The Great Mouse Showdown

Feature

The basic differences between a regular mouse and a gaming mouse is that the gaming mice are more expensive, have higher DPI and, with the new laser sensors, also higher polling rates.

April 16th, 2008 by Marko Susimets�

Customisability
With customisability we took a close look at the special tweaks that the mice allow you to do. Razer Diamondback and Lachesis only allow you to tweak the button functions with the provided driver software, while all the other mice allow customisation to some degree. Logitech G5 and Microsoft Sidewinder allow you to change the weight of the units with small weights that can be inserted on trays that slip inside the mice. Both of these mice have a relatively good heft to begin with, so this feature is only useful to those who like their mice to be a bit heavier. Microsoft Habu doesn�t let you adjust the weight, but it has another cool feature: with a simple exchange of the side panel, you can change the position of the two thumb buttons to better suit your preferred mouse gripping style. Finally, Logitech G9 takes the throne in this category with a double feature: you can change the weight of the unit with a tray that inserts into the mouse, but you also have a choice of the mouse grip itself. The package includes two grip styles: a wide grip offering good rest for the thumb with a rubbery surface finish and a narrow grip with hard, slightly rough finish.

Drivers
The driver software provided with each gaming mouse provides a lot more freedom to tweak the DPI and button preferences than any ordinary mouse on the market. All the drivers allow you to adjust the scroll wheel and double-click speed, assign the button functions etc. usual stuff. Microsoft Sidewinder offers the most basic additional functionality, being restricted to simple DPI setting preferences for the three top buttons used to switch between them as well as assign special keyboard macros to the buttons. The Razers and Microsoft Habu all include Razer�s drivers that are personalised for each mouse label and possess the familiar green/black design. All these drivers allow you to adjust the X and Y axis sensitivity and pointer acceleration separately. The Lachesis and Habu also allow you to adjust the polling rate of the laser sensor and save your settings on the internal memory of the mouse. Additionally, the Lachesis allows you to predetermine 5 different profiles that you can carry with you, all with different sensitivities and buttons settings etc. that you can change on the fly independent of the computer that you use. All in all, the Razer drivers are top notch, although one could blame the configuration windows for being a little difficult to read and use.

Logitech G9's drivers and configuration possibilities allow you to determine 3 different profiles that each consist of 1 to 5 different sub-settings. The main profile determines the mouse buttons, wheel etc. settings, but, in addition, each profile allows you to set 1 to 5 different settings for the DPI sensitivity that you can adjust on the fly as you play. In order to change the profile (such as �productivity�, �gaming�, �general�) you need to access a button at the bottom of the mouse, while the DPI sensitivity can be changed with a handily positioned sensitivity button on top of the mouse. In addition, an LCD display shows you the present profile (different user-changeable colour of the display) and sensitivity setting (small bars) with a quick look. In addition, the drivers allow you to set and save different keyboard macros that can be assigned to any of the buttons � which really provides you with endless possibilities to configure the mouse just the right way for any gaming tournaments that you might want to attend.

Rating
We both rated each of the mice on the above criteria and the following table presents the averages of our ratings. Mostly, our opinions on the mice were very similiar, but whereas Wolfwood rated MS Sidewinder as the last of the bunch, Varg put it on the third place. The main reason for Wolfwood's dislike were the thumb buttons that were unusable for someone using a fingertip grip on the mouse.

And the winner is...

Logitech G9. It got slightly ahead of Microsoft Habu in overall score mainly because of the better ergonomy and superior customisability. The exchangeable grip and weights allow you to adjust the feel of the mouse to your particular likings, whether you have large or small hands and whether you like your mouse average or heavy in weight. However, it should be noted that quality costs. Logitech G9 was also the most expensive of the mice that we reviewed and thus, if you are looking for a good price-quality ratio, you might probably prefer Microsoft Habu. In our review, the Razer mice were not as successful as they often are in mouse reviews simply because neither of us liked the light weight of the mice and the difficulty of using the side buttons. Similarly, Logitech G5 might have scored better if it had had the two thumb buttons that the rev. 2 model has.