Rat Kings - Mad Catz M.M.O. 7 vs M.M.O. 7+
If you read my M.M.O. 7+ review and wondered how well it actually compares to the original - you're now in luck. Is the new mouse actually worth dropping some serious change on over the decade-plus old classic? Or is the OG still good enough to negate it?
Not long after I completed my M.M.O. 7+ review, I managed to bag a used, but complete and functional example of the original M.M.O. 7 for a price that was too good to pass up on. If you know me, I can't resist a good blast to the past - but this was especially great because I could properly pit the new mouse against it's highly regarded predecessor.
So, without further ado; here's the duel.
Looks
The M.M.O. 7+ is a nice-looking mouse with its glossy all dark gray body trimmed out with a few subtle silver accents. For a mouse with a physical design that looks like it was invented by the Borg, it's still probably one of the least visually loud mice in the entire Mad Catz R.A.T. family.
But if I had to be honest, I think the OG colorways look better. The matte black and orange model looks extremely striking and all the buttons are trimmed out with this color matched metallic finish that gives the mouse an overall more premium appearance. It leans harder into the mouse's already ridiculous aesthetics, and I think it's better for it. I wish Mad Catz retained the option for fun colors like this.
Also, the RGB implementation on the OG is just loads better than the 7+. You can change the colors of each of the two zones individually, including the colors for the shift and ActionLock functions. You can't shut the lights completely off on either mouse, but at least the OG doesn't leave them half-on like the blue LEDs on the 7+. I have no idea why Mad Catz decided that was a good idea.
Edge: OG
Fit and Finish
It's hard to overlook the fact that the OG M.M.O. 7 is now a 14-year-old mouse and that many parts of it are definitely going to feel like it's that old. Of particular scorn is the OG's rubber coating which; like many 2010s peripherals has turned into a sticky sludge that makes using the mouse incredibly unpleasant.
 |
| The OG photos much better than it actually feels - which is annoyingly sticky. |
The 7+ at least remedied this by ditching the rubber coating entirely, instead sporting a glossy dark gray paintjob. It might feel a little weird - especially if you're used to matte finishes like most mice tend to have - but it should hold up to long term wear a lot better than the old rubber.
 |
| Yep, that is rust - on a mouse that's now worth several hundred dollars on the used market. |
Edge: 7+
Buttons
Mad Catz specifically stated they used Kalih switches for the main mouse buttons of the M.M.O. 7+ so it probably doesn't come as much of surprise that its main buttons feel a whole lot meatier than those on the OG mouse. Even the auxiliary buttons have a nice sharp tactility to them that the OG lacks. They just feel a little dead and mushy compared to the 7+.
Again, age is probably a big factor in how the OG mouse feels. It's still not horrible, but I certainly wouldn't take it over the known improvement in switch quality the new mouse offers.
Edge: 7+
Scrolling
Both mice still sport the same exact scroll wheel arrangement - a standard scroll wheel paired with a side scrolling barrel. They feel mostly the same except I find the 7+ takes just a little bit more effort to press for middle click. I will also say, if you absolutely hate how low and forward the positioning of the scroll wheel is on the OG mouse, I regret to inform you that it hasn't improved on the 7+. In my opinion it's the single most obvious spot that Mad Catz could've improved upon.
The encoder on my OG's scroll wheel is a bit messed up though, which just goes back to why you should be weary about trying to main a 14-year-old peripheral. They tend not to age gracefully.
Edge: Tie (unfortunately)
Connectivity
This one is just no contest in my opinion. The original M.M.O. 7 was a strictly wired mouse while the M.M.O. 7+ is now dual mode, with 2.4 GHz wireless and wired over USB-C. The new mouse also supports up to a 1000 Hz wireless polling rate and Mad Catz advertise the battery life to last about 40 hours. I never tested that point specifically, but the 7+ did last me a little over a week of sporadic usage before I felt like I needed to charge it.
Edge: 7+
Comfort
Excluding the changes to the surface finish, Mad Catz changed very little between the two mice in terms of comfort, and that's great. Why mess up something that's already familiar? There are a few small changes from the OG to the 7+ though. The ActionLock buttons are now textured which makes them easier to blindly identify alongside the main left/right buttons.
Also, the 5D hat switch sticks out slightly more on the 7+. That last point might be important because the hat switch already likes to jam itself into your thumb on the OG plenty. Can you tolerate a tiny bit more of that? If so, you'll probably feel right at home with the 7+.
Edge: Tie
That being said...
Customization
Honestly, Mad Catz made a really dumb decision with the M.M.O. 7+ by getting rid of most of the customization options: a staple of the original mouse and the other R.A.T. family mice. You only get a single textured palm rest with the 7+. That's it. Seriously?
 |
| Nothing screams 2010s gamer bait quite like a weight system. |
In contrast, the OG comes with two palm rests (one textured and one raised), two side panels (one textured and one with a ring/pinkie finger rest), and a set of weights. Even though I can sort of forgive the omission of the weights in favor of giving the mouse a bigger battery, that's a sizable loss for a mouse with a reputation built on customization.
 |
| This feels illegal - and yet that's how Mad Catz chose to ship the 7+. |
What's worse is in direct response to this, Mad Catz said the parts from the original mouse will fit on the new one - and they do. Guys, why aren't you including them to begin with? Or at least selling a parts kit? You have all the tooling to make it happen, so please cut the shit and just do it and save people from having to spend several hundred dollars on a sticky, weathered OG just to get a raised palm rest.
Ironically, the 7+ does offer one form of adjustment the OG doesn’t: the thumb rest angle is actually user-adjustable now, whereas on the original the ‘adjustment’ screw is effectively a dummy - wrong size and hidden under a rubber plug. It’s a nice ergonomic tweak, but it doesn’t make up for losing the rest of the modular kit.
Edge: OG
Sensor Performance
Another no contest. We're talking about a 14-year gap in sensor technology here. The 6400 DPI sensor in the OG mouse is still perfectly serviceable for most needs - assuming it still works - but it's going up against a modern PixArt PAW3395 in the 7+. It's a reliable and accurate sensor with an utterly overkill 26000 DPI top end. Do you need 26000 DPI? Certainly not - but you're at least buying known reputable quality without any risk of it having had Mountain Dew spilled on it in the past.
Edge: 7+
Software
Mad Catz new H.U.D. software isn't really a dramatic improvement from the OG M.M.O. 7s customization tool. It sports all the same features that the old mouse does; on-board profiles (five instead of three), button remapping, performance tweaking, RGB customization, and macro building - just dressed up in a UI that's a lot easier on the eyes. For what it's worth, I didn't have any issues getting the old M.M.O. 7 software running on Windows 11 either - it's just a matter of finding it on the net.
That said, I did run into an issue where attempting to install a firmware update to my M.M.O. 7+ in H.U.D. actually soft bricked my mouse, and I had to use Mad Catz firmware reset tool to recover it. I haven't had an issue with it since but keep that a word of warning since H.U.D. is clearly having a few teething issues as of writing - even though the software does it job for customization otherwise.
Edge: Tie
Final Tally
OG M.M.O. 7: 5
M.M.O 7+: 7
M.M.O 7+: 7
Conclusion
It's a pretty decisive victory for the M.M.O. 7+.
The OG looks more striking and it's more fun to tinker on, but the 7+ just feels far more refined in ways that really matter for day-to-day usability. Outside of collectability, there's almost no reason why you'd want to buy an OG M.M.O. 7 over the newer mouse - and that's before you get to the fact it's now a 14-year-old peripheral with a coating that's slowly turning into sticky sludge. You don't want that.
That being said, I do wish Mad Catz had more fun with colorways for the new mouse like the original. The RGB on the original is also much better - no doubt about it. And the absence of the OG's customization options? Inexcusable. It comes so close to being a world class flagship and it just isn't quite there - as I cover in my main review for the M.M.O. 7+.
But is the 7+ good enough to where you can finally stop browsing $400 eBay listings for worn out OGs, or thinking about settling for a Razer Naga or a Corsair Scimitar like a sane person would? Yeah, it is - and if you're that person? Go for it.
Comments
Post a Comment