OP1 8K Review: Excellent Performance, Fatiguing Shape
The OP1 8K has been my daily driver since mid November on a variety of games. In this review, I'd like to cover my thoughts and opinions on the real-world performance of the mouse. There will be sub headers denoting individual topics, it's difficult to collect my thoughts otherwise.
Note: This is a shell swapped Purple Frost OP1! My reasoning is discussed in the "Skates" section. This means I am working with the lighter mechanical switches binned with the Purple Frost, as well as the newer 3950 sensor.
Games I Play:
Team Fortress 2 (Scout, heavy flicking)
The Finals
Deadlock (Haze, heavy tracking)
Hand Size: 8.5W x 18L
Peripherals:
Mouse Bungee - Vaxee Oryza (Highly Recommended)
Skates - Jade Dots, Jade Air Donuts, Obsidian Dots
Mousepads - Artisan Raiden Mid, Hien Soft, Key83 Mid (All XL)
Setup of preference for this mouse: Artisan Raiden, Jade Dots
The Cable
Going into it, the cable proved to be both exciting and daunting. Even with the amazing Vaxee Oryza, I will admit that you can feel the cable. There's no other way about it, it's a cable and you do have to work with it. I will note, the texture of the Hien and Key make the cable more pronounced as there is more resistance between the two, while the Raiden had noticeably less drag. For those of you on textureless speed pads and glass pads, the cable experience (with a proper bungee) can be very close to wireless, but I can't say its "invisible" on either smooth or textured cloth pads.
I will say, not having to charge or turn on your mouse is a nice QoL perk, but it isn't a great enough benefit for me to take it into account when debating whether wired is worth it. Plugging in your mouse at the end of the day is not a laborious task. With low-latency, mech switch, reliable wireless mice coming from Vaxee and WL, I can't say the cable is worth it for me. The market has caught up with this mouse in that regard.
Mousepads
I would say the Raiden is my preferred pad for this mouse sheerly due to the cable interaction I mentioned earlier. Generally, though, I prefer textured pads, which forces this mouse require an undesired sacrifice for me. The Hien proved to be the most frustrating of the bunch, as the cable would snag on the slower Y-axis. The Key was tolerable, but still noticeable.
The Skates
I was unimpressed with EGG's supplied skates. Their performance was passable, but they are not the quality of aftermarket offerings. I would appreciate it if the industry followed what Scyrox does in this market, where the mouse comes with zero skates applied, allowing the user to not waste time removing and often destroying the applied skates. What became a nightmare, and what ultimately led me to pursue a shell swap, was the RIDICULOUSLY strong adhesive EGG uses with their full coverage skates. After a very messy peel, the IPA pads supplied by Xraypad proved insufficient, and I resorted to deconstructing the shell and brushing the adhesive with an IPA dipped toothbrush for roughly a half hour, followed by a few cycles of Dawn dish soap scrubs. After this, there is still a "tackiness" to the bottom of the mouse. Because of this remaining tackiness, I reached out to EGG and they were kind enough to supply me a donor shell free of charge. I suspect this may be an issue unique to the frost shells, as the skates present on the white shell I received were remarkably easy to remove and left no residue. Regardless, this was a very frustrating experience!
Aftermarket Skates
Cycling between the Xraypad Obsidian Dots, Jade Dots, and Jade Air Donuts, I've found the Jade Dots to be best fit with this mouse to my preference. The OP1's excellent fingertip maneuverability can be best taken advantage of with exceptionally fast skates.
The Clicks
This will be brief, as its mostly subjective, but I am okay with the OP1's main clicks. I find the mech implementation from my Vaxee Sora to be crispier and fuller, but the OP1 still feels very good. I will say the side buttons on the OP1 remain the be the highlight, they're exceptionally crispy and feel fantastic to spam. The scroll is fine as well, with a nice light actuation.
The Build Quality
I'm not going to waste my time on this, you know EGG quality is top notch. No creaks, no grinding, it's a total tank. I especially appreciate the metal threads on the shell and switch screws that prevent stripping from frequent switch swapping, lovely attention to detail. The coating is also excellent, and felt the same between my White and Purple Frost shells.
The Software
It's simple and weightless. I opened it once, adjusted everything I needed to, and I've yet to open it again. I would appreciate if the software included more detailed descriptions of what certain features do (such as Motion Sync). Their discord has a bot that can help with those features, but I'd rather not have to join a discord.
The Shape
Here is where my plight with this mouse lies. The shape's performance is fantastic, and I really recommend you watch Viscose's video on the mouse to hear her reasoning as I feel the same in a lot of regards. With its squared front, I can pinch the mouse with a firm fingertip grip and make micro adjustments with ease. When I need to lock down my aim, pushing the mouse into a claw proves to be very effective for short frantic periods. Finally, the fingertip grip allows for flicks at angles I've never before achieved. Its a versatile and excelling design, and I congratulate the EGG team on creating something so distinct in a copycat heavy market.
HOWEVER
This mouse, despite the extended period I've had to get comfortable with it, is incredibly exhausting to use for any meaningful period of time. I have generally "smaller" hands for a guy, and even then, the front of this mouse is still too narrow. It's a double edged sword, the narrow front gives my hand the ability to pinch it with a large range of motion, but that exaggerated positioning creates fatigue rather quickly. This isn't a mouse to be permanently clawed for me, as it's far too short and creates some strain in my wrist to make work. Furthermore, the more subdued curves on the sides (that allow for that excellent pinch) hinder my ability to hook my thumb into a claw. Sustained tracking is by far my weakest area with this mouse. This is a fingertip first, claw second mouse and it wears me the hell out. I love how I play with this thing, but it isn't sustainable, and I've had to give it up.
Conclusion
The OP1 8K is a refreshing and divisive piece of hardware. While my gripe with the skates is minor, the cable was admittedly a larger turn-off for me the more time I spent with it. To achieve an experience as close as possible to wireless, I surrendered my Key83 in favor of the Raiden, conflicting with my preference for textured pads. Finally, and most importantly, my excellent micro-adjustment and flick performance was outweighed by the strain caused by the shape. Additionally, its strengths in fingertip resulted in poor sustained-claw performance, causing my tracking ability to suffer.
For someone, this can be the perfect mouse. Sadly, that someone is not me. I'm very grateful for the time I've had with the OP1, as its shown me what quality engineering looks like from a group of people who really give a damn, and I wish this company the best.
Thank you all for reading! Please let me know if you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer them.