REVIEW : LOGITECH PRO GAMING MOUSE

I used Logitech's last small mouse, the G303, for almost a year, even though it didn't really fit my hand. I didn't love the G303's flat profile, and it was just a bit too small for me. The Deathadder and Logitech's G502 fit my hand better. But why did I keep using it? Two reasons: sensor and click. Logitech's peerless PMW-3366 sensor, which it now uses in nearly all of its gaming mice, meant the mouse was going to perform as close to perfectly as currently possible. But it was the G303's click action that really set it apart: Logitech's spring tensioning system made for a metallic, satisfying click that feels fast and crisp under my fingers.

Logitech's Pro Gaming mouse has that same click, and that same sensor, but in a better body, essentially identical to its older G100S. The Pro Gaming mouse has more of an arch than the G303, so it better nuzzles the palm and offers just a bit more surface to grip. This is still a small mouse, suited to small- or medium-sized hands, but it fits its "pro gaming" ideal with perfection: this is a lean, simple, lightweight mouse without an ounce of excess design.

Does that mean you need to be a pro gamer to use this mouse? Absolutely not—but if you don't value the same features that pro gamers do, this isn't the mouse for you. If you care about lots of extra buttons and removable weights, for example, look elsewhere.

The Pro Gaming mouse weighs 83 grams and has just two small thumb buttons on its left side for extra keybinds, with a third on top that defaults to CPI cycling. Pro gamers prefer light, simple mice with fewer buttons rather than more, and even the scroll wheel in the Pro Gaming mouse follows that philosophy. It's an upgrade from the G303's narrow, puny wheel and the smooth rubber wheel of the old G100s—if you've ever used an older Logitech mouse, you know the type. But it's not the heavy metal wheel Logitech put in its more premium gaming mice: it's a notched rubber wheel with a nice scroll and a precise click, but not much weight to it.

For a right-handed user with a small or medium hand, the Pro Gaming Mouse is perfectly shaped. I can use it in a more relaxed palm grip, with the back of my hand hanging off the butt of the mouse, or a more alert claw grip. Both feel good, though the claw fits my larger hand better. The Pro Gaming's light weight also makes it slide across even a cloth mousepad with ease. And aesthetically, I think it's the classiest design of Logitech's current lineup, with a clean RGB ring around the backside of the mouse that glows in beautiful, soft colors, unlike the harsher lights of some embedded RGBs.

Still, it's not quite my favorite Logitech gaming mouse. The thumb buttons have a satisfying click and are firm enough that I can't accidentally press them, but they're on the smaller side. There's also no grippy texture on the side of the mouse, one of my favorite features of the Razer Deathadder. This is an area where the Deathadder and my favorite Logitech mouse, the high-end wireless G900, both excel. The Pro Gaming mouse absolutely aims for simplicity here, as it does with its single CPI button instead of the more common two, for more quickly cycling up and down. If you tend to bind that top mouse button to a different function, that's no big deal, but with no visual indicator on the mouse for what CPI step you're on, an accidental click means having to cycle through several more steps to loop back around.

The Pro Gaming mouse's simple outward features make it feel like it should be a damn affordable gaming mouse, even though the internal components are top-notch. The spring-tensioning system, for instance, helps shave down the distance you have to press the mouse buttons to register a click, while also helping reduce the microscopic plastic wobble that happens when you let go of the button. This prevents accidental misclicks when clicking at high speeds, an effect where the button "rides up" with your finger and throws off your rhythm. And the PMW-3366, which I've written about at length in the past, delivers performance you'll never have to worry about.

Still, you can get those features in the flatter profile of the G303 for only $40, a fantastic price for such a high performance gaming mouse. At its current price of $70 (£75), the Pro Gaming Mouse is a bit more expensive than I'd like. You can get more versatility from other mice like the Deathadder for the same price. But for a lean, focused featureset and the perfect shape for smaller hands, the Pro Gaming mouse lives up to its name.

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