We were impressed with the laser version of this Ikari; however, some were disappointed by the absence of the optical version in our survey.  According to them it is identical in shape while being less expensive and even better in terms of performance.  After our evaluation, we didn’t find this entirely true.  First of all, the materials used in construction are different as the finish of the laser Ikari is slightly granulated, a perfect remedy perspiration.  Otherwise, on the optical version there is a glossy and smooth body.  Here we have to give the advantage to the laser because in use not only is the finish less comfortable for your hand but it also retains more heat.   Besides this characteristic, here are some other differences:

•    Colors differ slightly as the optical is light gray and the laser is dark gray.  This is a question of taste.

•    The laser glides perfectly on all surfaces even on the most unlikely such as the glossy side of a CD.  The optical needs a flat and clean support.  Otherwise, it either doesn’t detect anything or is unstable.

•    The LCD screen found on the laser disappears on the optical version.  Nothing dramatic as it’s far from being indispensable.

•    Some seem to prefer optical mice for their supposedly better sensitivity when they are raised off of the desktop.  Here the two Ikaris are equivalent and if you raise either of them 2 mm, they cannot detect anything.

•    The laser goes up to 3200 dpi while the optical is limited to 1600 dpi, which by the way is largely enough.  1600 is already very fast, too much so for many users.  Moving the mouse 3 cm to the right means crossing a 24 inch screen.  On our dual screen 24 inch configuration, we work in 1200 dpi.

The optical mouse is touted as a model without a driver: we simply plug it in and it works.  There is no CD.  For those, like us, that find the 1600 dpi resolution too big and 400 (also available via a button on the scroll wheel) too slow, you have to download a driver, install it and then unfortunately discover a rather limited version of the program.  The sensitivities offered are not variable and you have to choose between three combinations including 800/1600 which is in fact not recommended by SteelSeries as latency is too strong in this mode.


We therefore opted for 400/800 but were quite disheartened.  What a waste for such a mouse!

In the end, despite what aficionados of the optical version may think, the difference in price between the laser model isn’t only justified by the different sensor.  The laser is slightly better…in all domains.  The finish that enables a better grip and greater freedom in resolution really has an effect on user comfort.  Other than that, we also preferred the precision of the laser because we could adjust sensitivity to our tastes.