INTRODUCTION

   Last week we mentioned the latest game by Bungie called Destiny which finally hit consoles after a somewhat long beta period but we failed to mention that the PC version (if it ever comes to fruition) is not available yet. So i just wanted to clarify this cause some of you were confused and thought that we received a PC copy although we actually got a PS4 copy. I'm not really into consoles (others are however) however so i continue to test all gaming peripherals with the latest PC titles including the Star Citizen Beta, The Crew Beta, Planetside 2 and Dead Rising 3 (although this game is great it does like crashing to desktop very frequently). Currently i spend all my free time testing gaming mice and headsets (since i can do both at the same time thus it saves me a bit of time) and today i finally finished testing the latest gaming mouse by ZOWIE GEAR called the FK1.

   ZOWIE GEAR is an innovative manufacturer of competitive gaming gear, founded late 2008 with a mission to develop the best competitive gaming gear available. We are not limited by shareholders telling us what we can or cannot do. We are a free-minded company consisting of experienced and creative individuals, united in ZOWIE on a common ground; our passion for gaming. No boundaries. No compromises. Just gaming. ZOWIE GEAR has no ambition to become the biggest manufacturer of competitive gaming gear. We just want to be the best. If we can develop products that will increase a gamers performance by just 1%, we will do it. This is our mentality. It's not just a game. This is ZOWIE GEAR. Strive for Perfection.

   The FK1 is actually an all-around improved version of the older FK model featuring a larger shape (roughly 1mm taller, 4mm longer and 3mm wider) and the latest ADNS-3310 IR-LED optical sensor by Avago which offers the same zero hardware mouse acceleration feature we liked so much in the past from other similar solutions. Of course ZOWIE GEAR being a brand that caters to the needs of serious and professional E-Sport gamers (not fond of software control panels either) they limited the speed of the sensor to 3200DPI (400/800/1600/3200) but knowing a thing or two about their products this shouldn't matter much. ZOWIE GEAR didn't stop there however so they also improved the LOD (lift-off-distance) feature of the unit by reducing it to 1.5~1.8mm something which should appeal quite a bit to gamers (not so much to casual users). That being said I’m curious to see what ZOWIE GEAR has done with the latest FK1 so let's not spend any more time here.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

We received the FK1 gaming mouse inside a white box with a clear plastic area at the front from where you can see the mouse and even place your hand on it to measure the size.

Instructions on how you can adjust the polling rate of the FK1 are placed on the left side of the box.

The features list is printed in three languages on the right side.

The same features list is present at the rear in 6 languages around a picture of the FK1 and instructions on how to change the left/right buttons (for left/right users).

The FK1, a large sticker with the ZOWIE GEAR logo and two replacement pads are placed in the box.

THE FK1

The FK1 follows in the footsteps of the FK 14' edition but it's slightly larger measuring 128mm in length, 67mm in width and 37mm in height while it weighs 90g.

Since there's no control software for the FK1 the two thumb buttons are not programmable but they can be used to change the report rate (as seen on the box).

The company logo is placed at the rear and is painted yellow.

As you can see the FK1 doesn't have its DPI adjustment button at the top and that may "annoy" some users.

Two more buttons are placed on the left side of the mouse.

The clickable scroll wheel is not very soft but it's very responsive.

Since I’m quite certain that some of you might want to see how the FK1 compares to the recently reviewed GAMDIAS ZEUS we placed them right next to each other.

Two large Teflon feet are placed at the belly of the FK1.

Here we also see the Avago ADNS-3310 IR-LED optical sensor and the DPI selection button and LED.

ZOWIE has once again used the usual rubber cable which might be easier to handle and route compared to braided ones but its lifespan may not. A gold plated USB connector is also present at the end.

CONCLUSION

   When ZOWIE released the FK 14' gamers around the world had only good things to say about it since it offered exceptional accuracy and speed without the need for control software. Still there were 2 things many fans didn't seem to like, its size and weight. The original FK 14' was indeed quite small and didn't offer the best grip for people with medium and large hands so ZOWIE actually listened to the community and took it back to the drawing board. Several months later the FK1 was born and although it's indeed slightly larger and heavier it's not exactly there yet. Certainly the grip is better compared to the original FK 14' but not what I’d like to see especially since my hands are medium to large so i don't really know why ZOWIE went into all this trouble only to release something roughly 5% larger. Obviously some people will be happy since it's better compared to the already good FK 14' but at least for me it's not large and heavy enough, at least not as much as I’d like to be. I can't really deny that it's very accurate and certainly one of the top three all-around gaming mice I’ve used in 2014 but i think that ZOWIE needs to make it even larger and heavier for it to be perfect. Liftoff distance also seems to be right on the spot with the specs ZOWIE gives so no problems in that area.

   Just like most gaming mice by ZOWIE GEAR the FK1 comes at a very attractive price tag which is currently set at USD59.99 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and for 68Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk). This price tag lands the FK1 right next to the very good RIVAL gaming mouse by SteelSeries and a handful of other gaming mice so the competition is quite serious. In the end it's all comes down to what you're after so if you want a plug and play gaming mouse that requires no control software and has no bells and whistles on it but focuses on giving you a very good gaming experience then the ZOWIE FK1 is the one for you and although it's still not perfect it's very good and that's why it gets our Golden Award.

PROS

- Build Quality
- Design
- Good Grip
- Very Accurate & Fast (Avago ADNS-3310 IR-LED Optical Sensor)
- 4 Available DPI Presets
- Requires No Control Software & Drivers
- Price (For Some)

CONS

- Size & Weight (For Some)