Review on Corsair Nightsword RGB Gaming Mouse – Ergonomic, Tunable, 18000 DPI, Backlit RGB LED, Black by Robert Farrar

Impressions in 1 week. May update later if something goes wrong, otherwise see you in a few years. ------------------------------- ---------------- ----------------- --------------------------------- ------ -- My hands are 18 x 10 cm and I use my palm. Length is measured from the tip of the middle finger to the base of the palm and width is measured from the edge of the little finger to the edge of the thumb when all fingers are placed together. I have kept four mice over the years including this one. M65 RGB, M65 RGB Elite, Razer Basilisk x Hyperspeed and this Corsair Nightsword. The original M65 RGB was a real tank that gave me a hard time for more than 5 years. The switches are still 100% responsive but I ruined the finish with acetone so I switched to the Elite. M65 Elite started losing responsiveness on left click after 4 months. The Basilisk x Hyperspeed was supposed to be my wireless mouse for commuting. In the store I was comfortable enough and the shape was very well finished except for a slight hump position, but after some time of use I found that the mouse is not wide enough for my hands, which can cause some discomfort after prolonged use . . But for my typical light road use, it's acceptable. The M65/Elite (both are almost the same form factor) have been my daily rider for almost 6 years so I'll be comparing them a lot. Well the reason I am talking about all these other mice is so you can get other comparisons on which mice I find comfortable. The shape of a mouse is the most subjective and also an important factor when choosing a mouse. In particular, the grip width is most important. I didn't think I had massive arms but apparently I do. So far the only mouse I'm comfortable with is the Corsair M65. I've tried all sorts of mice from Logitech and Razer, all getting rave reviews, including the G502 that Nightsword was modeled after. They all seemed extremely uncomfortable to me due to poor bump placement, narrow grip width, awkward placement of side buttons, etc. The Roccat Kone Aimo is also said to be a good size for my hands, but I've rarely tried them yet as magazines fit Roccats on display.--------------------- ------------------- ----- ---------------------------------------- --------------- ---- Anyway, about the True Nightsaber. Feel/Comfort: This mouse is literally made for my hands. The dimensions of my hand are a bit unusual even compared to other 18 x 10 cm hands as I have very long fingers compared to the size of my palm. This makes it even harder to find a good mouse. I can't exactly describe the feeling when I tried it in the store for the first time. I've never felt this level of comfort in a mouse, not even the M65, which is quite comfortable but not at this level. Nightsword has curves in the right places, buttons in the right positions, and my hand can easily rest on it without squeezing my palm. The thumb wing is also very nice. The sniper button is near the tip of my thumb, which is the perfect position to hit without bending or stretching. I can lift my thumb up slightly to press the forward and back buttons above it. The DPI switches cut out of the left click require more force to press, but I don't use them much yet. Still figuring out the best way to meet them. In fact, I can easily reach one with my thumb and the other with my index finger. Weight: This mouse is too heavy even without all the weights. I actually have to consciously grip the mouse a little tighter than usual when trying to pick it up or it looks like it's going to slip out of my hand. Combined with this thing's high LOD, it looks like Corsair has no intention of ever picking up a mouse. Adjusting the center of gravity is a cool idea, but now it seems like a trick. Sensor: Nightsword uses the same PMW3391 optical sensor as the M65 Elite. That's the problem. For unknown reasons, the Nightsword is inferior to the M65 Elite despite having the same sensor. People say that the sensor in high-end mice isn't a spec worth looking at because they're all pretty much the same, but I disagree. I tried many different sensors, all in this DPI range and at 1000Hz, but none were as smooth as the M65 Elite. In fact, even Nightsword doesn't run that smoothly with the same sensor. It's still a great achievement, but after getting to know the M65 Elite, it lacks a bit of smoothness. The stroke distance (LOD) also differs from the M65 Elite. It seems ridiculously high, which is bad. The M65 Elite has one of the lowest detail levels on the market at a thickness of 1 DVD with the exact same sensor. Nightsword is almost 3 DVDs in LOD while 2 is the current industry standard. This seems to be a common issue in other reviews, so this is definitely not an isolated case. ------------------------------ --- ----------------- --------------------- Buttons: This is indeed one of the biggest defective areas of this mouse. It seems like Corsair has taken back all keypress powers. * L/R click: Separate trigger buttons (the buttons are completely separated from the main body of the mouse) and very sensitive. I personally don't like the split trigger, but some people may disagree. If you have split trigger buttons, the button has less "bounce" and long-term feedback. If you have to hold down the left or right mouse button for a long time, this becomes a problem. It's very easy to accidentally release the button if you don't have that easy feedback when the button tries to bounce off your finger. Or you start to push harder and harder over time, which is also bad. In my opinion, the M65 Elite, which didn't have a split trigger, had perfect feedback. The split trigger can also sometimes pinch the skin of your fingers between the button, which was an issue with the Basilisk, but so far I haven't had that issue with the Nightsaber. I also find that the Nightsword L/R click is too sensitive. For the first few days of use I kept accidentally hitting the buttons just by putting my hand on them, but now I've gotten used to it and it doesn't happen anymore.* Scrolling/Middle Click: Scrolling seems quite comfortable. It could be a little less boring, but I can still easily scroll one tick at a time and it never moves randomly. However, the middle click has some issues. It's not as solid as it should be. If you apply some pressure downwards without pressing the button, it gives a little and produces a barely audible creaking, as if the scroll wheel were loose. * Sniper button: Interestingly, this is actually the best button on this mouse. Perfect positioning, perfect actuation force. Well done.* Forward/Backward: Pushing requires too much force. My thumb feels like it's gotten three times stronger after trying to hold macros on these keys (seriously). In addition, sometimes 2 buttons stick on top of each other. Click one and it will click the other and sometimes it will even catch the other when trying to release it (you will hear 2 "clicks" as the button tries to come back). They also wobble slightly.* Profile shift: There's not much to say about this other than that they should be less sensitive. You might think they're pretty out of place, but I've accidentally changed profiles a few times. When we flipped the mouse to try out the weight system, they consistently fired through just the mouse's weight. * DPI Shift: They have the same sensitivity as a left/right click, so I have the same opinion on that. The main thing in them is the form. I understand the goal was to keep the left click outline intact, but I would like the DPI decrease button to be raised a little higher so that it can be pressed by rolling the index finger without pressing the other buttons around it . coincidentally.----------------------------------------------- - ----------------------Assembly/Materials: I really like the left and right click material on this mouse. It feels like a very high-quality matte plastic and repels dirt very well. The shiny plastic on the side buttons gets dirty very quickly, and my hands don't sweat or even get greasy. The rubberized material on the rest of the mouse seems fine so far, but it looks like it could spoil very quickly if you try to brush it for a clean. The textured finish only seems to require dirt to get into the holes and is impossible to clean. Just take a look. The scroll wheel and forward/back buttons could have been a little less wobbly, as I've outlined before, but other than that, build quality is very good. ------------------------------------------------ -- ----- Closing words for Corsair: I really want to see you guys combine the best in one mouse. Nightsword form factor + M65 Elite sensor, button build quality, button material and actuation force + optical switches (lots of left/right click issues with many of your newer mice) + lighter weight and potentially wireless. That would be the mouse of my dreams.