At first we would like to thank SteelSeries for offering the Aerox 9 Wireless Gaming Mouse for testing and reviewing.

 

About SteelSeries:

"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!"

LIGHTning Fast

The Aerox 9 is ultralight weight so you can conquer Battle Arenas with speed and Raid longer for more loot.

 

Ultra-Lightweight MMO/MOBA Mouse

Break the barriers of demanding MMO and MOBA gaming with an industry-leading, ultra-lightweight 89g Aerox 9 Wireless. Exceptional, sleek comfort with no wrist or arm fatigue meets a library of powerful features to grant you an edge.

 

-Holey Shell

Honeycomb shell reduces weight by up to 20g while maintaining strength and durability for the most intense gaming sessions.

 

-Lightweight Battery

Weighing 6g, our battery is 14g lighter than those in other MMO/MOBA mice, while still giving over 180 hours of battery life.

 

-Ultra-Thin PCB

Re-engineered electronics that boast a 50% slimmer circuit board while maintaining durability.

 

18 Programmable Buttons

An arsenal of commands at your fingertips, the optimally placed 12-button side panel, and our tilt-click scroll wheel bring out your favorite abilities and macros, fine-tuning your rotation to perfection.

 

Quantum 2.0 Wireless

Next-gen wireless is here. 2.0 Quantum technology transmits data faster than ever before, with industry-leading power efficiency and stability.

 

-2.4GHz Wireless

Lag-free gaming breaks the barrier between you and the screen with an ultra-fast 2.4GHz connection.

 

-Bluetooth 5.0

Widely compatible Bluetooth 5.0 allows you to connect to a variety of devices, no additional dongle required.

 

180-Hour Battery Life

Play longer, conquer more, charge less. Meticulous engineering extends the battery life of the Aerox 9 Wireless up to a mighty 180 hours, with only 15 minutes of charging for over 40 hours of gameplay and glory. Less waiting, more winner-winner chicken dinners.

 

AquaBarrier™ Protection

Forget the spills, focus on the win. The IP54-rated AquaBarrier™ protects the Aerox 9 Wireless from dust, dirt, oil, and debris so you can focus on the game. This barrier shields interior circuitry from virtually all types of environmental damage.

 

TrueMove Air Sensor

Unrivaled precision with 1-to-1 tracking brings you absolute control. The groundbreaking sensor, co-developed with PixArt, features 18,000 CPI, 400 IPS, 40G acceleration and tilt tracking, making the mouse an extension of your hand to dominate in game.

 

100% PTFE Glide Skates

Designed with 100% pure PTFE to provide the smoothest swipes and enhanced control for super-fast mouse movements.

 

SteelSeries Engine

Easily remap important keys and auto-launch your custom configs for each game you play. Engine offers an arsenal of different customizations, from RGB lighting to adjusting the mouse sensor CPI, and triggering lighting effects with in-game events from GameSense-enabled titles.

 

Detachable USB-C Super Mesh Cable

Our all-new soft microfiber mesh cable reduces drag to hit that crucial shot. The USB-C connection enables you to customize the mouse with aftermarket cable options.

 

Brilliant PrismSync Lighting

Redesigned lighting provides 3 zones of 16.8 million beautifully crisp colors that can synchronize with other SteelSeries products. Choose from millions of colors and effects from reactive lighting to interactive light shows that bring RGB to the next level.

 

Sensor

 

Sensor: SteelSeries TrueMove Air

Sensor Type: Optical

CPI: 100–18,000 in 100 CPI Increments

IPS: 400, on SteelSeries QcK surfaces

Acceleration: 40G

Polling Rate: 1000Hz / 1 ms

Hardware Acceleration: None (Zero Hardware Acceleration)

 

Design

 

Back Cover Material: Black Matte Finish

Core Construction: ABS Plastic

Shape: Ergonomic, Right-Handed

Grip Style: Palm

Number of Buttons: 18

Switch Type: SteelSeries mechanical switches, rated for 80 million clicks

Illumination: 3 RGB Zones

Weight: 89g

Length: 128.8mm / 5.07 inches

Width: 62.8 mm / 2.47 inches (front), 68.2mm / 2.68 inches (back)

Height: 26.7mm / 1.05 inches (front), 42.10mm / 1.65 inches (back)

Connection: 2.4GHz / Bluetooth 5.0

Battery Life:

Up to 80 hours 2.4GHz

Up to 180 hours Bluetooth

 

Compatibility

 

OS: Windows, Mac, Xbox, and Linux. USB port required.

Software: SteelSeries GG, Windows 8.1 or newer, MacOS 10.13 or newer

 

The Aerox line of mice from SteelSeries is quite impressive, sporting good quality materials, performance sensors, durable switches and are very light; however, no MMO/MOBA variant was present in order to be able to accommodate the multiple mappings a player of this game types needs. With the recent release of the Aerox 9 Wireless, SteelSeries aims to solve this problem and keep the performance along with the other benefits from the previous models.

 

The product is shipped inside a compact cardboard enclosure, showing a photo of the main product in operation, but also a small advert from PCGamer:

 

 

 

On the side of the box, we will note the product specifications but also the included hardware bundle list:

 

 

 

A clear photo of the left side panel is present on the box as well:

 

 

 

SteelSeries does also include a sticker with the mouse manufacturing date, the product serial numbers but also the power rating:

 

 

 

The main product features are present on the bottom, together with a photo of the Aerox 9 Wireless sensor area:

 

 

 

After unsealing the box, we will note that the mouse sits secure inside a black cardboard mold:

 

 

 

The bottom layer does include the hardware bundle, but also some documentation:

 

 

 

Speaking of the bundle, we will note an USB-C adapter, the WiFi dongle but also the USB charging/data transmission cable:

 

 

 

The manual includes enough details in order to get familiar with the product:

 

 

 

The compact USB-C WiFi dongle comes with Quantum 2.0 wireless technology, which we have met with other Aerox Wireless mice as well, for cable-like latency:

 

 

 

The frontal area of the dongle does feature a subtle SteelSeries logo:

 

 

 

On the opposite side, we will note a small sticker with the FCC-ID, the product code name, but also the power rating:

 

 

 

Moving on, we do have the USB-C adapter, for being able to place the dongle as far away as possible from the computer, in order to avoid interference:

 

 

 

An USB-C port is available on either side (on one side we will plug in the supplied cable, which goes to the laptop/desktop and on the other we will install the dongle):

 

 

 

The adapter is also provided with a small rubber foot, so it won’t move freely on the surface:

 

 

 

The USB cable connectors are compact and SteelSeries-branded:

 

 

 

We really enjoy the paracord-like cable SteelSeries does supply with these Aerox mice, since it is very flexible and durable at the same time, thanks to its braiding:

 

 

 

The look of the Aerox 9 Wireless is familiar, being similar to the other SKUs; we have a holed design on the top in order to help with the weight aspect, while the long, curved body does accommodate a claw/palm grip best:

 

 

 

The all-black design of the chassis extends to the front, where we do have the rubberized scroll wheel, the two left/right click next-gen Golden Micro IP54 switches with a rating of over 80 million actuations, but also the CPI switch top button:

 

 

 

The only element which is not all-black is the arrangement of the 10 MMO/MOBA programmable buttons on the left side, which will need some time to get used to, since they are also used as a thumb rest when not playing. Due to the long shape, we felt that it is a bit difficult reaching the 1,2,3 column of buttons, but this also depends on the length of each user’s fingers:

 

 

 

The RGB lighting is mostly visible in the back thanks to the included light diffuser; no need to worry about dust, dirt and debris getting inside, since the PCB is protected via the IP54-rated AquaBarrier layer:

 

 

 

On the right side we do not have any additional interfaces:

 

 

 

A closer look on the front does reveal the USB-C port:

 

 

 

Aerox 9 Wireless does use pure PTFE glide skates, which really help with the smooth mouse movements on the pad. The holed design is observed on the bottom area as well, while the central sensor lens accommodates the TrueMove Air, co-developed with the well-known PixArt, featuring a maximum CPI of 18000, 400 IPS and an acceleration of 40G with tilt tracking. Via software, we can adjust the CPI values with increments of 100 CPI:

 

 

 

A switch is also present here, which allows the Aerox 9 Wireless to function in either 2.4GHz Wireless with Quantum 2.0 or in Bluetooth 5.0 BLE for maximum battery life:

 

 

 

After turning the mouse on for the first time, we will note the placement of the LEDs on the light diffuser:

 

 

 

As noted before, the LED lighting is best visible in the back:

 

 

 

 

 

After plugging in the mouse in our test computer, we were prompted right away to install the dedicated software, as we have seen with devices from Razer as well:

 

 

 

The software functions properly when using an associated account, otherwise cloud saves won’t be enabled:

 

 

 

The unified SteelSeries software includes lots of options, such as Moments, Engine, Giveaways or Sonar (audio-related), while the Home tab informs us of the latest news from the company:

 

 

 

The tab we are mostly interested in is Engine, where we were first prompted to update the hardware:

 

 

 

 

After the mouse has been properly updated (dongle and mouse separately), the warning will disappear:

 

 

 

The GUI allows to work with all settings from a single tab, which is impressive! The Aerox 9 Wireless comes with an impressive number of programmable buttons (18) and we can set a different function for each and every one of it:

 

 

 

 

Default Function

 

 

 

Keyboard Buttons

 

Macros

Media Buttons

Mouse Buttons

Deactivate Button

Launch Application

Launch Configuration

Launch Engine Apps

OS Shortcuts

Record Macro

 

The CPI levels can be added or removed (5 maximum active at the same time):

 

 

 

The intelligent power management features do help with battery saving:

 

 

 

Angle Snapping can be also configured separately:

 

 

 

Next, we do have the Acceleration / Deceleration area, but also the Polling Rate adjustment:

 

 

 

The Illumination tab does help the user to configure the lighting for both Active and Reactive modes:

 

 

 

The drop-down menu will allow the user to see which presets are available for selection:

 

 

 

We can choose for the three separate lighting segments the following:

 

Steady

ColorShift

Multi-Color Breathe

 

Segments can be disabled completely:

 

 

 

 

In order to test the Aerox 9 Wireless, we ran Diablo III, ESO, Star Wars: The Old Republic and Monster Hunter: World; after getting used a bit with the side buttons, we saw that the mouse mappings really help with a faster activation of spells, attacks and if you are a person which plays a favorite game frequently, the extra buttons coupled with the low weight of the mouse and the pure PTFE feet really help getting a nice experience out of it.

 

The battery life is great on the Aerox 9 Wireless, with a rating of 80 hours while using Quantum 2.0 wireless and no less than 180 hours while on Bluetooth 5.0; if it happens you did forget to recharge the mouse, SteelSeries has you covered with fast charging capabilities, meaning that only 15 minutes of having the mouse plugged in will bring you no less than 40 hours of extra gameplay.

 

SteelSeries GG, which now incorporates Engine configuration utility does have a very well-organized section for customization and a lot of power management features in order to maximize the battery life. The RGB lighting is enhanced via the diffuser, but mostly two out of the three segments of the configurable RGB are clearly visible due to the construction of the chassis.

 

The only negative aspect we could remind of the Aerox 9 Wireless is that some people might not be able to reach the 1,2,3 programmable buttons from the left side panel, due to the length of the mouse.

 

Aerox 9 Wireless can be found online for about 110 Euros, a fair price for a high-end offering!

 

SteelSeries Aerox 9 Wireless Gaming Mouse is Recommended for:

 

 

 

We would like to thank again to SteelSeries for making this review possible!