With super sensitivity, all manner of shapes and buttons, RGB lighting, and more, you might think the scope for innovation in a gaming mouse has probably peaked. To that, Logitech[1] did a big old’ ‘hold my beer’.
At its big annual G Play event, Logitech’s gaming arm[2] took the covers off the new Logitech G Pro X2 Superstrike mouse. Spotting a Star Wars[3] Stormtrooper-esque black-and-white livery, you could mistake it as a sharp-looking gaming mouse and move on.
But the Pro X2 Superstrike is rocking a claimed “industry-first innovation” in that it has analogue mouse clicks, minus the moving parts.
While many gaming mice use mechanical switches, the click is either engaged or not. An analogue clicking mechanism powered by magnetic hall-effect sensors, like those found in higher-end gamepads and gaming keyboards, allows for adjustable actuation points; the point at which a movement, like a tap, click, push, or pull, triggers an action.
This can allow for greater control and customization of a mouse click, but then, with no actual physical clicking mechanism, there’s no feedback to tell a user that a click has been triggered.
The smart thing Logitech G has done with the Pro X2 Superstrike is to use a “haptic inductive triggering system”. So rather than having a moving click mechanism, the mouse uses haptics to convey the physical sensation of a click; it’s a similar fashion to how Apple[4] uses haptics in its Force Touch trackpad.
When used in combination with Logitech’s G Hub software, you have 10 levels of actuation to choose from and five rapid trigger reset levels, which should let you customize when clicks are triggered to suit your gaming style.
After trying this out briefly for myself, I was quite impressed. You can have the click trigger from the lightest of presses to hard thumps of an index finger; something I’m sure professional esports[5] players and first-person shooter fans will appreciate.
There’s also a rapid trigger mechanism, which is something you get on keyboards and controllers with hall-effect mechanisms, whereby you can have a pull of a trigger or tap of a key reset the moment you reduce pressure on them, without the need for the mechanism to return to its previous position fully. With haptics replacing the clicking mechanism, you can have that speed in the Logitech G Pro X2 Superstrike.
I’m not a competitive gamer, so in my very brief time clicking away in the new mouse and using the G Hub to tweak it, it’s hard to get a feel for the rapid trigger here.
But I do think it’s a neat addition to a gaming mouse and a feature that I’m sure dedicated FPS players, esports pros, or streamers will appreciate, especially as Logitech claims the Superstrike tech can reduce click latency by 30 milliseconds.
There’s also a host of other gaming mouse tech in the Pro X2 Superstrike, like a sensor with a maximum of 44,000 DPI and an 8kHz polling rate to keep the mouse movement precise and snappy.
I appreciated it from a tech perspective, and as both a fan of the Force Touch trackpad – the best trackpad out of all the contenders for our best laptops[6] list – and Logitech’s mice, there’s definitely a creeping appeal to the Pro X2 Superstrike, even if I lack the gaming chops to get the most out of it.
As for the rest of the mouse, it’s reminiscent of other Logitech gaming mice. There’s nothing crazy in the design department here, but it feels distinctly comfortable to grip in the same way I feel lots of Logitech mice do. If you like that design, then you’ll feel at home with the Pro X2 Superstrike; if you’re more of a Razer[7] mouse fan, then you may need to subtly adjust to this mouse.
At $179.99 / €179.99, you need to be prepared to pay a premium for the Logitech G X2 Pro Superstrike, but then you are getting new tech for that outlay.
Furthermore, I’d be curious to see how other brands, Razer included, react to this and if such haptics could usher in a new horizon for gaming mice.
Lightweight fantastic
For those of you turning your noses up at the Pro X2 Superstrike, then Logitech G has another mouse to tickle your face: the Logitech G Pro X Superlight 2c.
That mouthful of a name is a very lightweight take on Logitech’s Pro X Superlight 2, and is smaller to boot. Designed in collaboration with professional gamers, the Superlight 2c has been made for people who like to adopt a so-called ‘claw grip’ to their gaming mouse.
I gave the new mouse a quick spring, and while I prefer mice with a bit more heft and ones that can be cradled in my hand, it’s still a slick bit of gaming hardware; just not my cup of tea.
If it sounds like yours, it’s being released on October 21 for a price of $159.99 / £159.99 / AU$299.95.
What might be more appealing to me, and surprisingly so, is the updated Logitech G515 Rapid TKL. This is the company’s first keyboard with low-profile analogue keys.
This design allows for fast key actuation and the use of the rapid trigger system to make for superfast key taps and presses, many of which can be tweaked and customised in the G Hub software.
While I don’t mind a lack of travel in laptop keyboards, I like my desktop ones to have deep, satisfying mechanical clicks. So low-profile keys don’t always appeal to me. But the G515 Rapid TKL may be the keyboard to convince me, as tapping away on it felt fast, snappy, and satisfying.
Not being able to take it for a long spin, and not being good enough at hardcore gaming to really embrace the rapid trigger mechanism, it felt good to type on at speed; I could have been imagining it, but I thought I made fewer typos while my fingers banged against the keys.
Logitech might have me rethinking my current mechanical keyboard with deep-profile keys, and prompts me to chew over an upgrade. You can get one today for $169.99 / £139.99 / AU$329.95.
There was more to see at Logitech G Play[8], but on the desktop PC gaming side, those were the highlights. Personally, I’d love to give the Logitech G Pro X2 Superstrike a bigger go once it arrives next year, and I’m curious about the G515 Rapid TKL. What’s got your attention? Let me know in the comments below.