Mad Catz's Updated RAT Mice Lineup Slated For Holiday 2016 (Update: Now Available)
Update, 10/17/16, 8:13am PT: The RAT series of gaming mice is now available.
For the second half of 2016, Mad Catz will turn its attention to its RAT mice lineup. Specifically, the company will upgrade six of its mice (the RAT 1, RAT 4, RAT 6, RAT 8, RAT Pro S+ and RAT Pro X+) with adjustable parts, RGB lighting and new software.
The main goal for the company is to ensure that you can use palm, claw or fingertip grips with its mice. To that end, each mouse comes with at least one adjustable part. With the basic RAT 1 mouse, you can conform the palm rest to fit your personal grip, but the top-tier RAT Pro X+ has multiple adjustable parts including the palm, pinkie and thumb rests, scroll wheel, and glide feet. Most of the mice also have a max DPI setting that ranges between 5,000-12,000. However, the Pro X+ also features swappable sensor modules so that you can have a max DPI of 5,000, 8,200 or 12,000.
Most of the new peripherals also include Mad Catz’s new RGB lighting "Kameleon" software. Obviously, you can choose from the full color spectrum so that your mouse stands out from the rest of your gaming setup. Then again, with almost every peripheral company heavily invested in the RGB lighting craze, your new RAT mouse will probably just add to your gaming PC light show.
A new RGB lighting system means that you’ll need to tweak the colors from a software app. Mad Catz is also coming out with a new app called the FLUX Software Interface, from which you'll be able to change the lighting colors, DPI settings and macro button assignments.
The company didn’t provide a specific date for release, but it expects the lineup to be available before the holiday season. Pricing for the mice is not available yet, but you can expect it to come out shortly before release.
| Mad Catz RAT Mice | RAT 1 | RAT 4 | RAT 6 | RAT 8 | RAT Pro S+ | RAT Pro X+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chassis | Plastic | Plastic | Aluminum | Aluminum | Plastic | Magnesium |
| Weight | 60 grams | 90 grams | 120 grams (max 138 grams) | 145 grams (max 163 grams) | 80 grams | 110 grams |
| Cable Length | 1.8 meters | 1.8 meters | 1.8 meters | 1.8 meters | 1.8 meters | 1.8 meters |
| Connection | Wired | Wired | Wired | Wired | Wired | Wired |
| Sensor | Optical | Optical | Laser | Optical | Optical | Optical/Laser |
| Max DPI | 1,600 | 5,000 | 8,200 | 12,000 | 7,200 | 5,000/8,000/12,000 |
| Button Life | 5 million clicks | 20 million clicks | 50 million clicks | 50 million clicks | 50 million clicks | 50 million clicks |
| Lighting | Single color | Single color | Kameleon RGB | Kameleon RGB | Kameleon RGB | Kameleon RGB |
| Macro Buttons | 6 | 9 | 11 | 11 | 8 | 10 |
| Number of Profiles/Modes | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 9 |
| Swappable Sensor Module | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Adjustable Weight | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Adjustable Palm Rest | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Adjustable Pinkie Rest | No | No | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Adjustable Thumb Rest | No | No | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Adjustable Scroll Wheel | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Adjustable Glide Feet | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Misc | None | Precision Aim | -On-board memory included-Precision Aim | -On-board memory -includedPrecision Aim | -On-board memory included-Precision Aim | -On-board memory included-Precision Aim-Analog Strafe |
Get Tom's Hardware's best news and in-depth reviews, straight to your inbox.
Rexly Peñaflorida is a freelance writer for Tom's Hardware covering topics such as computer hardware, video games, and general technology news.
-
sillynilly Had a RAT for a couple of years and loved it. Currently using a Logitech G502, but would look to the RAT rods again.Reply -
falchard I never really liked the rat. It was a good design except for 2 things. I never liked the plastic they used. The side buttons always annoyed me.Reply -
DeadlyDays I liked everything about their mice except the sensor. The sensor is way too oversensitive which makes the mouse unreliable. A spec of dust or a single hair and suddenly the mouse doesn't work, or the vibrations from a subwoofer cause the mouse to wander around the screen without even turning the subwoofer above medium. Sometimes high sensitivity specs are a bad thingReply -
techjwalker The RATs were great mice back when Saitek made them. In fact, everything Saitek made was substantially higher quality until Mad Catz bought the company and started substituting lower-quality components while charging the same price.Reply