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The Corsair Ironclaw ($60) is a sturdy game mouse that fills an exceptional niche: serving gamers with big hands. If your fleshy mitts were to break something like the Razer Atheris in half, the Ironclaw is sturdy enough to survive your palm or claw game, complete with comfortable textured grips, programmable software and just enough extra buttons. This is our Corsair Ironclaw RGB Wireless Review.
Now, if you’re willing to spend a little more money, you can get the Corsair’s Ironclaw RGB Wireless: a decent upgrade at a reasonable price. However, when tweaking the Ironclaw for a wireless release, Corsair did a few fun things with the design, placing new buttons that the mouse didn’t need and reusing the thumb buttons to take up more space. By playing with it, the original Ironclaw simply feels a lot better, especially when you don’t need ten buttons in your daily gaming sessions.
Corsair Ironclaw RGB Wireless Review: Design
Just like the wired Ironclaw, the Ironclaw RGB Wireless is huge. Measuring at 5.1 x 3.2 x 1.8-inches, it won’t make many other gaming mice fall. The disadvantage is that people with smaller hands cannot use a claw grip; the advantage is that people with larger hands can use a palm or claw grip without any problems. It is also ergonomically designed (right-handed only), and it has textured supports on both sides of the mouse. It is comfortable to hold and convenient to use.
I had more mixed feelings about the layout of the buttons. The wired Ironclaw had seven buttons; the Ironclaw Wireless has ten and therefore feels much tighter. There is a left button, a right button, a clickable scroll wheel, two face buttons, and two thumb buttons.
But the thumb buttons can also be clicked from above this time and have a “sniper” button in the middle. There are also two buttons right next to the left button, which you can click with your index finger. By default, these control dots are per-inch (DPI) sensitivity, but you can program them to do anything you want.
The problems with the three buttons are twofold. First of all, the DPI buttons with the index finger are not needed; the two buttons under the scroll wheel have done just fine on the wired model. Besides, the sniper button is in an extraordinary place, because you have to take your thumb up and down to click it. When you compare models like the Corsair M65 RGB Elite, so the sniper button is where your thumb naturally rests, the buttons added are a confusing design decision.
Features
The Ironclaw has “wireless” right in its name, so the mouse’s wireless connectivity should be one of its best features. You can connect the Ironclaw Wireless via Bluetooth or the 2.4-GHz dongle. Both models are easy to set up and are performed with perfect reliability during my gaming and productivity tests. However, in Bluetooth mode, the DPI sensitivity seemed a bit more aggressive than usual, and you can’t program the mouse with the iCUE software, so I would recommend the dongle if possible.
Speaking of the iCUE software, you’ll be familiar with it if you’ve used a Corsair mouse, keyboard, or headset in recent years. It is a very detailed and complex program that allows you to reprogram buttons, set DPI levels, create macros, and adjust the backlight. The program works fine once you’re over the learning curve, but it’s not as easy to use as competing programs like Razer Synapse and Logitech G Hub.
It’s also frustrating that you can’t check the Ironclaw Wireless’ battery without going to the iCUE setup menu. This is something most users will want to know at a glance, but instead, it’s so well hidden that I had to look it up online to find out where it was.
One thing that deserves some praise, however, is the crystal-clear DPI lighting. Like the wired Ironclaw, the Ironclaw Wireless has three lights right next to the thumb buttons, one that matches any possible DPI level. (You can adjust these levels to anything between 100 and 18,000.) The re’s no guesswork or intricate patterns, and you can even choose the color that matches each DPI setting.
Besides, there is some lighting on the palm rest and under the scroll wheel, but you’ll probably not notice either when you’re in the game.
Corsair Ironclaw RGB Wireless Review: Performance
The Ironclaw Wireless, like most Corsair mice, has an excellent performance in the game. I ran it through Destiny 2, World of Warcraft, StarCraft: Remastered and Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales to get a good idea of its capabilities and got away very satisfactorily. From building massive Zerg armies to undertaking legendary searches in Azeroth, the Ironclaw was receptive, precise, and accurate.
I only have one problem, which I have touched upon before: The sniper button’s not in the right place. In Destiny 2, I enjoyed using sniper buttons on competing mice to slow down my DPI while aiming.
However, it’s in such a weird spot on the Ironclaw Wireless that I ultimately left it. Having an extra button that is awkward to use may be less convenient than not having an additional button in the first place.
Corsair Ironclaw RGB Wireless Review: Conclusion
I like the Ironclaw Wireless, mainly because I liked the original Ironclaw, and the cordless version retains most of the same features. At the same time, most of the changes are detrimental to the Ironclaw Wireless, rather than adding them. The new buttons are not ideally located and give the mouse a tighter feel. On the other hand, $80 for a wireless mouse from a major manufacturer is not unreasonable at all, and having both Bluetooth and USB connectivity is a convenient feature.
The Ironclaw Wireless is worth considering, especially if you have large hands. However, if you can live with fewer buttons, the Corsair Harpoon RGB Wireless delivers a similar experience for $50. If you’re not concerned with wireless functions, you can grab a regular Ironclaw for $60. Choose wisely, but be aware that there aren’t any wrong choices among those three. For more options, check our list of Best Gaming Mouse