glance, the Naga X looks unconventional to the uninitiated. As someone with large hands, I wondered how I’d be able to reliably hit one of 12 tiny buttons with my thumb in the middle of a game. However, once I actually put it to use, I found that Razer’s ergonomic MMO mouse has a lot of potential.
Taking the side buttons out of the equation for a moment, the Naga X is well-constructed and proportioned. It’s light but solid, with a good ergonomic grip for my aforementioned large digits. I normally use a comparably priced model from a competing brand and find my grip ascends from palm to claw the longer I hold my house, but kept to palm while using the Naga X. you can also check out our other our Razer Naga review or our Naga Pro review, to get a sense how the Naga X is different.
There’s an additional button below the scroll wheel intended to toggle between DPI levels, like many other mice on the market.
Compared to its more expensive brethren, the Naga X offers a lower price and the lightest weight in the line, but at the cost of some bells and whistles. Razer does not currently offer the Naga X in a left-handed orientation, for one thing. It also lacks the swappable side panels, second top button, and illuminated logo of the Naga Pro.
It’s no surprise that Razer knows how to make a good mouse, though. The real focus of the Naga family is the collection of thumb buttons, intended specifically for use in MMOs, and the Naga X offers an affordable compromise. By default, the numbered buttons correspond to the same number on your keyboard. These can be reprogrammed for a wide variety of uses, from web browsing or media handling to macros or RGB control, and you can set several multiple profiles on-board. No need to cram your shortcuts for two wildly different games into the same mouse profile.
My initial doubts about these buttons were put to rest, as they are surprisingly easy to hit with accuracy and speed. They look and feel more natural than earlier iterations of the product line. It took some focus—first to find the right button, then to hit it without knocking my mouse off-point—but in no time flat I could hit numbers on command, or even type phone numbers while practicing.
If you’re like me, years of hardwiring will kick in once you hit a game, and have you defaulting to a simple button on your keyboard instead of mashing one of twelve tiny nubs on your mouse. I had to retreat to some slower-paced activities to focus on using the Naga X instead.
Despite being marketed as a MMO peripheral, it could have applications in many different genres. I even booted up my old save in Terraria and found the thumb buttons pretty useful in some more strenuous moments.
That’s the heart of the matter, though—the Naga X is frankly overkill for more casual applications, and really shines in frantic, high-level content. I wouldn’t choose this as my one dedicated mouse either, because I prefer a more natural approach outside of games, with simpler back/forward buttons. If you’re a committed MMO player grinding endgame content regularly, and you crave the utmost customization, the Naga X is an excellent compromise to its more expensive brethren. Otherwise the extra notches may be more of a hindrance.
