CM Storm Skorpion Review

Overview

 

Today sees me look at a device that I have never seen (in the flesh) or tested before; here we have the CM Storm Skorpion. A device known as a mouse bungee, these have been around for a while now (1-2 years), but this is the first time that I have ever taken a look at one. The idea behind the mouse bungee is that it supports a mouse cable thus stopping the cable getting snagged on other items on and around your gaming desk and the CM Storm Skorpion is Cooler Master’s take on it…

 

 

The CM Storm Skorpion came well packaged in a predominately red and black box (traditional CM Storm colours) with the Skorpion mouse bungee visible within by way of a plastic window. Inside the box the Skorpion is protected further via a hard plastic tray.

 

 

The left hand side of the box shows the insect like Skorpion bungee itself, highlighting the weighted base for stability, flexible cable mount, anti-slip feet and the fact the the unit is easy to disassemble.

The right side of the box has further imagery of the features listed above, with the following additional features listed:

• WEIGHTED BASE FOR STABILITY
• ACTIVE FLEX RUBBER MOUSE CORD ARM
• ADAPTIVE GRIP GROOVES FOR THIN AND THICK MOUSE CORDS
• DURABLE LEGS WITH ANTI-SLIP FEET
• HEAVY IRON CORE FOR EXTREME STABILITY
• MAXIMUM PORTABILITY

 

 

Within the box is the Skorpion mouse bungee itself along with a Quick Start Guide (although there’s very little information within, but then what else do you need to know!?).

At the time of this review the CM Storm Skorpion is retailing for approximately £14 and comes with a 2 year warranty.

 

Specifications/Features

courtesy of CM Storm

* Additional details available here

 

First Impressions

 

As you can see ‘Skorpion’ is a damn fine name for this mouse bungee by CM Storm. Out of the box this thing looks real insect like and almost immediately you wonder what this thing is and of course whether it actually works. Let’s just take a quick tour around the Skorpion…

 

 

Looking from what is probably considered to be the front, sees this mouse bungee looking the most scorpion like, although this one has only three legs, all of which are also detachable! The back leg also supports the bungee arm (also detachable), this arm is made of highly flexible rubber and also features a small groove to allow for a mouse cord to be inserted. In the centre of the Skorpion we find the main body of the device featuring a red CM Storm logo. It is here that most of the weight can be found and courtesy of the ‘Iron Core’ the Skorpion weights in at a hefty 172 grams. This weight of course helps to ensure that the mouse bungee itself doesn’t move when in use.

Looking at the Skorpion from the back you can clearly see the groove for the mouse cord, but not much else…

 

 

Looking at the base of the Skorpion we can see the three rubberized feet that, in addition to the weight help to keep the mouse bungee in position on your desk. You can also see the small clips that allow the legs to be detached.

 

 

The Skorpion can be fully disassembled (should you wish!) allowing for easier transportation. The three legs and the main bungee arm can be removed from the central body. The process is quick and easy and can be done in seconds…

 

 

First impressions of the CM Storm Skorpion are mixed although everything here is of a good quality and the Skorpion itself looks good, there’s precious little else on offer other than the mouse bungee itself. If it works though and proves to be useful maybe that’s enough…

 

Hardware Installation

 

Too be fair I could skip this section, but…

Once you have positioned the Skorpion at your desired location on your desk the next job (and only job) is to insert the cord of your mouse, leaving plenty of room to allow the mouse to travel around your Gaming surface. The length of mouse cord you need (post bungee) will be down to personal preference and your Gaming (mouse movement) style, but leave too much and you will begin to defeat the purpose of a mouse bungee.

The images below show my Gigabyte Aivia Krypton (braided cord) in use with the CM Storm Skorpion.

 

 

Testing Methodology/Setup

 

The CM Storm Skorpion was tested using my rig with Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit (service pack 1) installed together with all the latest relevant drivers and software. No Drivers are required for the CM Storm Skorpion.

Mouse:

The Skorpion was tested using a Gigabyte Aivia Krypton (available here).

Mouse Surface:

The Skorpion was tested using a Boogie Bug AimB.Pad “Extreme” XXL Gaming Mouse Surface (available here).

The following games were used to help in the evaluation of the CM Storm Skorpion:

• Blacklight Retribution
• Call of Duty Black Ops II

 

Hardware Performance

 

It’s quite difficult to talk about the hardware performance of the CM Storm Skorpion as at its core it’s really quite a simple device.

Let’s first think about what it’s designed to do. Basically the core function of the mouse bungee is to stop the cord of your mouse getting caught up on anything that may be on your desk. It does this by lifting the cord a few inches off the desk allowing the cord to take a more direct route to your mouse. The fact that the cord is supported by a flexible rubber arm allows the cord to be kept under control. If you pull on the cord (while using the mouse) the flexible arm flexes forward, as you move the mouse back the arm pulls the cord back. Of course the tension put on the cord, by the arm is supposed to be so minimal that you don’t notice it.

So how does the CM Storm Skorpion fare against the criteria outlined above?

Well to be honest it pretty much does exactly what it says on the tin. The Skorpion does a good job of keeping that cable in check. Even when the arm is under a fair amount of tension the base of the Skorpion holds fast (due to its weight and rubber feet), which is excellent.

To be fair then the CM Storm Skorpion does exactly what it’s supposed to do and it does it very well. The only issue is what it doesn’t do; I would have liked to see more customization of the base. A USB hub could have been integrated and we could have even had a little lighting too. Although this would obviously put the price up…

 

Final Thoughts

 

So the CM Storm Skorpion mouse bungee works perfectly well, it undeniably helps to stop the mouse cord getting caught up on your desktop (if that’s a problem!). It also helps in keeping the mouse cord length down a little too. I do feel the bungee arm could be a little more flexible as when the arm is being flexed, a small amount of pressure can be felt on the mouse, but this pressure is negligible. So the Skorpion does exactly what it says on the tin then? Yes, and at approximately £14 at the time of review, the price seems fair also.

There are a couple of issues/questions though. I would have liked to have seen more done with the base of the Skorpion (I know it can be disassembled!?), but maybe a USB hub would have been nice along with some lighting (surely that CM Storm logo is crying out to be illuminated!). I appreciate that this would of course add to the cost, but I feel that I (and others) would be prepared to pay a little more as this would make it more functional and therefore more desirable.

And talking of desirability, this is where we have the biggest question of all; do you actually need a mouse bungee? The obvious answer to that is no. If on the other hand you want a mouse bungee then the CM Storm Skorpion does exactly what it sets out to do, it’s just a shame it didn’t do a little more while it was at it.

A closing thought; now that I have a mouse bungee, I actually think I’m gonna keep using it…

 

Verdict