back to article Ten Essential... Gaming Mice

Many gamers make do with an ordinary mouse, but there are dozens of the devices designed specifically with gameplay in mind. Some are pricey, others almost as cheap as a standard mouse, but whether you’re happy paying through the nose, or trying to stick to a budget, it’s always good to know if you’re getting your money’s worth …

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  1. Ministry of Truth

    Lachesis

    Fabulous mouse - and the shape, while it takes a little while to get used to, stops people like me who tend to end up gripping the mouse too hard and getting RSI (no singgering at the back there please) as it sort of encourages you to relax, even when the shit hits the fan.

    Plus, it looks wicked. What more could you ask for?

  2. ColonelClaw

    Razer Anything

    Being in charge of IT purchases at work means I get to order all the office mice. Over the years I have used this to buy and try pretty much every top gaming mice on the market. I typically use a mouse for 6 months before someone else's mouse dies, and they get mine as a replacement. At which point I order the latest and greatest for myself.

    Although the Logitechs generally score quite well, the conclusion I have come to is that if your mouse has the word 'Razer' on it, it's going to be pretty much the best thing out there

  3. caerphoto

    Logitech G5

    Good lord, £100 for a mouse?! I thought the £40 I paid for my Logitech G5 was a lot.

    Still, the G5 has served me very well. It's very comfortable for those, like me, with big hands, the grippy surface helps you keep a firm grip in the hot weather. The sensitivity and acceleration are just right, and the large teflon pads mean it slides around nicely.

    The only downside is the wheel - it's fine for scrolling but because it has a tilt function it's sometimes hard to just press it straight down. The wheel on my Razer Copperhead was nicer (albeit the only really nice thing about that mouse). Still, the tilt function is quite handy so I'm not sure I'd want to give it up.

  4. Clive Galway

    http://www.highrez.co.uk/downloads/XMouseButtonControl.htm

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    XMouse

    Sorry, but since owning my first Logitech Freewheel mouse, I won't go back to any mouse that does not allow you to switch the wheel from ratchet to free wheel mode. Freewheel mode is great for windows in general (Web pages and documents) but for games (esp FPS), the wheel is often woefully underused - scrolling through weapons with a wheel is not efficient in PvP.

    I have never experienced decent drivers with any mouse I have bought (Only Saitek, MS and Logitech so far) and I generally do not use manufacturer drivers - I instead use XMouse as this lets me reprogram wheelup and wheeldown.

    So, for example, my BF2:BC setup for the wheel is

    up: rifle

    down: pistol

    left: gadget 1

    right: gadget 2

    Using XMouse, you can also set ScrollLock to disable these mappings, so that in the game browser, wheel up and down still scroll through the server list.

    I can also heavily recommend the Logitech MX620.

    What I like about it is that it has a seperate button (By default a "search" button) right next to the LMB. I reprogram this as my MMB because trying to click a wheel is a pain, and I need to middle click a lot. This is also great for shooters as they typically feature one shot keys such as throw a grenade or stab with a knife (Like BF2: BC) and it's lovely to have a 2nd LBM for these...

  5. Britt Johnston

    http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Left-Hand-Laser-Cordless-http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Left-Hand-Laser-Cordless-Mouse/dp/B000EXRSWG

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    crippled minority

    I got a gamer mouse and sore digits when I bought a 2nd hand PC - turning the mouse around helped little. I switched back to a symmetric logitech mouse, but the elite mouse-makers do offer left hand versions (see link).

  6. tas

    Mouse=control and control requires context. Here's mine:

    I've never really felt a need for another mouse after I upgraded from ball mice to the Logitech MX518.

    It is a right handed mouse that is not too big like most mice, in particular Razer mice which tend to be huge. This is important since many old-school competitive gamers do not control their mouse from the shoulder but completely using only their fingertips. This requires a small light slippery mouse with high DPI.

    It is an optical (LED) rather than laser mouse. While this means its sensitivity maximum is likely to be far lower, it also means the on-board DSP does not need to be as complex to interpret movement against a large variety of surfaces unlike a laser. After all a typical gamer knows that the mouse surface is just as important as the mouse and will typically obtain the smoothest and most uniform surface available to them anyway. Why is this important? Well, for example, I bought a Logitech G5 laser gaming mouse for another PC and while it had all the usual laser advantages against any surface and high max DPI, the cursor also occassionally and temporarily "stuck" for unknown reasons even on a smooth pad. No such sticking ever occurred even once on my MX518 on the same pad (Func Industries Surface 1030).

    It has full sensitivity control via extra little buttons above and below the middle scroll button.

    Its feet/pads are unbelievably smooth and slippery - even more than the Logitech G5.

    It is lighter than the Logitech G5 (excluding the additional weights which can be added on the G5).

    It has two buttons on the left (thumb) side rather than one button and a wobbly scrollmouse like the G5. These are unbelievably useful buttons because in combination with the middle button can be used to put all keyboard modifier keys on the mouse (shift, alt, ctrl) and therefore easily triple the number of available controls in many games (especially World of Warcraft). Or the buttons can be programmed with most games or via Logitech bundled gaming software or the free XMouse to do anything.

    It's amazing how a five year old mouse still beats the pants of most new devices :)

    Of the reviewed mice, only the Razer Imperator and Deathadder look suitable for my needs (assuming they are not too big) and I'm fascinated by these "adjustable thumb buttons" of the Imperator - I will have to read more about them elsewhere!

  7. Bob Bobson

    http://www.microsoft.com/hardware/gaming/productdetails.aspx?pid=087

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    How can you miss out the classic intellimouse explorer?

    Only £20, and you still see more of them at LANs than any of these other hussied up abominations.

  8. Colin Mountford

    Gaming mouse for WOW - waste of money

    How can you actually review a gaming mouse with WOW?

    I would have thought something a bit more twitchy like Team Fortress 2, Unreal: tournament, Crysis 2 etc. would have been more appropriate.

    However you seem to have come to the right conclusion - Razer all the way.

    Can't beat them (unless you want something under £50).

    One correction the Habu mouse (joint Microsoft / Razer) has interchangable thumb buttons to allow position adjustment. However the drivers are terrible, presumably due to the involvement of microsoft. Therefore don't buy it.

  9. Helldesk Dogsbody

    http://www.microdirect.co.uk/Home/Product/47037/Razer-Abyssus-High-Precision-Optical-Gaming-Mouse

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    Razer Abyssus

    You might want to have a look at the Razer Abyssus which seems to be a touch closer to entry level at around £30. Some may find this a little easier to swallow than £60 odd for the Imperator. For me it's worth it but price can be a sticking point for many people. It also appears to be the only ambidextrous one they offer since they discontinued the Copperhead and Diamondback.

  10. Olli Mannisto

    http://www.microsoft.com/hardware/gaming/ProductDetails.aspx?pid=100

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    Sidewinder Gaming Mouse

    The original sidewinder reviwal is in fact superior to any of the three "improved" models. The main innovation was to provide vertical side buttons that are easy to press with your thumb inside a game and each subsequent iteration has made it worse. The original one with chunky aluminium buttons does not look pretty to marketoids but it's best so far for games.

    Still in sale and dirt cheap by now as well.

  11. Parax

    http://www.google.co.uk/products/catalog?q=microsoft+laser+mouse+6000+wired&hl=en&cid=2858924042570088514&ei=VMP7S9L5PMq3-Qb3hrnZBw&sa=title&ved=0CAsQ8wIwATgA#p

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    Nothing wrong with a cheapy ( Microsoft Laser 6000 WIRED )

    I liked this mouse so much I bought four, still have a spare. OK its a few years old but it really is a sweet mouse. Maybe microsoft realised it was too good and hid it quick...

    Why pay more?

  12. Wokstation

    http://store.razerzone.com/store/razerusa/en_US/pd/productID.169418900

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    Razer Naga

    I need the buttons. It's why I also have a Nostromo...

  13. Witty username

    Razor Habu

    Comfy and responsive! for smaller hands, try the Razor Diamondback

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