Logitech G5 Laser Mouse Review
Staff Writer Jeremy Star continues his ever-growing series of hardware reviews as he looks at the new G5 mouse from Logitech.
Hardware Reviews By Jeremy Star on May 09, 2007
Wait, wait wait. I can already hear some of you screaming before I even start, so let me explain. Yes, I know that the G5 mouse has been out for a while. A long while. No, this isn't a review of that mouse. This is a review of the new Logitech G5 mouse. It looks different, has different specifications, and is basically a whole different mouse now. Why they didn't call it the G6, or the G5 Revision 2, or HEY-The-NEW-G5-WOW! Is beyond me. It's simply the G5.
Everybody get it? Are we all clear? Good. Moving on...
The Hardware - The new G5, not the same as the old G5
The G5 is a laser mouse with a USB connection. It features in-game DPI switching, an adjustable weight cartridge, dual thumb buttons, a 2000 DPI laser engine, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) gaming feet, and a full speed, 1000 reports per second USB interface. The mouse wheel is also set up to allow not only up/down scrolling, but also left/right as well.
The Technology - Poly-tetris-what-its?
Does everybody remember what DPI stands for? Dots Per Inch? It's basically a measurement of how far your cursor moves on screen versus how far you have to physically move the mouse. The higher the DPI, the less you have to strain your wrist while looking around or clicking frantically on spells in the game.
For a more in-depth breakdown, check out the Razer Krait review here: http://www.mmorpg.com/showFeature.cfm/loadFeature/1178.
The G5 has a 2000 DPI laser engine. This means that for every inch you move the mouse, the cursor moves 2000 counts of movement on the screen. This is, of course, all depending on how you have filters like Sensitivity and Acceleration set up. The older version of the G5 also had a 2000 DPI laser engine.
On the new G5, however, the USB report rate has been increased from the 500 reports per second to 1000 RPS. This means the G5 can send all that sampled data from its laser sensors to the PC twice as fast.
Like its predecessor, the new G5 has two buttons located under the mouse wheel to allow you to switch the DPI on-the-fly. So, if you find yourself needing a high DPI to look around, but having difficulty using that same DPI to click on things, it's a snap to switch to a lower DPI. The drivers also allow you to set which DPIs you switch between, so if the default setup of 400, 800, 2000 isn't to your liking, you can change it. I set it to 800, 1600, and 2000 and find it works well for general MMORPG play at the middle setting.
The PTFE feet work much like all the other gaming mouse feet out there. They allow the mouse to glide along nice and smooth on your mousing surface. They are bit larger than normal mouse feet, but I'm not sure that really effects performance one way or the other.
Appearance - Does this color make me look fat?
The G5 now has a cool-looking blue/black cracked leather covering on the top, instead of the orange rusted silver look it used to have. It also now has two side buttons instead of one. Aside from those two differences, it is identical to the old G5: Same hump-back shape, same DPI indicator lights, same braided cord. Logitech knows they have a good thing, so they didn't mess with it much, which I think was the correct choice.
Performance - Here to kick butt and take names, and it forgot to bring a pen.
The G5 is just as zippy as ever, and it makes playing games easier on the wrist with its high DPI settings. It defaults to 800 DPI and uses the Windows sensitivity settings when the drivers are installed, so it was a breeze to set up and start using.
As I stated earlier, I set the mouse up with a middle DPI setting of 1600, as I find 800 to be a little too low for MMORPG play, but 2000 to be a bit high.
The G5 was very comfortable to use while playing for extended periods. I could move the cursor all over my 24" widescreen without straining my wrist, yet maintain enough control to click even the tiny default action buttons in Lord of the Rings Online.
The left and right buttons are fine, although I find they click a little too easily for my tastes. I would often find myself clicking things accidentally while moving the mouse through the UI. The middle mouse button is also a bit of a pain to click, because it wants to wobble from side to side instead of depress, yet it is unusually stiff when used as a mouse wheel. The side buttons are perfect, however. They are stiff enough so that you can rest your thumb on them without fear of accidentally depressing them, but they still click easily enough to use them when you want to. Also, the DPI buttons are a nice touch, and they are easy enough to get to, yet out of the way so they don't interfere with normal game play operations.
Conclusion - Gee, should I get a G5?
If you read my review of the Razer Krait, you know I am very picky about mice. In fact, I didn't like the original version of the G5. The removal of one side button and the slick material on the sides of the mouse kept it from achieving the same level of mouse greatness as the MX518.
What I think of it:
I still feel the sides of the mouse are too slick. Something about the the material causes my fingers to slide on it. However, the new textured top of the mouse adds a grip that was lacking on the former version, thus allowing me to maintain control of the mouse.
I love that they added another side button, and I still like the DPI switching buttons and the light that lets me know what DPI it is on.
The wheel having the ability to move side to side does make it hard to use as a third button, but I tend not to use it as such anyway.
All told, the G5 is a much better mouse for the revision, although it could still use some work.
Who I think can benefit the most:
If you already own a G5, it's probably not worth it to upgrade, unless you really have to have that extra side button.
If you are still playing with a non-optical or laser-mouse, you could definitely do worse than upgrading to a G5, although it is slightly on the expensive side for a mouse.
Final Thoughts
It's nice to know that hardware companies listen to their customers. Logitech heard the cry of gamers deprived of the second side button, and responded by not only replacing the button, but by beefing up the tech features as well. The G5 is not a bad mouse for your MMORPG needs by any stretch, but it could use another revision to replace the slippery sides and overly sensitive main buttons.
Overall, I give this mouse an 8 out of a possible 10.
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Nothing to see here.
These are not the droids you are looking for.
Move along.
Though a second side button would be nice, I prefer the fade to orange look of my G5, even if it has mostly been rubbed off anyway.
Nice review, though, now I have something to upgrade too when my current G5 dies.
since it's just a matter of time until we see the G7 with 2 thumb buttons i'll wait for that. right now i'm happy with my G7 but to get to that point i removed the shell from my G5r1 since the original shell of the G7 was just WAY too slick and the shell of the revised G7 with the fake carbon fiber look just completely turned me off. i don't understand why they insist on using these graphic shells rather than what's been proven and works well, they need to take an example from razer on this.
I used G7 for over a year.. probably the best wireess mouse outthere imo.. just toobad the Logithec doesnt have a supprot service to replace their crappy batteries.. i ended up with boh of mine not recharging anymore :( Bought a G5 , i was very happy with it but the shell was horrible to me.. so i took the G7 one and using it on my G5 right now.. and you know what ? i'm really happy with it.
BTW, nice quote. I love Farscape.
Considering the Reaper can be found for cheaper than the MX518 it would have been a better comparison to make.
Just to note I use a Habu myself and considering it's cheaper than the G5 it's a better buy.
The only real gripe I have with the G5 is the size, I wish it was more like the mx1000 as it fits perfectly in my palm and has a nice rest for the thumb.
Anyways, nice review, it clearly shows that I'll hardly upgrade to the new revision.
I might have some problems coming up with the same excuse for this new version... it could be awesome.
And like the G5 before it, the RMB will break after a few months of use...
I *upgraded* to a razer copperhead from my G5. Im very happy with the move. Goes great with a Saitek Eclipse II.
And again, the slippery complaint is a crock of bullshit. I've had zero grip problems with my G5, and find it to be of better grip than the crappy dell mouse I'm forced to use at work. I think our reviewer should be required to wash their hands before reviewing mice in the future because there's something else going on there.
I use an MX revolution. I will NEVER buy another mouse again.
How come I haven't seen a review for this mouse?
The g5 looks cool, but not as cool as my revolution.
There is no real technological difference between the previous G5 and this version. No the 1000 Hz polling rate is nothing new, install the drivers (setpoint) and press a button and you have the exact same friggin' thing for your oldschool G5 - no difference whatsoever. Indeed the only new thing about this updated version is a different look - oh and one extra button (not like you ever used the other one to begin with). And no - it doesn't offer more grip than the previous version, mainly because that version had no grip problems to begin with... I didn't think the buttons were sensitive at all either - try a Razer Diamondback: that is sensitive.
Considering the fact that the inherent technology hasn't changed at all - this remains an overpriced and underperforming mouse... and any gamer would do better with a Razer DeathAdder. It's not only less expensive, but performs infinitely better... because unlike the G5: it's not a laser mouse - and as such utilizes tried and true technology that's been utterly perfected... So where the G5 drops off after you accelerate it a bit (even when polled to 1000 Hz) and as such is not really a great mouse - the DeathAdder can handle anything any human can throw at it, easily.
Welcome.
To be fair I dunno if the MX is the best for gaming. More for multi tasking then anything, but for someone with nerve damage in thier hand I will say that it is the MOST confortable mouse I have ever found.
I debated in the store for about half an hour between it and the G5.
I have it(the older one, ya ya), still love it, but yes I agree with the cons. The middle button is a pain! I hate it, don't like the sidescroll for it either, so I switched it off with the software. The only complaint from me is the dang middle mouse button...If they fix it, hopefully they will, this mouse pretty much pwns them all... In my opinion of course.
I use to own the old Razer Diamondback mouse for a long time, it shorted out on me, got another one, and then that one shorted out on me. I pretty much gave up on Razer trend all together. Then switched to the MX500, great mouse for a while, then switched to the G5 which I still have to this day. It has not once shorted out, the roof hasn't worn yet, it has kept its tight grip, the weights do a really great job when you need that extra precision, on-the-fly sensitivity is the pwn of course, I always get a kick out of the little running guy on it, reminds me of a Cactuar sort of.
The Logitech G5 is a really wonderful mouse, it does take some time to get use to, even...again...that damn middle button! See, if you don't actually own the G5 you probably won't understand what people are talking about, because others have complained about it I'm sure. Here's the thing, I am an avid Firefox user, and instead of right-click open new tab, I like to use the middle mouse button to open a link to a new tab. The problem is, is sometimes it works fine, and then sometimes it likes to skip up and down the page, it thinks you're trying to auto scroll when you aren't, real pain in the ass, and repetitive. But, don't let it stop you from trying it though, the mouse does rock! Only, if you can get past the little things, you won't regret it.
Oh, and just to spice it all up, add in the G15 keyboard, it all matches... I did it. :)
I don't run at 2000 dps. I think I actually like 800 best so far, but I really do agree with you that the material on the sides offers adequate grip. I don't know what crazy secretions are coming out of the hands of the reviewer, but I find the G5 to be the grippiest mouse I've used.
- Jnn4v (Farmo / Lorindor)
And well, I got to say it works more or less just like it reads from the review - with small ado that my fingers are not slipping from the sides
I am picky about my mice too. I have boughten one to many in my hunt for the best. But day one when logitech offered the pre-order/C&C 3 promotion. I ordered!
Best mouse I have ever had, it has it all. I doubt I will be buying a mouse again anytime soon they would really have to step things up. I did not get the first G5 because it did not have that forward button.
If you're buying a new mouse, go to your favorite computer store and see what one feels best. I tried everything out for feel and ended up spending $70 (Ouch!) on a Razer Copperhead. It's slides silky smooth on it's teflon feet and fits my hand perfect. I watched my fragrate jump way up on AA and I'll never go back. I still use my trackball for UO to save my wrist, but for FPS games the Copperhead is King.
I am sticking with my Revolution MX.