12-Way Gaming Mouse Roundup

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The crew at Legion Hardware have rounded up a dozen gaming mice and put them to the test.

Today we are checking out twelve peripherals in the ever-changing world of gaming mice - with some big names included in our roundup, we are bound to cover one or two you may be interested in purchasing. For those that aren’t interested in upgrading or purchasing a gaming mouse, should you not already have one, let us suggest you take the time to consider an upgrade as moving from a standard off the shelf mouse to a gaming grade mouse can make even the casual gamers sessions that much more enjoyable.
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I just picked up a G700S recently and I'm trying really hard to like it. It's heavy, not very ergonomic (although, still better than the Razor) and in general don't like how it feels in my hand. The number of buttons and the wired/wireless features are cool but it's sort of a chore to actually use. Not sure why Logitech (and Razor for that matter) designed their side buttons to be so cluttered on this thing.

the Tt esports mouse looks awesome though. I like how they used round 'Xbox' style side buttons, opposed to sharp/angular monstrosities on the G700 (and the tiny 12 chiclets on the Razor). I might just grab one
 
Best gaming mouse I've ever used is my MadCatz Cyborg RAT7. It gets a lot of mixed reviews, but for me it's the best I've ever used and haven't had any issues that some of the others have reported.

My wife has the G700 and loves it. I'm not a fan of it personally though. I think a lot of that is due to the fact that I've gotten used to the custom shape and weight of the RAT.
 
dr.stevil said:
I just picked up a G700S recently and I'm trying really hard to like it. It's heavy, not very ergonomic (although, still better than the Razor) and in general don't like how it feels in my hand. The number of buttons and the wired/wireless features are cool but it's sort of a chore to actually use. Not sure why Logitech (and Razor for that matter) designed their side buttons to be so cluttered on this thing.
Click to expand...

Give it a couple of months. I had the EXACT same feelings and experience as you coming from lightweight Razor mice. However, now that I've adapted to the G700 I wouldn't trade it for anything other than a wireless version of the G9.
 
Honestly I'd love some coverage of trackballs for gaming, just to compare models. A good trackball is considerably easier on what left of my carpel tunnel and tendinitis issues in my right hand than a mouse, but I've found less in the way of variety of them over the years.

I mean nothing beats my old Kensington Expert Mouse on my home PC, but it's getting on in age and will likely soon fail, as the left button is jamming more and more regularly. Plus it's the last non-optical model, so there are more moving parts that can fail. I even got the next model they released, the first wireless optical expert mouse, but it wasn't as easy on my hand and lost communication with the receiver regularly (I assumed itwas designed to go to sleep to save battery power, but it did this so fast the stupid mouse was never responsive enough to game with.)

Am I the only one who plays using a trackball? Or are they considered too old school now?
 
I've had a ton of mice. The only one I've really liked was the G9x from logitech- which has been discontinued- and mine is getting flakey. Recently I've bought a G600, G700 and a Naga Hex- to replace the G9x but I haven't really liked any of them.

The G700 is a brick- just too big and too heavy.
The G600 is nice for an MMO or similar game that requires lots of keys, but way too big for everyday use.
I didn't like the Hex at all.

I tried the G500 at the store and I didn't like the side buttons.

I have small/medium hands and use a combination of claw &
palm. The RAT mice look like they would work perfectly but I've heard really mixed things-

anyone have a good suggestion for a replacement to my trusty G9x?
 
Steelseries has just released the Steelseries Rival, which was too new to make it into this two-month review, which should be interesting to palmgrip fans of the MX518/G5/G400/G500 and Razer DeathAdder. I have one coming in the mail.
 
SirOrko said:
I've had a ton of mice. The only one I've really liked was the G9x from logitech- which has been discontinued- and mine is getting flakey. Recently I've bought a G600, G700 and a Naga Hex- to replace the G9x but I haven't really liked any of them.

The G700 is a brick- just too big and too heavy.
The G600 is nice for an MMO or similar game that requires lots of keys, but way too big for everyday use.
I didn't like the Hex at all.

I tried the G500 at the store and I didn't like the side buttons.

I have small/medium hands and use a combination of claw &
palm. The RAT mice look like they would work perfectly but I've heard really mixed things-

anyone have a good suggestion for a replacement to my trusty G9x?
Click to expand...

If you don't want/need the extra buttons, I would recommend the G400. It doesn't have the weight adjustment like the G5/G9, but it's extremely comfortable. It's size is perfect and works well with both clawing and palming. The two side buttons are perfectly placed as well (for my hand at least). It has a great sensor and supports up to 1000 p/sec

I'd love it if they re-released it with 2 more side buttons


edit: looks like don't make it anymore. The G400s is the new version and still has the same shape.
 
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mavrocket said:
Give it a couple of months. I had the EXACT same feelings and experience as you coming from lightweight Razor mice. However, now that I've adapted to the G700 I wouldn't trade it for anything other than a wireless version of the G9.
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That's good to hear. I am gonna give it some time and see how it goes. It's not a bad mouse by any means, but I just hate how I have to reach for some of the side buttons with my thumb. The sensitivity adjustment buttons are oddly placed as well (but I'm getting used to it)
 
Why test just name brand mice? I don't get it.

I'm going with the Anker® 8200 DPI High Precision
Programmable Laser Gaming Mouse for PC,
9 Programmable Buttons, Weight Tuning
Cartridges, Omron Micro Switches as my next mouse.

Almost 1,000 reviews on amazon. $40 with free shipping. You're paying twice as much just for the name for the other mice in the round up review.
 
Thanks for the heads up- I need extra buttons. the G9x has the minimum amount. I would like 2 more buttons but I can make due as long as it has at least as much.

My mouse of choice before the G9 & G9x was the MX518. I had that mouse for years- I still have it, built like a brick but its just slow/dated to use in gaming now. G400 is an updated version.

I like the G9 so much because of its relatively small size, the shape and weight- sensitivity now a days isn't the issue it used to be.

I've only paid for one of the mice I've listed (G600 lighting deal)... quirks at work... Nevertheless, I do not care what brand it comes from or how much it cost, to an extent- I use Mice all day everyday.
 
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Another gaming mouse review without Zowie and only two mice with a decent sensor, the Corsair raptors with the adns3090.

Seems to me most "hardware" sites call anything with >5000cpi laser a braided cable and leds a gaming mouse, performance be damned.

Title should read, we review 12 mice we were sent for free because they really need the publicity unlike mice which actually perform and can rest on their laurels and good reviews from real gamers who actually use the things.

Do yourself a favor and do a little research. Check http://www.esreality.com/?a=post&forum=13 for some actual information. A lot of very serious gamers still use the Microsoft WMO mouse because it still outperforms all these shitty, floaty, inbuilt acceleration, omg dpi is over 9000, 15 button multi color led jobs. Want a mouse that will outperform every mouse in that roundup? Here you go http://www.ebay.com/itm/221145782309.

Want the best mouse I've used since this http://www.mcamafia.de/mycomp/images/mouse6.jpg on a 8086? Get a Zowie FK.
 
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evilsofa said:
Steelseries has just released the Steelseries Rival, which was too new to make it into this two-month review, which should be interesting to palmgrip fans of the MX518/G5/G400/G500 and Razer DeathAdder. I have one coming in the mail.
Click to expand...

This mouse was instantly perfect for my hand. So far best mouse I've ever had. The software is even good. You can get pretty much any color you can think of on the logo/wheel although you'll have to hunt around because the onscreen color and the color on the mouse don't exactly match.

Only drawback to the design of the grippy material they used is that it pulls oils off your hands pretty much no matter what, but the material also wipes off clean easily.
 
I always thought the Func mouse looked perfect for how I like to hold my mouse. Unfortunately, the reviews are less than favorable regarding reliability. Sadly, everyone loves the mouse while it works.
 
I'm going to miss my G9x when it dies :( I still see several pro Starcraft players using it. Logitechs new mice all seem like rehashes of the G5 shape which I'm not fond of.
 
I got the g700s when Amazon had it for $50 around Black Friday. I feel it is worth about that much.

Pros:
- tracking performance is good,
- fits my hand well enough,
- wireless is convenient (I can use it on my bed) + battery life seems good,
- DPI adjustment can be useful,
- side-scrolling tilt-wheel feature can be useful,
- I've become used to the side-buttons so I can use all 4.

Cons:
- Scroll wheel feels awful compared to the g9x. It doesn't feel well-built (stability is lacking), the side-scroll is not symmetrical (right-side tilt feels horrible), overall just a junk wheel. Yes, I know it has dual-mode smooth/notched scrolling, irrelevant.
- Drivers were an issue until I did everything in administrator mode. Now it works fine.
- default cable is junk - affects motion of mouse too much. I replaced it and it's now fine.
- Overall hand-feel could be better, but it's still decent. I'd just want better from the flagship model.
- rough texture feels too gritty... I think they overdid it.
- I still think the side-button layout could be better. It works though.
- Heavy feeling...it may not feel agile initially, but it does glide well on my hard-surfaced pads, so I guess it's fine.
- I'm betting this 8200 dpi sensor is not "flawless." I came from the DeathAdder 3G, which was among the flawless sensors as reported by ESReality... meh... I don't care about that anymore. I cannot really tell the difference...except that the higher DPI is useful now that I use higher display resolutions.
 
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Still loving my Naga I got way back when. Have all the common Windows macros as well as a few others loaded into a profile for easy one handed computer use away from the keyboard.
 
I'm not convinced about the whole "gaming" mouse thing.

My experience is limited but I recently returned a Roccat Kova+, essentially because it was a piece of shit. I was intended to replace it with a Razer Taipan but the stupid store had it marked incorrectly so left it in the end.

I went back to my old ass Microsoft Laser Mouse 6000 and it felt like I upped my game by an insane amount. It tracks perfectly well to me.

I do not experience ANY issues with lift-off etc.

What does a fancy sensor, insane polling rates and a high DPI actually do? I'm genuinely asking here...
 
Sensors: optical is better than laser. I saw very little argument about that. It just is.

High DPI: allows faster turning in 3D games, but the ridiculously extreme DPI (2000+) is really for pro level strategic gaming, most particularly Starcraft 2 in which players live or die by their APM (actions per minute) and click around on the screen at up to 15 times per second, averaged over the entire game. Although higher DPI might become more relevant with 4K displays.

Polling: reduces latency. Standard Windows polling rate is 125 Hz, which makes a mouse have an 8ms response time; 500 Hz reduces that to 2ms and 1000 Hz reduces it to 1ms. 500 Hz is of questionable value and 1000 Hz is just silly.
 
Yeaaaaaaaaa...

Interesting point about SC2, not really considered that. As for faster turning, if I turn the mouse sensitivity in-game up I can turn within a pretty short range of motion...

Also, the average reaction time of a person is between 150 and 300ms...so surely 8ms is fine?
 
Syphon Filter said:
Also, the average reaction time of a person is between 150 and 300ms...so surely 8ms is fine?
Click to expand...

More than 300ms of total input lag is unplayable, 200ms is noticeable and annoying, it disappears for most people somewhere between 70ms and 90ms, and even the fastest humans can't detect it below 50ms.
 
Yeah...bu tat 125Hz you claim 8ms response time (which make sense).

It's already in the "undetectably fast" range surely?
 
Hulk said:
Why test just name brand mice? I don't get it.

I'm going with the Anker® 8200 DPI High Precision
Programmable Laser Gaming Mouse for PC,
9 Programmable Buttons, Weight Tuning
Cartridges, Omron Micro Switches as my next mouse.

Almost 1,000 reviews on amazon. $40 with free shipping. You're paying twice as much just for the name for the other mice in the round up review.
Click to expand...
Yes, quality at a good price and mine is still perfect after 8 months - previous Razer mouses have not worn that well - 8200 DPI is pretty worthless to me, took me ages to game at second highest setting - I'm just not good enough to use best sensitivity :)

NotEd said:
Honestly I'd love some coverage of trackballs for gaming, just to compare models. A good trackball is considerably easier on what left of my carpel tunnel and tendinitis issues in my right hand than a mouse, but I've found less in the way of variety of them over the years.

I mean nothing beats my old Kensington Expert Mouse on my home PC, but it's getting on in age and will likely soon fail, as the left button is jamming more and more regularly. Plus it's the last non-optical model, so there are more moving parts that can fail. I even got the next model they released, the first wireless optical expert mouse, but it wasn't as easy on my hand and lost communication with the receiver regularly (I assumed itwas designed to go to sleep to save battery power, but it did this so fast the stupid mouse was never responsive enough to game with.)

Am I the only one who plays using a trackball? Or are they considered too old school now?
Click to expand...
I've been trying out the Logitech M570 trackball for two weeks now - mainly as an experiment to see whether I can find a HID that will allow me to work and walk faster on my DIY treadmill desk than with the usual mouse - speed has gone from 2.5mph to 3.0 mph for typing and browsing, but still not good for gaming.
Trackball is absolutely brilliant for turret aiming in World of Tanks, but I don't think that my dexterity is going to improve on faster demanding games - but I will give it a few months - and definitely enjoying not having a sore pisiform post gaming :)
 
Syphon Filter said:
I'm not convinced about the whole "gaming" mouse thing.

My experience is limited but I recently returned a Roccat Kova+, essentially because it was a piece of shit. I was intended to replace it with a Razer Taipan but the stupid store had it marked incorrectly so left it in the end.

I went back to my old ass Microsoft Laser Mouse 6000 and it felt like I upped my game by an insane amount. It tracks perfectly well to me.

I do not experience ANY issues with lift-off etc.

What does a fancy sensor, insane polling rates and a high DPI actually do? I'm genuinely asking here...
Click to expand...

Higher polling rates reduce mouse lag, higher DPI allows you to be more accurate to an extent. I go more in depth here. http://eliteownage.com/mouseguide.html
 
Got the Steelseries Rival in and tried it out. After installing the Engine 3 software, the firmware updated itself to 150.0.0.0. The firmware flash failed the first time, but I just hit enter and it succeeded the second time.

My desktop is a laminate surface that is black with specks of color. My Logitech G5 tracks on this surface perfectly fine, but the Rival does not track well on it, particularly at low speeds. The Rival does track fine on my old black cloth Steelseries QcK mousepad.

The shape is great, the feel is great. If I had to choose between the G5 and the Rival... I couldn't. The shape and feel are quite different on the two, but they are equally comfortable to me.
 
This makes me want a M95. That white sure is sexy. I'm also a button fiend. I'm currently using the G700 which I think is amazing. I agree with their sentiment about it being the perfect all-rounder. Although now I'm finding that I wish I had more buttons.
 
I own a G400 (no prediction) a WMO and a G9. I currently use the G400 as it's technically the best sensor on a mouse and I agree it's flawless, especially at high speeds, but the mouse I owned the most with on FPS was the G9 because of the shape with it's precision grip.

The ideal mouse for me would be G9 body with G400 sensor :)
 
Us lefties are SOL it seems.

I have the old school MS Intelimouse Optical, an MS Laser Mouse 6000 and a Razer Orochi (which I used to use with my laptop but now using with desktop).

I'm considering grabbing a Razer Taipan, Logitech G300 or maybe one of the SteelSeries mice but I can't figure out if any of them are worth it. You hear about people going through mice like I do undercrackers so it's obvious they "don't build em like they used to" yet they still want top dollar for them.
 
SirOrko said:
I've had a ton of mice. The only one I've really liked was the G9x from logitech- which has been discontinued- and mine is getting flakey. Recently I've bought a G600, G700 and a Naga Hex- to replace the G9x but I haven't really liked any of them.

The G700 is a brick- just too big and too heavy.
The G600 is nice for an MMO or similar game that requires lots of keys, but way too big for everyday use.
I didn't like the Hex at all.

I tried the G500 at the store and I didn't like the side buttons.

I have small/medium hands and use a combination of claw &
palm. The RAT mice look like they would work perfectly but I've heard really mixed things-

anyone have a good suggestion for a replacement to my trusty G9x?
Click to expand...

My g9x is going bad on me also. I love that mouse and been using it for years. Since it was discontinued i figured id move onto some current and active and picked up a Zowie FK.

At first i didnt like the feel of it but now its growing on me. Great mouse reviews with a great sensor.
 
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