Razer’s Basilisk V3 has more LEDs and a brilliant scroll wheel

Razer’s new Basilisk V3 wired gaming mouse has arrived with more features than its predecessor, as well as a slightly lower price. It’s out now at Razer’s online store, Amazon, and Best Buy from $69.99, a $10 price drop from generation to generation.

Its scroll wheel houses the biggest improvements, borrowing a trick from Logitech’s G502 Lightspeed and G502 Hero. A button positioned next to the Basilisk V3’s wheel can toggle between a staggered scroll mode that offers tactile feedback and a free-spinning mode that lets you sail down the page freely. There’s also an optional feature within Razer’s Synapse software that automatically switches between the two modes depending on the inertia of your scroll, engaging the free-spinning mode with lots of power or keeping it notched during more relaxed line-by-line scrolling.

Image: Razer

The change that makes it possible to tell apart the Basilisk V3 from the V2 is the new Chroma RGB lighting, one of Razer’s signature stylings. The Razer logo, the trim of the scroll wheel, and a translucent trim lining the bottom of the mouse can light up. Also, the side-mounted DPI sensitivity toggle button is fixed on the V3, whereas it was optional on the V2, leaving it up to you whether you wanted to stick it on magnetically or leave it off. The V3 is also missing the V2’s bottom dial that adjusts the scroll wheel’s tension, but the new free-spinning option is a worthy replacement.

It’s interesting to find Razer putting more effort toward appealing to a broader audience than just gamers. While the Basilisk V3 is definitely still a gaming mouse in terms of specs and overall design, it might cater to others who wished that Razer’s more productivity-focused Pro Click shipped with as many features as this $69.99 wired mouse.