New Corsair Dark Core SE Wireless Mouse and MM1000 Charging Mousepad

FrgMstr

Just Plain Mean
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May 18, 1997
Messages
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I am not a mouse or keyboard reviewer, but we asked Corsair to send over its new Corsair Dark Core SE Mouse and its MM1000 mousepad which facilitates wireless charging of the mouse. It has been a long time since I used a wireless mouse, and it has been since never that I have had a wired mousepad. (These crazy kids nowadays!) So putting it through its duties in Fortnight, I immediately noticed after five rounds...that I still suck. However the mouse did work well, and I do keep a healthy rotation of new mice on my desk, so I am surely not out of touch there.

Once the guys in the HardForum informed me that the QI wireless charging extension was for other devices besides the mouse, I had to rewrite this. As you can see, the QI charging extensive can be plugged into your phone or whatever else to use the MM1000 for charging things other than you mouse. When you want to charge the Dark Core mouse, you park the tail of the mouse over the circle on the mousepad. At that point you get a notification that charging is taking place. The mousepad has an LED that strobes to let you know that all is right in the universe as you leave your system. The Dark Core SE came out of the box with a charge, and we all know that feeling of getting to have immediate gratification with our new hardware and not having to wait around.

On the topic of the MM1000 mousepad, this is the first new mousepad I have had in about 20 years. I still had a RatPadz XT on my desk up till a few hours ago, so getting used to the MM1000 might take a while. It has a lot more friction than the RatPadz XT. The MM1000 mousepad is huge as well and gave me all the mousing space I could ask for. After some Fortnight, I have to say I feel good with it.

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The QI charging extension is pretty cool. Interested to see how this stacks up against Logitech's Powerplay mouse pad.
 
The one thing that keeps me away from these, is that I am never sure if I will like how the mouse feels in my hand, until I have it in my hand.

If it fits and feels fine, great.
If not, I will be forever annoyed at going back to corded.
 
I think I might like these as it's similar to the Logitech G602 from the looks of it. So far, that's my favorite mouse currently.
 
"Wireless Charging Dongle"


...Wat?

All the annoyance of having to plug something in, combined with the finickiness, inefficiency, and positional sensitivity of wireless charging. Worst of all worlds.
 
"Wireless Charging Dongle"


...Wat?

All the annoyance of having to plug something in, combined with the finickiness, inefficiency, and positional sensitivity of wireless charging. Worst of all worlds.

I dunno, I think it's nice they include such a dongle for non-QI devices.
 
I dunno, I think it's nice they include such a dongle for non-QI devices.

If you have to plug something in, then just plug it in. No worrying about whether bumping the desk will shift the device. No slow-ass wireless charging. No having random electronica sitting in the middle of your mousepad, getting in the way. And when the micro-usb plug gets munged up -- as it inevitably does -- all you need is a new $2 cable, instead of a $20+ dongle.
 
If you have to plug something in, then just plug it in. No worrying about whether bumping the desk will shift the device. No slow-ass wireless charging. No having random electronica sitting in the middle of your mousepad, getting in the way. And when the micro-usb plug gets munged up -- as it inevitably does -- all you need is a new $2 cable, instead of a $20+ dongle.
Thanks for letting us know that. I had not been exposed to that information before. Many thanks.
 
Iv'e tried every single Corsair mouse and have found them all to be uncomfortable. That one looks like more the same.
 
If you have to plug something in, then just plug it in. No worrying about whether bumping the desk will shift the device. No slow-ass wireless charging. No having random electronica sitting in the middle of your mousepad, getting in the way. And when the micro-usb plug gets munged up -- as it inevitably does -- all you need is a new $2 cable, instead of a $20+ dongle.

Are you mad erratic and have a rickidy smelly filthy desk?

Then yes these a a true concern!

However if you keep your desk tidy and use an actual desk, I think this would work surprisingly well :)
 
its made in a way so we can just quick swap our beloved eneloops instead of waiting for the damn thing to charge or it has one of those fuck-you-proprietary-and-soon-to-be-dead battery thingies in there?
 
I loved my ratpad.. but it kept warping. Bending it over my knee so my mouse didn't slide off and hit the floor every time I let go of it got to kind of suck
 
I loved my ratpad.. but it kept warping. Bending it over my knee so my mouse didn't slide off and hit the floor every time I let go of it got to kind of suck
Mine didn't warp so much as I kept wearing them smooth, then the older optical mice had trouble keeping track. Went through two of the XT and one of the cheaper GS before going to a Corsair cloth mat.

I'm picky with my mice, but this does look interesting.
 
Thanks Kyle for the review and the pics!

I like the idea of BT and QI charging. I bought a NIC that has 2.4/5.0 & BT 4,2 for my 2600k rig a couple of years ago because I was tired of dongles and their various issues. So something like this would be a plus. I looked at the amazon page and noticed a pic that you may be able to take the fins off.

I'm curious though, how solid is this thing? I mean, I've tried some mice/gamepads where the manufacturer put so much effort into features and design that the build really felt cheap or flimsy. How would you rate this?
 
80$ for a mouse pad that has a qi charger? These things have been running for like 10$ The price point is way out of whack.
There's even a few mouse pad's already that have a qi charger built in that go for 20$
 
I got a Ratpad when they were a brand new thing. I bought two. Last year, after constantly (once a year) straightening my Ratpad the feet started falling off. I had to switch to the second one I bought.

I expected at least 30 years out of each one of these things. Disappointed. These things don't even make it to 20 years.

In the 20s and 30s they would sell you a mouse pad that would last a thousand years! They were made of coal, asbestos, real rubber from trees, and an entire ground up redwood.
 
I loved my ratpad.. but it kept warping. Bending it over my knee so my mouse didn't slide off and hit the floor every time I let go of it got to kind of suck
How old is yours? Sadly, plastic dries out over time. Not much you can do about that.
 
I'm confused... does the mouse of the charger built in or do you have to plug in the dongle for the mouse to charge?
 
I'm confused... does the mouse of the charger built in or do you have to plug in the dongle for the mouse to charge?
I am struggling with making this more clear. Where did I go wrong?

Once the guys in the HardForum informed me that the QI wireless charging extension was for other devices besides the mouse, I had to rewrite this. As you can see, the QI charging extensive can be plugged into your phone or whatever else to use the MM1000 for charging things other than you mouse. When you want to charge the Dark Core mouse, you park the tail of the mouse over the circle on the mousepad.
 
How many thumb buttons does that mouse have? It looks like one initially, but at closer inspection I can't tell if it's 3 (Up, oval button, Down) or even more. How many are there and can you map them however you want?
 
How many thumb buttons does that mouse have? It looks like one initially, but at closer inspection I can't tell if it's 3 (Up, oval button, Down) or even more. How many are there and can you map them however you want?
3
 
Sorry dude that's what I get for just glancing through the comments :D

Too bad it's like that. IT would be killer if the charger was built into the mouse so that when I just got up and left the mouse where ever on the pad it would start charging... but I would bet that would add quite a bit of $$$ to the price

It is built into the mouse. You just leave it on the 'charging spot' on the top right of the pad. The accessory is for charging other things.
 
To the few that are critical of the practicality of this setup....

YES it isn't that practical IMO. This is the [H] edge of tech as it is first making its way into more "consumer" products/markets. These are the products you first get, that bridge tech, that inspire your imagination and help gauge potential.

Personally wireless charging will only be truly awesome if larger pads/areas are readily/cheaply available. Eventually making it into car cubbies, countertops, desks etc.

In the meantime we will get products that improve and thrive in niche uses (like car mounts)... The next iteration will include the whole pad as a charging area, smaller/more permanent dongles for non supported devices etc.

I really look forward to when this tech finally matures to being really useful, looks like we are getting to that apex in a few year.
 
I like it as long as it's comfortable Corsair is trying to break the mold.
 
To the few that are critical of the practicality of this setup....

YES it isn't that practical IMO. This is the [H] edge of tech as it is first making its way into more "consumer" products/markets. These are the products you first get, that bridge tech, that inspire your imagination and help gauge potential.

Personally wireless charging will only be truly awesome if larger pads/areas are readily/cheaply available. Eventually making it into car cubbies, countertops, desks etc.

In the meantime we will get products that improve and thrive in niche uses (like car mounts)... The next iteration will include the whole pad as a charging area, smaller/more permanent dongles for non supported devices etc.

I really look forward to when this tech finally matures to being really useful, looks like we are getting to that apex in a few year.
Picture of "those guys'" mice for reference.

upload_2018-2-2_10-21-20.png
 
This setup looks really cool, the only problem is the cost...the mousepad alone is like $80. Around $150 for the whole rig.
 
You know what breaks the most on phones, besides screens?

Those freaking tiny USB connectors with all the strain they take.

I told my wife, "I should start selling phone cases with built in QI wireless charging adapter built into the back of the case and then from the QI to case wired connection to the USB port." You would never need to stress your connection again. I bet I could sell a bunch of them for $75 each. Never struggle to find a charger or cable which is broken. Never worry about breaking your phones USB port.

Looks like someone beat me to the idea...Well done
 
It doesn't seem like anyone actually has the mouse, at least not in stock. Even the Egg's search came up spades. Intriguing, nonetheless.
 
You know what breaks the most on phones, besides screens?

Those freaking tiny USB connectors with all the strain they take.

I told my wife, "I should start selling phone cases with built in QI wireless charging adapter built into the back of the case and then from the QI to case wired connection to the USB port." You would never need to stress your connection again. I bet I could sell a bunch of them for $75 each. Never struggle to find a charger or cable which is broken. Never worry about breaking your phones USB port.

Looks like someone beat me to the idea...Well done
If you buy the right phones, they already have qi chargers built into the backs.

In the case they don't, you can get an adapter, such as this:
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61zhM7ekjDL._SX425_.jpg

99% of the time all you're looking to do is charge the phone. Just put the adapter in between the phone and any non-metallic case and it'll charge the phone while being out of sight.

Those adapters cost 5-10$. I'm sure you could sell a bunch of them to suckers for 75$, but for those who know about alternatives, it would have priced itself out of competition immediately.
 
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