SteelSeries Sensei Wireless Mouse Review
Overview
I’ve never been a huge fan of wires, even less so on mice, I’m always getting them snagged on something (mouse mats, snacks, beer cans…). So when asked if I’d like to review the latest offering from SteelSeries nothing could hold me back! (not even a wire 😉 ). Here we have the SteelSeries Sensei Wireless
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ENHANCED SENSEI PERFORMANCE ‘The Sensei Wireless is SteelSeries’ innovative ambidextrous premium laser mouse designed for the engaged gamer who values trusted Sensei performance and outstanding beauty. Delivering freedom from wires, unparalleled performance, maximum customization and a stand-out-from-the-crowd look, this mouse proves that sometimes beauty is more than skin deep. Sensei Wireless uses the latest in wireless technology to deliver exactly the same performance of our wired Sensei tournament-grade mouse. We equipped the mouse with the highest polling rate on the market (1000 Hz), delivering a 1ms response time that eliminates wireless lag. The Pixart ADNS 9800 laser sensor allows you to ramp up the CPI to 8200. To top it off we also added new, highly-responsive SteelSeries switches that have an industry leading life lifespan of 30 million clicks.’ |
So let’s take a closer look at what the SteelSeries Sensei Wireless mouse has to offer…
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The Sensei arrived in a stylish yet rather understated grey and orange box using a combination a gloss and matt finishes, which unusually isn’t much larger than it’s contents. Up front is an artistic depiction of the mouse and charging station, the model name and mouse type, OS compatibility as well as that familiar SteelSeries logo and branding. All rather simple, but nice.
On the back we have the model name, picture of the mouse and charging station again, and a list of the Wireless Sensei’s main features.
FEATURES
- WIRELESS FREEDOM – Advanced wireless technology combined with responsive and durable SteelSeries engineered switches delivers tournament grade performance without the wires.
- INFINITE PLAY – Charge while playing or use the illuminated docking station so the juice doesn’t stop and your gaming won’t either.
- STYLE & FIT – Ambidextrous design, aluminium base and accents, sweat resistant coating and customizable multi-zone 16.8M colour illumination. It feels as good as it looks.
- CUSTOMIZE LOOK AND PERFORMANCE WITH – SteelSeries Engine 3, Programmable illuminated metal base charges and indicates battery status or user profile.
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On the right of the box is a side profile of the Sensei Wireless and a short brief telling you about the optional wired mode charging for continuous play.
The left presents a front picture of the Sensei whilst situated in the charging station and highlights yet more features.
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Upon opening the box we find a matt black cardboard envelope with the SteelSeries brand and logo embossed in gloss black, which hides the mouse itself. Just beneath this tray is the Sensei charging dock.
Being a rather uncomplicated package there isn’t a huge amount of contents, only what you’d expect and need…
Contents
- SteelSeries Sensei Wireless Laser Mouse
- Sensei Charging Station and Wireless Receiver
- USB 2.0 Cable
- SteelSeries Sticker
The SteelSeries Sensei Wireless mouse is currently available on Amazon
Specifications/Features
courtesy of SteelSeries
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* Additional details available here
First Impressions
After a rather nice and uncomplicated unboxing experience, it’s time to take a closer look…
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This is the first of the SteelSeries Sensei gaming mice I’ve had the opportunity to look at. All those who have ventured before me have always come away very impressed (especially pcG James when reviewing a previous Sensei), so with the excitement having built up, I have to admit my heart sank a little…
Owing to the very simple and unassuming nature of the Sensei, the mouse itself weighs 120g which to me is incredibly light (my go to mouse is the Logitech G700s Rechargeable Gaming Mouse
Beneath the Sensei is actually a little more interesting than your average mouse (emphasis on the little). Of course it features four glides, brand logo, product details and a centrally positioned laser as most mice do. It even features an on/off switch, connect button and USB release switch that many wireless mice do! What no other mice has (or at least none I’ve ever come across) is three gold contact points. These of course work in conjunction with the Sensei dock to charge the mouse (wire free charging? I’m in heaven! 😉 ). Included in the box is a black and fully braided (although a little stiff) USB 2.0 cable. This can be used to power the dock, or if you need to power the Sensei itself.
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On the left the Sensei has two very well placed thumb buttons, beneath which is slightly contoured section that features the same rubberised coating as the top.
The right? Well being ambidextrous it’s exactly the same! 😉
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The front of the Sensei Wireless is pretty sparse. The only feature that can’t be seen in the image (above left) is the micro USB port.
The back shows the (soon to be illuminated 🙂 ) SteelSeries logo.
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The dock follows a similar styling to the mouse. Around the edge is the same bead blasted metal accent surround as featured around the mouse scroll wheel, which helps to give the dock more of a premium look. At the bottom of this is the SteelSeries name and logo. In the centre is a matt black insert which is moulded perfectly to the mouse, towards the lower right you can see three gold charging contacts. The dock isn’t just a charger for the Sensei, it also acts as a wireless receiver.
The Sensei dock is of a high quality. It has a substantial weight of 208g, beneath is a large flat base with a rubber anti-slip pad covering almost the entire area. Centrally you can see a product information sticker and below that is the receiver connect button.
I’m not going to lie, I’m not exactly enamoured by the SteelSeries Sensei Wireless mouse so far. Although elegant in design and well made, it’s perhaps a little too safe and missing that certain wow factor! The mouse itself seems too light and too small in the hand, but the rubberised material does feel nice to the touch. The weight and build quality of the Dock has impressed so far, which should also help prevent the incredibly stiff braided cable from lifting it off the desk.
More importantly though is how well does this mouse perform? Will I see the sense in the Sensei? (ED: Ohh Mike, that was terrible!)
Hardware Installation
The SteelSeries Sensei Wireless mouse cable plugged straight into a spare USB port on our MSI Z87-G45 Gaming test motherboard. The end of which was then plugged into the Sensei dock, the mouse turned on and the connectivity buttons held down for 3 seconds each (mouse first), which then allows the two items to pair up.
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Testing Methodology/Setup
Unusually there is no software supplied in-box, although it’s just simple enough to download (here) and install. To help avoid any potential software conflicts (and because I needed to anyway), the pcG Test Rig received a full re-install of Windows 7 Home Premium 64Bit (Service Pack 1).
The following games were used to help in the evaluation of the SteelSeries Sensei Wireless:
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Hardware Performance
Ok, so the Sensei is plugged in and raring to go. Or so you’d think… Firstly it’s worth pointing out that nowhere in the Sensei packaging does it state that the charging dock will only charge via a USB 2.0 port only. Of course both ISB 2.0 ports on the MSI Z87-G45 Gaming have other gadgets plugged into them. So typically I’d plugged into a spare USB 3.0 port, in which the dock would not charge the mouse (sadly it took me a while to work this out). So starting again; now plugged into a now freely available USB 2.0 on the motherboard, the first thing you notice is the illumination. It’s brilliantly bright and all of a sudden the subtle design of the Sensei becomes something a lot more exciting to look at.
Due to lack of charge I plugged the USB cable straight into the Sensei, this also gave me the benefit of charging whilst in use. The cable itself is a high quality plain black braided number, but also not as flexible as I’d have liked. At least it gives me the chance to play around with the mouse before going wireless…
Now the Sensei Wireless is fully charged (approx 3hr charge time), the most obvious thing to do is Game! First up Battlefield 4 (mainly because as a premium owner I still hadn’t played any of the Naval Strike maps). I found getting accustomed to the small size and light weight of the Sensei pretty hard at first, but then after a few rounds where I seemingly became a better player (ok, maybe a little wishful thinking), but I hit my stride. As it turns out, the rather unassuming little mouse by SteelSeries could actually be the perfect mouse for any palm grip gamer out there! The rubberised surface feels soft and very comfortable in hand and even in long stressful sessions, you’ll be very unlikely to lose grip. The left and right buttons are responsive with a solid feel, even those with smaller hands won’t have any issues with them as they work just as well at the top of the mouse. The CPI button is well placed, meaning your unlikely to press it unintentionally, but it also isn’t awkward or hard to reach when trying to switch sensitivity on the fly. The scroll wheel is exactly where you’d want it to be and features a treadded rubber grip, again you’ll not be slipping off this very easily either. Although I did find the wheel a little stiff, in time this would be easy to get used to.
Multiple CPI/DPI settings? Well the SteelSeries Sensei Wireless offers only two. This is worlds away from most other Gaming mice available today, but I rather like the fact it has a more simple and streamlined approach. The finest feature isn’t the seemingly lag free wireless capability, but the amazing Pixart ADNS 9800 laser sensor. To be precise it’s about its surgical precision, it’s brilliant, almost like the mouse is where you want it to be before you’ve even thought about it (ED: Right, that’s it I want one!)…
Getting into winning ways wasn’t all plain sailing of course. Due to the ambidextrous nature of the Sensei, both the left and right side are mirrored. So although the left side thumb buttons are perfectly placed for right handed users, when involved in intense fire-fights you’ll find yourself gripping the mouse a little more tightly and consequently triggering the RIGHT side thumb buttons (it’s not exactly ideal throwing a med-kit at a newly spawned enemy squad!). So to remedy this you’ll need to jump straight into the mouse software, otherwise known as SteelSeries Engine 3 to make some adjustments…
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Software
The SteelSeries Engine 3 is incredibly easy to use (even for me! 😉 ). The first and in my eyes most important feature is ‘Live Preview’. This allows you to use your settings as you change them, meaning you don’t have to constantly tweak and save in order to get the perfect balance. Although looking fairly clean and simple, the software has quite a selection of settings to alter. You can adjust both CPI 1 (1600 CPI stock) and 2 (8400 CPI stock) from anywhere between 50 and 16400 CPI using the cool looking speedometer styled dial.
You can also adjust performance and battery life expectancy, use Sensor Smart Mode (the sensor will go into a low-power state to save power when not in use), use Illumination Smart Mode (this turns the mouse logo off when covered to save power), adjust acceleration/deceleration, modify LOD (Lift off Distance) and turn on/off Angle Snapping (this helps to straighten out and snap your lines, in game this is very handy for snipers keeping the view line straight). Finally Polling Rate can be modified (1000Hz stock) and of course you can re-map all of the buttons to other mouse buttons, keyboard, media, macros or even de-activate them altogether (like I did for the right side buttons).
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Illumination
Another cool feature of both the SteelSeries Sensei Wireless is the illumination. On the Sensei the SteelSeries logo and scroll wheel light up, on the dock there is a Sensei shaped halo around the mount which also illuminates. Out of the box these light up a rather familiar bright orange, but by using SteelSeries Engine 3 you can change any one or all three to one of 16.8 million colours (even cyan or magenta James 😉 ), you can also turn them off entirely, use the infamous ‘breathe’ effect (Sadly like many competitors out there, SteelSeries haven’t quite managed this, it visibly stutters!). My personal favourite though is the battery status indicator, once 100% fully charged the illumination lights up a very bright green colour (perhaps even better than a Razer green!), then as the charge drops to 30% a yellow/amber, 10% red and at 0% you shouldn’t really need to ask! 😉
Final Thoughts
From the rather simple and stylish box the SteelSeries Sensei Wireless
Then you plug it in! With the brilliant illumination it suddenly becomes something a little bit special (and that’s before actually using it!). By the time you become accustomed to its shape, the Sensei feels very natural (almost like it was not designed for just anybody’s hand, but your own). The Pixart ADNS 9800 laser sensor is simply awesome and offers you near surgical precision in game. Whilst although a reasonably steep 3hr charge time, the battery goes on for a very reasonable 18hr (that’s a fair bit of Gaming) and if it does die on you, can simply plug in via the USB cable and Game and Charge at the same time.
There’s no denying the Sensei Wireless is a fantastic mouse, but it isn’t quite perfect. Out of the box and due to its ambidextrous design you will find yourself pressing the opposite thumb buttons when in the heat of the action, although you can easily use the SteelSeries Engine 3 to remap them or turn them off altogether. The braided cable is also not quite up to standard, it may be high quality but it isn’t very flexible. This means it’ll drag and snag on anything in it’s way. Of course this is easily remedied by setting the mouse free and staying true to it’s name, Wireless!
Yet there is one serious issue with the SteelSeries Sensei Wireless that I’d think you’ll most likely know of already. The price! No matter how good a mouse is, even a bloody good wireless mouse such as this, £130 seems incredibly steep and a very bitter pill to swallow…
There is a little good news though, for those of you who are quick! I’ve just spotted a deal on Amazon offering this mouse for £89.82 with free P & P!
I didn’t even have to think twice at this price and will have my very own, very soon. 😉
Verdict
Please Share, Like & Comment below, we really value your thoughts and opinions.
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Where possible we always use Amazon’s price for Value… |
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Many thanks to SteelSeries for providing this sample for review
It looks have different features from the other mouse brand, the shape also looks very well design and definitely easy to use for gaming. I agree that the Sensei Wireless is a fantastic mouse and that we should have to try.
I’ve been using the Razer mamba before and what I have found that most of the features that the lists of wireless gaming brand for 2016 has big differences.The enhanced performance differs itself and for features that are highly different.