Shaped for Victory: Exploring the Ergonomics of the Zaopin ZPW Max 8Khz mouse
Community review from snakcaz1.
Disclaimer: This mouse was provided by MechKeys for review. They have no influence over my opinions, which are entirely my own. All links are provided for convenience and are not affiliate links. As always, I try to keep my reviews objective and unbiased.
Introduction
I recently had the opportunity to test the Zaopin ZPW Max, another ergonomic shape that is identical to the Steelseries prime. So if you were in the market for an updated ergo-shaped mouse akin to the Prime, this might fit your bill. Onto the specs and review!
Specifications & Price
ZPW (base) price: $79.99 USD
ZPW Max price: $89.99 USD
Size: 121.9x65x41.6mm
Weight: ~47g
Micro Switches: Omron Optical Micro Switches (100 million click rating)
Surface Coating: BZ Protein Membrane Coating
Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.1 / 2.4G Wireless / Wired Type-C
Sensor: PixArt PAW3395 (base model) / PAW3950 (MAX model)
DPI: 26000 (base model) / 30000 (MAX model)
Polling Rate: 8,000hz (both models)
Side Buttons: 2
Packaging
Just like its larger counterpart, the ZPW Max comes with a comprehensive package, including:
Zaopin ZPW Max mouse
Carrying pouch
USB Type-A to Type-C cable
8K Wireless receiver
Extra PTFE skates + dot skates
2x Grip tape set (black and white)
Shape, Size, Weight
The ZPW Max has a very nice thumb comfort groove on the left-side (being a right-handed mouse) to help provide a comfortably locked in feeling. Microadjustments both forward and backward do not feel restricted.
For my hand size (20.5 x 10.5 cm), claw grip and palm were the most comfortable. Fingertipping is possible, but then again, if fingertipping an ergo is your groove, I won't stop you.
At ~47g, its comfortable and light, and allows for quick movements. But it's not insanely light to the point where you don't feel the mouse weight at all. I prefer to at least feel some weight so I can feel where it is moving. It's nicely balanced, with the weight centered just over the sensor.
If you've tried and held the steelseries prime this shape will feel right at home.
Coating & Grip-tape
The ZPW features what Zaopin calls their BZ Protein Membrane Coating, which provides a good grip. Grip tapes are provided, however, I found the base coating to be fine. It’s similar to the Ninjutso Sora V2 coating, where it's chalky, but not a raw slippery plastic feel. But probably not at the same level as Endgame Gear's magic that they add on their solid colorways. My hands do not sweat, so sorry sweaty gamers, I can't speak for it's coating performance under sweaty conditions, literally.
Build Quality
Despite the lighter weight, the ZPW Max maintains a solid build quality. There is minimal flex or creaking, which is impressive for a mouse of this weight. No holes are on the mouse walls or bottom, so if that's something to consider for you, these don't have em.
Time will tell how the shape and creaking holds up, but upon using mine for the week, I did not experience any creaking or rattling whatsoever.
Skates
The skates are your average PTFE skates. It's not as smooth as broken in corepads, or xraypad jads. But they get the job done.
On my copy, unfortunately the skates were uneven and had a raised bump that was there out of the box, so I had to replace it with xraypad obsidian pros. Luckily it was the skates that were uneven, and not the actual base of the mouse. After replacing the skates, the glide was smooth and even.
Buttons & Scroll Wheel
There's not much information on the switches being used besides the description 'OMRON Optical micro-switches'. (ie no model number such as D-2-F etc). Nonetheless, I actually like the click feel and sound on my copy. It's on the softer side in regards to optical clicks, and does not have a harsh clack feeling that GPX 2's have (those are horrid feeling imo). It also doesnt have a super high ping sound that most opticals sound like. It's slightly more muted, and soft.
The side buttons are well-placed and responsive with little pre-travel. The M1/M2 buttons also have little pre- and post-travel. No issues with double-clicking at 0 debounce when set in software.
Sensor & Performance
The PAW3350 sensor on the Max has the same strong performance like the other 3950 mice that have released since. There were no issues with sensor lift-off and drop-offs via wireless interference at all polling rates 1k - 8k Hz. Both 1mm and 2mm track accordingly. Worked fine on my Miku SP004 glasspad. Compared to my OP1w 4K and XM2 4K, it felt in-line with the performance of those. I don't have any fancy gadgets to test the minute differences, but I can comfortably say you won't be losing your gunfights because of the latency performance (just like any recent mouse released with decent SW/FW).
Software & Configuration
The software is functional and allows for easy customization of settings. Finding the software was a bit difficult, but it can be found here. It provides all the standard functions that simple software would, including DPI stages and settings, debounce, sleep timer, and polling rate adjustments (up to 8kHz for my copy).
Conclusion
The ZPW Max is an outstanding mouse for those who prefer the steelseries prime ergo shape. ~47grams is a great weight for this mouse, especially it being ergonomic.
I do enjoy that it's also bluetooth enabled (which technically all the Nordic 52840 are capable of, but have it disabled), so its easy to swap to my other laptop without needing to connect and move the provided dongle. Its got an excellent build quality, and a nice chalky coating that gives you a good grip on the mouse.
I think for the mouse being a 3950 sensor, $90 is a decent price for the mouse. They are also the current identical offering of users who wanted an upgraded steelseries prime shape, at 20g+ lighter in comparison.
Overall, I think the Zaopin ZPW Max is a great pick-up for anyone in the space for an comfortable ergo high performing mouse at 47grams. It performs in-line with practically all the other high-performing budget options. So you won't be held back by the mouse. (then again those days were probably long gone).
Let me know if you have any questions and I will try my best to answer them. Big thank you to MechKeys for providing the mouse for review!
