Razer Kraken V3 HyperSense Gaming Headset Review

A weird museum of Razer headset technology

Photo taken by the author.

After a disastrous low-budget tease a number of months ago, the new Kraken V3 family has finally arrived. Or at least, two thirds of it has. Razer launched both the $99 Kraken V3 and the $129 Kraken V3 HyperSense at the end of last month, with the $199 wireless Kraken V3 Pro “coming soon.”

If you’ve been a fan of any of the new headset technologies Razer developed over the last few years, and you wanted a product that had all of them shoved together into one box, then you might love this headset. Sadly, I don’t think it’s enough to just put a bunch of tech made for other headsets into a new one without some thoughtful design, and I also don’t think this new model lives up to the legacy of the Kraken name.

Note: I bought this headset at retail price. I don’t get any sort of incentive or kick back if you decide to buy one. I don’t use affiliate links in any of my stories. You can read my full reviews policy right here.

Photo taken by the author.

I decided to go for the $129 Kraken V3 HyperSense (official site here), which is Razer’s new “flagship haptic headset.” It features haptic vibration feedback in each ear cup designed in co-operation with LoFelt, a system originally made for the Nari Ultimate. The speaker drivers are 50mm titanium- coated TriForce units first designed for the BlackShark V2. The HyperClear microphone also comes from the BlackShark, as does the general design of the headband pad.

The rest of the body has that large Kraken look, but it’s greatly slimmed down compared to the Kraken V2, which lasted an incredible five years on the market. The Kraken V3 looks like a sleeker V2, with a hint of industrial design borrowed from Focal’s high-end headphones. It’s a more mature, slim headset that doesn’t scream gaming until you turn on the RGB lights in the back of the ear cups.

While I think it’s great that Razer improved the overall audio quality and crammed in some tech from their other headset ranges, I also think this headset has lost a lot of what made the Kraken special.