Capsule Review: Logitech's G100s, G500s, and G700s Gaming Mice
by Dustin Sklavos on March 30, 2013 12:01 AM EST- Posted in
- Mouse
- Peripherals
- Gaming
- Logitech
Conclusion: Three Mice for Three Users
I think what I may very well like best about the Logitech G100s, G500s, and G700s is that they're not one-size-fits-all mice. Undoubtedly I've been glowing throughout this review, but honestly I'd be happy using any one of these three mice, and if you've been keeping up with my peripheral reviews you'd know I tend to be fairly picky. Everybody should be; the mouse, keyboard, and display are the ways you interact with the computer and thus should be as enjoyable to use and even as seamless as possible. As far as I'm concerned, that should be the overarching mentality of virtually any vendor making technology products: people should enjoy using these devices, and the devices should not get in the way of what people want to do with them.
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Starting at $39, I think the G100s is actually a little bit of a tough sell, at least superficially. This looks like a garden variety mouse, and it does feel a little cheap, but those wind up being the prices you pay for what the mouse is intended for. As an RTS mouse I suspect it's going to be a very popular and effective weapon, and the optical sensor is actually the most fluid and enjoyable to use of the three mice tested here. There's no reason to think this mouse won't go on sale at some point, and at $29 it'd be an absolute steal.
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At $69 the G500s continues the G500's reign as the elder statesman workhouse mouse. If you loved the G500, you'll love the G500s, because all Logitech has done is fix their software, upgrade the laser slightly, and make the buttons more durable. I'm madly in love with the coarse texture used on the grips, personally, as well as the toggleable freewheel. Some users will undoubtedly appreciate the configurable weight, too. I wouldn't recommend actually paying sticker price for this mouse; Logitech mice go on sale all the time, and the G500s really belongs at $59.
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By now you probably already know whether or not you want the Logitech G700s. In many ways it's like the G500s but better, though I do prefer the lighter weight of the G500s in the hand. If you want to be able to switch between onboard profiles on the fly, though, it's pretty tough to beat. I just wish there were some kind of LED indicator on the mouse for both the active profile and the active DPI setting (similar to the G500s), and the weight kind of comes with the territory of a wireless gaming mouse. Finally, at $79 it's a very hard sell, but there isn't much out there that's quite like it.
I can easily and cheerfully recommend any of these mice, and I would urge users to seriously consider what they're getting for their money. Can you make do with a cheap $20 mouse and keyboard? Sure, absolutely. But you spend extra money for what honestly can be a substantially better experience; I've tested a lot of these peripherals on friends who were used to using basic, chintzy consumer kit and found their reactions often come just short of outright epiphany. The prices on some of these are high (excepting the G100s, which is actually a pretty straightforward deal), but peripherals are very particular from user to user, and the good stuff can really make all the difference.
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piiman - Wednesday, March 19, 2014 - link
"I wont rehash a long speech about why I think this is the most badly designed gaming mouse ive every come across, in short its badly weighted, the shape simply does not allow for comfort keeping it under control in my palm and simple pick and drop operations see it wrestle itself into the heel of my hand. The entire thumb control area is a curvy mess meaning very little angular control no matter how much grip you apply because its (unsuccessfully) all going into keeping it flat."I find this to be totally untrue.
ilkhan - Sunday, March 31, 2013 - link
I purchased an MX Revolution and G700 at the same time (for laptop and desktop respectively) but ended up benching the revolution and buying a second G700 (seriously, don't ask me to tally the dollars I've spent on Logitech gear over the years, its disgustingly high). Love both of them, and these can only be improvements. <3 Logitech.Hardtarget - Sunday, March 31, 2013 - link
Been using a MX Revolution for years, works plenty fine for gaming of all types, and can't really see a need to upgrade. Once you go wireless you can never go back and I've never felt that there has ever been any lag or the lik.ealthaz - Sunday, March 31, 2013 - link
I have to say that the G100 sounds like the perfect mouse for my gaming kit bag (containing my Surface Pro, a USB hub and a bunch of XBox 360 controllers for portable old-console gaming).The G100 + plus a keyboard (currently investigating mechanical numpadless designs for inclusion also) would be the final piece of my portable gaming Nirvana puzzle. (It would enable Starcraft, console games are already enabled thanks to emulators, same with PC racing/fighting/etc games).
sparkuss - Sunday, March 31, 2013 - link
I'm still rocking an MX-1000, even though the laser light went dead several years ago. All the buttons still work but i want to trade up to something with more accuracy.Is the G700 roughly comparable in size and shape to the G1000? With the G1000, my small hands place my thumb exactly at the center of the left-side button cluster.
cyberguyz - Sunday, March 31, 2013 - link
Actually have one of these rare original G700 convertible (wired/wireless) mice.Beyond the body graphics I don't really see any difference with the G700s. Mice look the same, have the same detachable cord. I use mine primarily in wired mode.
Don't let the drivers fool you. While they say they are downloading configurations to the onboard mouse memory, If you don't have them installed, the buttons revert to factory defaults. It seems the onboard memory and config is only active when the mouse is driven by Logitech's setpoint driver.
Ws6_ - Monday, April 1, 2013 - link
Logitech MX 518. Best mouse I have owned. I've had it for 3-4 years and never had a problem with it.johnny_boy - Monday, April 1, 2013 - link
Well-made software, sure, if you're on a supported platform. It would be nice, though, if they made it truly cross-platform so that linux users had some nice, fully supported peripheral options too.Hrel - Monday, April 1, 2013 - link
When I got a G700 I had to return it because the coarse texture caused my hands to get sweaty almost instantly. I much prefer the soft touch of the MX500 or MX Revolution mice. The G600 also has a nicer texture, still second to the high quality (anti-bacterial I believe) texture on the MX Revolution. I wish all mice had that texture. Because for me, the texture of the G700 made it completely unusable. Sad since other than that it's my idea of the ideal mouse. This picture looks like the same texture.1nf1d3l - Monday, April 1, 2013 - link
I have a "before refresh" G700 and I have to say, it is the best mouse I've ever used. The weight of the thing is nice, and it fits my larger-sized hands nicely. The 3 finger buttons can be difficult to use, but not overly so. One feature I especially like is that once the mouse is plugged in, it doesn't rely on its wireless receiver anymore, essentially making the mouse wired or not at your discretion.One issue I do have with it is its ability to drain batteries. I swapped to a set of 2200mah batteries, and the mouse will drain one in a full day of use, under the "normal gaming" setting. Having a wallcharger or the USB connector close by is pretty much needed.