Author Topic: ZOWIE EC Series ON sales @ $39.99 (Read 10902 times)

tonyklo · « **on:** Wed, 08 December 2010, 17:11:35 »

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=4808%204025&IsNodeId=1&Description=zowie%20mouse&name=$25%20-%20$50

These were priced at $59.99 before.

The mouse is great, i've tried them both. One of the smoothest sensor i've used.

Anyhow, saw a great dear, figure i would post it here. : )

nmd · « **Reply #1 on:** Wed, 08 December 2010, 18:48:34 »

Ooooh, I was looking at getting one of these. I'm not sure though, can you give any more info about the EC2 Black?

What's the size like in relation to other mice and how firm is the middle click(super firm like G9x or light like Razer/SteelSeries mice)? What is the gloss like, is it high gloss like Razer uses, because I hate that **** with a passion.

Other thing: is it a rebranded mice? I know in the past Zowie mostly made gear that was rebranded and painted differently or something, which always was a turn off to me especially the way the marketed it - so admittedly I haven't paid much attention to them till lately when they released the EC2's.

mian2222 · « **Reply #2 on:** Wed, 08 December 2010, 21:11:32 »

This looks like a real nice deal considering the form factor and DPI. Reviews are great too! One question, whats the difference between the EC1 and the EC2? I can't seem to find one in terms of design and function.

Also this is my first post

Been lurking for a bit.

nmd · « **Reply #3 on:** Wed, 08 December 2010, 23:47:40 »

EC1/EC2 difference is size, EC2 is 6% smaller but if you look at pictures that translates into a pretty noticeable difference.

White is full glossy like that found on the Intellimouse where as black is rubberized coating(but the sides look glossy, I emailed them about the coating.)

I also asked them about the warranty directly but their site doesn't have too much information available at first glance, I couldn't find drivers but from what I skimmed in reviews - it's driverless so that could be why.

tonyklo · « **Reply #4 on:** Thu, 09 December 2010, 05:45:46 »

Comparison of EC-1 vs other mouse

Left to Right IE 3.0 > EC1 White = Black = DeathAdder

[EC2 pic]

Xai = IO 1.1 > EC2 WHITE = Black > Kinzu

tonyklo · « **Reply #5 on:** Thu, 09 December 2010, 05:46:58 »

This is a great mouse if u play FPS games ( i use it for CS 1.6 )
but if u need customizations, this may not be for u considering it's driverless and best for plug&play @ LAN.

fuzzybyte · « **Reply #6 on:** Thu, 09 December 2010, 07:47:42 »

too bad zowie EC costs 76EUR here

why it has only 2000dpi? not that most people would need anything above that but still..

tonyklo · « **Reply #7 on:** Thu, 09 December 2010, 13:03:34 »

it's using a optical sensor... they chose this particular sensor to manage things like lift-off distance, jittery movement that Laser sensor tend to have. Plus needing something above 2000dpi is a bit absurd anyways

mian2222 · « **Reply #8 on:** Thu, 09 December 2010, 20:08:19 »

How do you like the white smooth version? I might be getting that for Christmas. My Razer Diamondback doesn't feel so nice anymore in terms of ergonomics.

tonyklo · « **Reply #9 on:** Thu, 09 December 2010, 22:19:53 »

This is a limited time offer though : ) if u wana get it, get one now !!
I like the white one as well... good for "sweaty" palms... i guess

kamikazekyle · « **Reply #10 on:** Fri, 10 December 2010, 11:53:36 »

Amazon has the black EC1 for 39.99 as well. The white EC1 and the EC2's aren't on sale, however.

I ordered the white EC2 from NewEgg, now I"m tempted to order the EC1 from Amazon since I get $3.99 Saturday delivery

sairex · « **Reply #11 on:** Fri, 10 December 2010, 18:53:33 »

Stupid question: can you map the side buttons to back and forward for a browser, or do I need to use something like Autohotkey to do it?

fuzzybyte · « **Reply #12 on:** Sat, 11 December 2010, 11:39:56 »

Quote from: sairex;261038

Stupid question: can you map the side buttons to back and forward for a browser, or do I need to use something like Autohotkey to do it?

usually they are already mapped automagically regardless of your mouse model.

tonyklo · « **Reply #13 on:** Sat, 11 December 2010, 13:25:34 »

Quote from: sairex;261038

Stupid question: can you map the side buttons to back and forward for a browser, or do I need to use something like Autohotkey to do it?

yes they're programmed to be backward/foward on mouse4/5 by default

mian2222 · « **Reply #14 on:** Mon, 13 December 2010, 19:18:27 »

I just received the EC1. The shape is great, the matte finish is not THAT rubbery, so people expecting that shouldn't. On Windows 7 the extra mouse buttons are already mapped to forward/back, I don't know if that would be the same for other OSes.

The only issue I have with this mouse is that the construction doesn't seem as solid as my Diamondback (the forward/back buttons seem a little wiggly and the scroll wheel has issues).

For the scroll wheel, when scrolling up/down the initial scroll down/up after scrolling one direction might not register every time. Since I bought this mouse for gaming I don't care for the scroll wheel entirely, but for those who like to scroll a lot while browsing this may tick you off. The shape and size is very similar to that of the mx518/deathadder. It's not that big and its good for palm grippers.

kamikazekyle · « **Reply #15 on:** Tue, 14 December 2010, 08:00:42 »

The scroll wheel issue is actually a defect in the first run of the mice. Contact Zowie and they should coordinate a replacement with the fixed scroll wheel.

My EC2 should be in today, so I'll stack that up compared to my Orochi and MX518. I'm more of a claw or hybrid gripper on the mouse, so I'm curious as to how the EC2 will fit my style.

Ironically, I've always found the side buttons on Razer mice to be flimsy and weak, so if this is even worse...

mian2222 · « **Reply #16 on:** Tue, 14 December 2010, 11:29:51 »

Lol I think there's only 1 fanboy... and my friend was sponsored in CS 1.6 and source and swore by the MX 518. An excellent choice indeed. I just wanted something different.

Shazb0t · « **Reply #17 on:** Tue, 14 December 2010, 15:29:14 »

There is nothing wrong with the Zowie EC series if you don't mind prediction.

EC1: Similar to MX518/DeathAdder/3.0, Palm grip, Prediction
EC2: Similar to 1.1/Xai, Claw/fingertip grip, Prediction

Other popular choices:
MX518: Palm grip, Prediction
Intellimouse 1.1: Claw/fingetip grip
Intellimouse 3.0: Palm grip
Xai: Claw/fingertip grip
DeathAdder: Palm grip

kamikazekyle · « **Reply #18 on:** Tue, 14 December 2010, 19:02:54 »

I've been playing around with the EC2 for a while on OSX and Windows. On OSX it has some oddball acceleration issues. Despite being higher DPI than my MX518, it's covers less area at the same sensitivity. Also, while moving the mouse very slow, either something with OSX or the prediction (or a combination of the two) come into play and the cursor sometimes skips a few pixels no matter the mousing surface. It only seems to happen when the mouse is moving very slow (5 or 6 pixels per second tops).

On Windows, it doesn't seem to exhibit any of those issues. I don't have any jumping cursor at small speeds, and running at 2000 DPI seems about on par with my Orochi at 2000 DPI, just a lot smoother.

The mouse certainly is smoother in movement and feeling than the MX518, but not by a whole lot. It's definitely smoother than most laser mice I've used, which tend jump around or skitter at higher DPI. I do enjoy the buttons vice those on the MX518, G9, and all Razer mice I've tried (Mamba, Copperhead, Diamondback, Orochi). Very nice tactile umph and reminiscent of the Intellimouse. It also fits my hybrid claw/palm grip a bit better than my other mice -- enough of a palm bump to support my hand while not being too big to get in the way when clawing.

Thankfully I didn't have any mouse wheel problems like others have from the first batch. The wheel is thick rubber and puts up a lot of resistance when scrolling. Nice for games where you want a very tactile register, though it makes for scrolling longer documents and web pages fatiguing.

Overall, I kinda like the EC2 over other optical mice I've tried, even with the oddness in OSX. It's still not speed-twitchy like lasers, though it exhibits the smoothness that seems to be lacking in high DPI lasers but is common in opticals. Yet, it still maintains enough twitch-like response. I wish you could get some drivers for it to set up macros easily on the extra buttons (I use FRAPS a lot), but that can be worked around.

I wouldn't say the mouse is worth $60, especially when you can grab the MX518 which is VERY comparable for $35 or less. At $40 or less, if you like the older Intellimouse grip, I'd say it's a good buy.

Side note, the cord is freakishly long compared to other mice I have.

mian2222 · « **Reply #19 on:** Tue, 14 December 2010, 23:15:44 »

I haven't tried the EC1 in OS X, but my Razer Diamondback has the same exact problem on the Mac compared to the Windows. I always thought it was because of the lack of Apple drivers, maybe its still the case considering the Zowie mice have no drivers. Whatever the reason, I also agree the mouse is muchhh smoother than my Razer Diamondback. I realize now that a lot of my problems with the Diamondback comes from the prediction in the mouse. The Zowie's prediction seems much smoother.

kamikazekyle · « **Reply #20 on:** Wed, 15 December 2010, 06:45:53 »

I don't recall the MX518 having the issue in OS X, though honestly, I rarely operate at such slow speeds on the mouse anyway. I'll plop the MX518 on tonight again and see if it's exhibiting the same problems as I'm using built-in OS X drivers for that too.

I know that I really had to tweak the mouse settings with the Orochi as it the default acceleration and sensitivity made the mouse close to unusable. It'd start off slow, then accelerate to ludicrous speed with no middle non-plaid mode. I eventually got it to a usable state, but was never really happy with its performance on OS X. Windows was fine, aside from the cursor jumping here and there that I've had with all lasers over the years.

The EC2 is kinda growing on me. I wasn't happy with it at all to begin with, but after a few hours between various OSes and games, I'm starting to acclimate. Brings back the feel of the classic Intellimouse 1.1 that I always wanted but actually owned, ironically enough. Besides, I got the white version so it can be out of place on my otherwise totally black/gray/silver setup next to my also out-of-place 86U white. Figures I order the 86U a week before EK starts offering preorders for the black tenkeyless versions, and at a significant discount over what I paid.

tonyklo · « **Reply #21 on:** Wed, 15 December 2010, 07:37:16 »

Nice to hear that you are starting to like the EC-2 : )
Never used it on OS-X either, but i'm sure there's always ways to fix it !

You had ur cursor jumping here n there? hum? it's an optical mouse actually. So that shouldn't happen at all. Mind if i ask what kind of mousepad do you have?

These gaming mice are best accompanied by a good gaming mouse pad : )

kamikazekyle · « **Reply #22 on:** Wed, 15 December 2010, 13:59:57 »

It was only doing it in OS X and only at very slow movement speeds, which was really odd. I gave it a shot on the Orochi micro cloth pad I got free with my Orochi, an Icemat rebrand I got eons ago, my plain wood desk, and a piece of paper. All had the same problem.

I've had certain mouse pads cause issues if they were oddly patterned with certain sensors, but it was a consistent jumping in those cases. And the skipping was a bit more dramatic than the laser jitter I get sometimes with lasers. The only guess I have right now is that the prediction engine was somehow (how I really don't know) messing with the native OSX drivers. *shrug* It's not noticable in everyday use or Windows, and I primarily game on my Windows machine, so it's not too concerning to me.

I do wish it had a freewheel scroll wheel option like the G9 series

I *loved* that option on Logitechs for documents and webpages.

mian2222 · « **Reply #23 on:** Wed, 15 December 2010, 14:42:34 »

Yeah I miss smooth wheels too. The clicky wheels are aight, but they have a weird feel to them. Of my Diamondback and the EC1, the scroll wheel on the Diamondback is much "tighter". I don't know how to explain it. Seems a bit better to me. The EC1 is a bit loose between the clicks.

I also noticed that the optical of the mouse gets kinda warm during use. I didn't notice this on my Razer. Not sure if this is normal.

tonyklo · « **Reply #24 on:** Wed, 15 December 2010, 17:25:59 »

i think it does get warm sometimes, happened on my DeathAdder as well.

mian2222 · « **Reply #25 on:** Wed, 15 December 2010, 21:25:09 »

RMA service is pretty good at Zowie! I sent them an email with my scroll wheel problems and they said they'll send me a new mouse and mouse pad with it to compensate for the shipping. Sure, its not free shipping but at least they understand I'm paying out of pocket.

nmd · « **Reply #26 on:** Thu, 16 December 2010, 02:24:13 »

That's pretty good service by them then.

What is the mouse wheel like(ones that work)? The click and step-by-step. Personally the Xai is the best mouse wheel I've ever used, the click is just perfect and the steps are defined. Logitech mice on the other hand tend to take too much to press down for me. :/

tonyklo · « **Reply #27 on:** Thu, 16 December 2010, 04:46:09 »

Xai's mouse wheel is quite a problem for Counter-Strike Players lol
cuz we use mouse wheel to bunny hop...
and for some reason it's harder to do it on a Xai :/

much easier on mouse like EC1/2 or DA / 1.1 / 3.0

nmd · « **Reply #28 on:** Thu, 16 December 2010, 05:04:58 »

I meant the force required to "click" the mouse wheel. Sorry, wasn't too specific in what I was asking.

Is there another mouse you can compare it too, in how hard/easy it is to click?

kamikazekyle · « **Reply #29 on:** Thu, 16 December 2010, 05:20:27 »

Played around a bit in more games and in Windows mostly last night. I also tried the MX518 again on OSX. It's something between the EC2 and OS X that's the issue as I don't have the problem in Windows with the EC2, or in OS X with the MX518. *shrug*

Anyway. Nmd, as to your question, the wheel on the EC2 is VERY tactile. It's "stiff", though not to the point where it's too resistive to turn. Each click is very identifiable and it's quite hard to actually over or under spin the wheel in games. The wheel is also made of the same thick rubber/silicone material that the Razer wheels are made of. It's probably a bit fatiguing to do a lot of extensive scrolling with it (ie. documents) compared to other wheels (hence how I really miss the freewheel of some Logitechs). I know with OS X's scroll wheel acceleration, I often over spun the wheel in web pages and documents due to the force required. On a linear scroll, such as with Windows, I didn't run into any problems.

Comparatively, it's the most tactile and firm wheel I've used out of any Logitech, Microsoft, Razer, or generic OEM mouse. I haven't used any Steel mice such as the Xai, so I can't compare it to those. I hope it doesn't develop the "squeak" that some Razer wheels succumb to over time.

Oh, and as to the middle mouse click (semi-wheel related), it's quite different compared to the other buttons, honestly. I haven't misclicked at all like I sometimes do on Razers primary buttons, but its quite less tactile than the primary/secondary buttons. Thankfully, the softer material of the wheel helps to balance it out so it takes about the same depression strength, just with less of a tactile and audible click.

mian2222 · « **Reply #30 on:** Thu, 16 December 2010, 11:23:32 »

To me, the force to click the scroll wheel seems less than my diamondback. In terms of actually clicking the scroll wheel I prefer the Zowie mouse. The scrolling is better on the Razer.

tonyklo · « **Reply #31 on:** Thu, 16 December 2010, 15:12:06 »

I guess it's all preference then !

still a great mouse though, n the price is great atm.

mian2222 · « **Reply #32 on:** Thu, 16 December 2010, 22:47:03 »

Noticed something oddly humorous today. When I lift my mouse off the desk while wearing a headset, I get interference in my headset...I wonder what kinda signals this thing is giving off?

tonyklo · « **Reply #33 on:** Fri, 17 December 2010, 09:59:39 »

that is pretty odd, never experienced that with my mouse + headset

2084 · « **Reply #34 on:** Fri, 17 December 2010, 10:50:09 »

I can beat that, if my iPod touch is connected via usb and I have a Skype conversation, I can hear a buzz sound as soon as I touch the iPod screen

kamikazekyle · « **Reply #35 on:** Fri, 17 December 2010, 11:11:31 »

All that buzzing, etc is due to grounding issues. Analog audio jacks, non-digital internal speaker connections, USB ports -- they're all grounded.

One laptop I have had HORRIBLE buzzing on the audio jack, to the point it wasn't usable. I set myself up for a fire hazard and ripped out the grounding plug. Buzz free since. I do kindly advise people not to go manually altering their plugs, however.

You usually hear this stuff more on laptops than on desktops. Many (in my experience, your mileage may vary) are notorius for buzzing interference over USB connections. I've only heard ground interference on my speakers once, and that was when I had two different active audio sources plugged in to the same amp via a single y-cable, the audio turned up high, and then moved the mouse.

If you have a pure digital (toslink) connection to your speakers, you shouldn't notice any buzzing if it's a grounding issue. There are other causes, but the above is just what I've personally observed.

Oh, I did figure out what might have been causing my cursor skip/jump issue on the EC2 with OSX. I had installed USB Overdrive for the MX518, but it couldn't do what I wanted so I never wound up using it. But since I didn't uninstall it, it took over all acceleration and sensitivity functions for the EC2 when I plugged it in. I disabled USB Overdrive, tweaked the default settings a bit, and it seems a lot better at slow speeds.

mian2222 · « **Reply #36 on:** Sat, 18 December 2010, 09:46:37 »

It's still a grounding issue if I don't hear the buzz when the mouse is down? I only hear it when the mouse is up off the desk, as in laser exposed. Well, either way its not loud enough for me to care, but I thought it was interesting.

Good thing to hear your mouse problems were fixed. I should check to see if I left any weird programs installed. I did have Steermouse but I thought I disabled it.

mian2222 · « **Reply #37 on:** Sun, 19 December 2010, 02:29:39 »

I'd need a lead mousepad o.o

woody · « **Reply #38 on:** Mon, 20 December 2010, 09:16:16 »

Quote from: ripster;265204

their 1000000hz Ultimate Polling

Watch the new TRON movie for some weak "cycle" usage.

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Author Topic: ZOWIE EC Series ON sales @ $39.99 (Read 10902 times)

woody