Introduction

SteelSeries has always been known for their high-end gaming gear. They are one of the most reputable brands when it comes to mouse mats and headsets. SteelSeries Ikari Optical is roughly the same mouse as the Laser version, but as the name suggests with a high performance optical sensor installed instead. The optical version is much more reasonably priced, but it does lack the LCD screen underneath the mouse.

The Ikari Optical is aimed at hardcore FPS gamers that need coherent tracking even while playing with a relatively low sensitivity. Ordinarily optical mice can achieve coherent tracking at much higher speeds than laser mice in terms of "Inches-Per-Second" (IPS) and the optical version of the Ikari does just that, however, the gap to the laser version is somewhat smaller than I am used to seeing.

Specifications

• Specific design for FPS gamers
• Proven LED technology
• Driverless, plug-and-play feature for LAN gamers
• Ability to toggle between two CPI settings

This is kind of a surprise. SteelSeries puts more emphasis on the mouse being driverless than on boasting about its performance. Even though the mouse is meant for driverless operation it still has some of the same features as the laser version. You still get the choice of two CPI settings that you can change on-the-fly by pressing the switch button.

The Package

The SteelSeries Ikari Optical comes in the same box as the Laser with just the name changed.


On the back of the box you can read all about the specifications. What is interesting to note is that the Ikari Optical only uses a 1600 DPI optical engine which is a bit less than the competitors in the same market segment. Compared to the laser version it is clear that this mouse is aimed more directly at FPS gamers.


With the mouse you get a driver CD and a small sticker and manual. The Ikari mice are all aimed at gamers so both will function just fine without the driver installed on the system. The Optical is furthermore less driver dependent than the Laser in terms of configuration.