SteelSeries has released their new Sensei gaming mouse and we got our hands on one to review for you loyal readers. It must first be mentioned that SteelSeries has long been known for pro-gaming quality gear, without all the fancy bells and whistles (e.g. lighting) that most other manufacturers tout in their products. So, when SteelSeries first announced that the Sensei would feature LED lighting, we were somewhat skeptical, wondering if the company had “sold out” to mainstream desires of form over function. After getting our hands dirty with the Sensei, however, we are pleased to say that this could not be further from the truth.
Featuring the same dimensions and ambidextrous design as the highly-lauded SteelSeries Xai gaming mouse (save for it being gunmetal instead of black), the Sensei is an attractive peripheral. That’s where the similarities between the two end, however, and we are not just saying that because the Sensei has some cool LED lighting effects (including an underside LCD display to show off custom logos, etc). Under the hood, the SteelSeries Sensei is equipped with a 32-bit ARM central processing unit capable of all sorts of heavy calculations not usually seen on a gaming mouse. In fact, these features are so revolutionary that they will undoubtedly be seen on other gaming mice in the near future.
This feature-set is known as SteelSeries ExactTech, and consist of ExactAim, ExactLift, ExactSens, and ExactAccel. Let it also be known that the ExactTech features are all fully-customizable per your own preference:
- ExactAim: This feature enables the Sensei to automatically decrease sensitivity as your mouse movement slows (i.e. Taking a sniper shot).
- ExactLift: This tells the Sensei at which height off the mousepad that the Sensei will stop translating movement. This is helpful because mousing surfaces differ greatly and these surfaces can affect this metric. I hate lifting my mouse of the pad only to see that it has altered by general aiming direction.
- ExactSens: Allows gamers to customize their mouse sensitivity setting in increments of 1 CPI (counts per inch). This is unheard of adjustment capability – usually gaming mice adjust in intervals of 100 CPI.
- ExactAccel: This is the opposite of ExactAim, allowing the mouse to automatically increase sensitivity when mouse movement increases.
The best part of these features are that they are all calculated on the mouse, on-the-fly. Just make sure you disable your operating system’s mouse acceleration/interpolation features. In actual gaming situations, ranging from Wargaming.net’s Wold of Tanks to the multiplayer portion of Activision’s Call of Duty: Black Ops, this gaming mouse is a dream to use. Additionally, the mouse’s UPE Teflon feet ensure a smooth glide whether on a SteelSeries mouse pad or one from Razer (we have pads from each manufacturer). It should be noted, however, that the Sensei gaming experience is quite different than that of a standard gaming mouse and you may have some trouble adjusting at first. Our advice is to stick with it, as what the Sensei can do will definitely help you over time.
Of course, despite these awesome gaming features, the Sensei also features a 16.8 million color LED lighting system that will please the style-conscious. Additionally, lighting profiles are customizable and swappable so you can spend a good amount of time deciding which lighting profile to use for which application.
Overall, the SteelSeries Sensei gaming mouse is an exceptional peripheral sure to revolutionize gaming mice in the future. Its on-board features are incredible and the mouse will please those looking for glitzy LEDs as well as gaming performance. The Sensei retails for $89.95 and is available now.
[easyreview title=”Score Round-up” cat1title=”Construction/Quality” cat1detail=”Excellent SteelSeries construction and, while ambidextrous design is accommodating, it is not as comfortable as a mouse built for a hand-orientation.” cat1rating=”4″ cat2title=”Setup/Installation” cat2detail=”Simple installation and everything is customizable on the mouse.” cat2rating=”5″ cat3title=”Usage” cat3detail=”Excellent gaming experience and the mouse definitely helps your performance.” cat3rating=”5″]
