So I updated to Catalina and my trusty Logitech G13 is kaput, discontinued, no more software updates. I was hoping maybe a ControllerMate update might fix it, but even that product seems either discontinued or not yet ready for Catalina. Razer products, I’ve heard, have a poor track record of support for Macs and yep, their Synapse software isn’t ready for Catalina either.
So… Catalina users… what do you recommend? I loved the G13 with the joystick (for navigation including forward and sideways diagonal, etc) but am willing to try a mouse or some other mechanism with buttons too. I can’t seem to wrap my head around how people use a ‘normal’ keyboard with the function buttons spread across the keyboard requiring your hand to wander around. The G13 gave me a wonderful resting position with lots of keys within reach and modifier buttons to give me multiple functionality per button (thanks to ControllerMate).
My wow addiction is suffering. My search has been fruitless. Help a gamer out!
I am currently using a Razor Tartarus Pro keypad and a Kensington Expert Mouse. Both are working fine with Catalina. I haven’t had any issues with Razer drivers and I’ve been using their products for several years.
I also have a Razor Naga Trinity mouse. It’s a great mouse and the side plates allow plenty of customization. But I’m just not a mouse user. I’ve use a Kensington Expert Mouse since about 1989.
I also have a Razer keyboard, not sure which model. I didn’t really like the action of the keys. So, I went back an Apple keyboard.
The Razer products all work fine with the latest Synapse driver.
It’s not practical for most people, but if long term support is a big concern it may be worth building a enthusiast-designed macro pad like the one shown off in this article. These keypads are standard USB and require no special software since their layout and functions are baked into their firmware – they function more like a standard keyboard than a secondary peripheral. Once you’ve programmed it, just plug it into just about anything with a USB port and it should just work.
I’ve been thinking about getting a keypad myself and this is the route I’ll likely take since Mac support for any pre-built keypads are on perpetually shaky ground.
I’m really hoping Logitech comes out with a mechanical key version of the G13. It had the best thumb control of the bunch. I still have my N52 TE, but that requires using USB Overdrive or similar software for functionality since Nostromo software has long since ceased to exist. That and the N52 doesn’t have n-key rollover protection like modern keyboards and keypads do.
I’m using a Tartarus and Naga mouse, they’ve been working for years. While the Synapse program isn’t great, it works the vast majority of the time. I’m going to try the new Tartarus Pro.
Sadly, I would not recommend any razer products for Mac going forward… Synapse 2.0 for macOS has just become complete junk over time, with crashes and ongoing bugs they can’t seem to fix. It barely supports Mojave, and they haven’t released an official update to support Catalina at all… Also all new razer Hardware devices require synapse 3.0, and to this date they haven’t released any news regarding any type of macOS development for synapse 3.0 or any type of port either.
Personally I am getting rid of all my razer products, and replacing them with newer Logitech gaming products. The driver/firmware/software support from Logitech gaming (Logitech G Hub) is being released simultaneously for both Windows and Mac from the looks of it, and it seems to support all new Logitech gaming hardware for both operating systems.
For the record. I have the following Razer products on my system. I’m not a Razer fanboy. These happen to be the products available at my local Best Buy.
Razer Synapse 1.8.7 - latest macOS version. Runs fine on Catalina
Orbweaver - game pad
Naga Trinty - mouse with changeable plate for thumb buttons
Cynosa Croma - keyboard. It works fine but I don’t like the action of the keys
These items are completely configurable via Synapse 1.8.7
I also use a Razer headset with mic controlled via Sound Preferences
I also have a second system with an older Razer Tartarus game pad. It requires legacy Synapse software. But it works fine with Catalina.
The amount of times I have to uninstall Synapse 2.0 (aka version 1.87) just so it will actually recognize all 3 devices at boot is a little little silly at this point. The times when playing wow and all of a sudden all of the buttons on the side of the MMO mouse just stop working because the app has crashed in the background, also not fun. It is also fun when the app forgets all the extra keys on the keyboard, all the macros that have been setup to those extra keys, and they just don’t do anything until you reinstall the software again, as macOS just treats its as a normal keyboard at that point.
To be clear. I have posted a lot of this on the Razer forums, I have been in contact with Razer support multiple times sending reports, screen shots, logs, etc, they have released some bug fix updates, but it’s broken overall. I did even try it on another new Mac with a fresh os install, no back/restore, and nothing installed but synapse, same issues sadly.
Also to be clear synapse 2.0 for macOS (v1.87) only officially supports macOS 10.10 to 10.14, As of today, 10.15 is still not officially supported all these months later, you can check their support page.
And as I said before, the saddest part for me, is that all NEW hardware that Razer is coming out with requires Synapse 3.0 and Razer has yet to comment (over a year+ later) if they are even working on Synapse 3.0 for macOS.
Just wanted to share… my wife did get me a bunch of new LogitechG stuff for xmas!
G560 Speakers
G604 Lightspeed wireless Mouse (great for MMO’s with the extra side buttons)
G915 Lightspeed wireless Keyboard
Pro X headphones
And I can say, as of this post running GHUB (Version: 2019.11.29288) on macOS 10.15.2(Catalina) all of these devices work amazingly! After plugging them in, GHUB updated the firmware on most of them automatically, and the setup/configuration with super simple. The GHUB software is actually stable, way faster, and more feature rich than Razer Synapse 2.0 ever was. It was also nice that GHUB automatically added a World Of Warcraft Profile, and made it super easy to customize that profile for commands within the game on both the keyboard, and the mouse. What was super surprising was that since I use dual monitors, when I click into the game, GHUB auto switches to the WoW profile, when I click on the other monitor it switches back to my default “desktop” profile. So far it has been a very refreshing experience.
I have done. The Logitech Gaming Software has access. But it gets stuck ‘transferring profiles’ and never completes. Trying to interact with the software is a major test in patience… it’s obviously hitting some sort of wall and timing out. I get the color wheel allll the time.
You can try a utility like USB Overdrive or ControllerMate. The latter can technically do more, but has a really steep learning curve. USB Overdrive however, is a much more user friendly app and has just received an update to work with Catalina. Its licenses generally never expire (my original license only needed an upgrade fee in 2008 to accomodate the OS X rewrite, and has been valid ever since, including for the new v4.x).
Synapse is garbage on either Windows or OS X. Avoid it like the plague.
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