Mice & Keyboards by stefan @ 2014-07-02
Powered by the Pixart ADNS-9800, the Sensei Wireless mouse from SteelSeries is feature-packed and comes with a solid and professional-looking charging dock, which also acts as a wireless station. The mouse is backed by the most recent version of SteelSeries Engine 3 which will allow us to set different battery saving modes, customize LED lighting, acceleration, lift distance and many more.
At first I would like to thank SteelSeries for offering the Sensei Wireless Gaming Mouse for testing and reviewing.
"From day one, SteelSeries has been focused on making high performance gaming gear used by the most demanding, top professional gamers worldwide and peripherals that provide superior quality and a competitive edge to gamers of all skill levels. We believe, as most gamers do, in winning, not trying!
What originally began with two people who recognized the need for superior, high-quality/performance gaming gear that would give gamers a competitive edge, has grown into a global leader in gaming and entertainment gear sought after for their high performance capabilities.
Fast-forward to today, and we’ve come a long way since our first glass mousepad. We have global offices in North America, Europe, and Asia, providing an integrated portfolio of products designed specifically for gaming. Fueling our growth is you, the gamer!
While we are proud of our technology and product innovation, we are even more excited about how these products are developed to meet the needs of gamers. Many companies may claim to develop superior gaming products but few actually do. Instead, they spend countless hours with lab engineers trying to force fit a new technology with bells and whistles and mediocre functionality for the end-user.
At SteelSeries, we develop our products with a small internal team and a vast network of technology partners, channel partners, game publishers, and gaming communities around the globe. We aren’t afraid of being challenged and implementing new ideas. Our main goal is to always to listen to the collective feedback of our professional gaming community.
We won’t bore you with cheeky slogans, trying to underline our authenticity as gamers. We fully acknowledge that the best professional gamers in the world know more about what they want and what will make them better, than we do. We are proud to be working with our partners, but we can’t take credit for their invaluable input and feedback. Instead we tell it like it is: they help us. We want to know what works and what doesn’t. For this reason, SteelSeries creates innovative solutions that provide a competitive advantage for all gamers.
Critical to our company’s success is also our reinvestment in the gaming communities and the individuals who support them. As a result, our corporate philosophy is to take a substantial portion of our revenue and put it back into the gaming community to help spur industry growth. We support our community in numerous ways, ranging from co-hosting tournaments like Iron Lady and King of the Hill, and supporting gaming competitions of all sizes, to promoting the top and up-and-coming gaming teams/organizations.
Put simply, SteelSeries does not claim to invent or reinvent the gaming industry. Nor do we focus on one specific product, copy other companies or follow the crowd.
Instead we leave it to you, the gamer, our customer/partner/inspiration, to decide if we are deserving of such declarations and accolades. What we do promise, however, is to remain committed to you. We will continue to work with you and the gaming community to make the best products possible and give you that competitive edge. We will continue to do our best to support the growth of the professional gaming industry and give back to the gaming communities. By doing so, we don’t just talk a good game, we win!"
SteelSeries have recently launched another interesting product for adding to their already impressive line of gaming accessories. The Sensei mouse has been resurrected again but this time in a wireless form; the packaging has been also fully redesigned and follows the lines which we have also seen at the Siberia Elite headset:
On one of the box sides, we will be able to spot some of the product highlights, represented by small icons:
On the opposite side, SteelSeries is describing the secondary battery charging mode:
The main product features, in detail, can be found on the bottom side of the enclosure:
For additional security, SteelSeries has sealed the box on both sides:
After removing the top cover, we will be welcomed by a black SS-branded envelope, which holds the rest of the documentation:
The Sensei is kept steady inside a plastic mold, so it won’t get accidental scratches during transport:
The envelope contains, besides the tiny manual a leaflet:
On the leaflet we are explained the wired charging procedure:
Inside the manual, we will be able to see instructions on how to operate the product, but also learn how the dock reacts depending on the battery charge level:
SteelSeries has not forgotten to also include a sticker inside the box:
The charging dock sports a professional and high-quality look and is a combination between plastic and aluminum; with it we are also supplied with a specially-designed USB cable:
On the dock we will be able to spot three golden contact points and on the lower section we have the SteelSeries logo:
The middle part is recessed and surrounded by a ring with multicolored LEDs:
On the bottom side of the dock, we will be able to see a large rubber foot along with a sticker in center and also a Connect button for synchronization:
Here is also a lateral view of the machined aluminum component:
The bottom side of the dock is also where we will find the USB port:
The cable is braided for additional durability and specially designed for insertion on both dock and mouse itself:
Because of the ambidextrous design of the mouse, the left and right sides are alike and most of the design elements are borrowed from its older revisions:
The top button serves to change the CPI steps and near it we will find a small LED with double function and the scroll wheel which provides a good grip thanks to the rubber material:
On the back side of the mouse we have a larger SteelSeries logo, which is backed by a multicolored LED:
On the right side of the mouse we have two programmable buttons; both sides and top are covered by a high-quality rubberized plastic which should not show signs of wear as quickly as on other products:
As suspected, the left side looks identical:
On the front side of the mouse we have the opening for the USB charging port, when we would like to continue playing while charging the battery at the same time:
Same golden contact points can be spotted on the back side of the mouse and the laterals are populated by large PTFE feet:
Near the 8200DPI sensor lens, we also have the Connect (sync) button, along with the Power On/Off switch:
If we look more careful at the USB connector, we will spot a small hole which will work hand-in-hand with the Sensei Wireless locking mechanism:
Before removing the cable, make sure to unlock it in order not to damage the small foot:
The same way, the cable can be attached to the dock, but no locking mechanism is present this time:
After we power on the dock and place the mouse on it, the charging procedure will be indicated by the top small red LED:
After SteelSeries Engine gets installed, we will get lighting on the ring too, which is designed to show the battery charge level. When placing the mouse on it the light will pulsate to indicate the charging status. Either when the mouse is not docked, the ring will indicate connection to the mouse; when the mouse is in stand-by, the ring will turn off, but when we press a button to wake the mouse, the ring will light up again. If our computer is set with USB charging ports, we can turn off the machine and leave the mouse charge while away:
The mouse lighting can be customized independently for the scroll wheel and the back logo:
After running SteelSeries Engine 3, we were first prompted to perform a firmware update; afterwards we have been welcomed by a nice and clean interface which was showing the mouse in the center area and additional controls on the left and right sides. To be more precise, the left side contains the button programming section, while the right side features other controls like sensitivity, profiles and so on:
As suspected, we will be able to change the button functions easily and this also goes for the back logo, scroll wheel LED and also for the base:
For each button we will be able to assign a certain pre-programmed macro, a different mouse button, keyboard buttons, media buttons or we can deactivate that button completely:
Certain battery saving profiles can be selected, along with the adjustment of the sleep timer, sensor smart mode and a feature we did really like is Illumination Smart mode which turns off the logo lighting when we are operating the mouse:
Through the pre-programmed profiles, we can choose High-Performance mode, Balance mode, Power Saver Mode or Custom Mode:
Further down, we will be able to adjust the Acceleration, Deceleration, Lift Distance:
Next, we have the ability to select Angle Snapping and the Pooling Rate:
For the dock, we have the ability to set the LED in Battery Status mode, or select a color we desire:
As suspected, for the back logo and the scroll wheel, we will be able to choose any color we desire:
The Macro Editor opens up in a separate window:
The keys and clicks will be recorded with their respective delays initially:
However, we will be also able to set a fixed delay, or ignore the delays completely:
The Sensei Wireless packs the same Pixart ADNS-9800 (Avago 9800) sensor we have seen at some of the mice we have reviewed previously, including the Sentinel Advance II which we have really enjoyed. This sensor is not recommended usually by top-tier gaming players because it comes with hardware positive acceleration which cannot be disabled via software. Regular gamers though should not be bothered at all by this feature and will really enjoy the Sensei Wireless with all its added features.
Speaking of the features, the mouse is equipped with a battery which lasts quite a while; our sample needed charging after 18 hours of use but we believe that users will experience up to 20 hours after a few charge-discharge cycles. Despite the added battery weight, the mouse still remains light and is pleasant to use in wireless mode. The new rubberized coating adds extra grip and is nice to the touch even after long gaming sessions.
SteelSeries Engine 3 software is fully featured and if you also have another SS-hardware connected to your computer (in our case the Elite headset), it will be detected and we will be prompted, if necessary to update the mouse firmware. With it we can alter the CPI, battery saving modes, acceleration, deceleration, lift distance, angle snapping, pooling rate and more.
The SteelSeries Sensei Wireless mouse can be picked up online for about 157 Euros, which may not be too accessible for some.
We would like to thank again to SteelSeries for making this review possible!