MSI Clutch GM41 Lightweight Wireless Gaming Mouse Review

MSI was kind enough to send Overclockers.com a sample of the Clutch GM41 Lightweight Wireless mouse for review in advance of today’s release date. This model expands on the current Clutch GM41 Lightweight Wired mouse, which was well-received by reviewers, but consumers wanted more. So MSI responded with this wireless version. This review will cover all the features of this latest offering and determine if the MSI Clutch GM41 Lightweight Wireless mouse is right for you.

Features and Specifications

The Clutch GM41 Lightweight Wireless mouse weights just 74 grams making it a great choice for competitive play as fast and accurate movements are made effortlessly. It features a PAW-3370 optical sensor which can register speeds of up to 400 inches per second with the pinpoint accuracy of up to 20,000 DPI and a 1 ms polling rate. Its wireless connection boasts an ultra-low 1 ms latency, nearly eliminating lag. The internal rechargeable battery lasts up to 200 hours of normal use or 80 hours of high-speed gaming.

Below are the specifications for the MSI Clutch GM41 Wireless Mouse.

We have also included a list of features from the MSI website.​

MSI Clutch GM41 Wireless Mouse Features
	EXTREME ACCURACY AND SPEED Get pinpoint accuracy thanks to the PixArt PAW 3370 optical sensor with up to 20.000 DPI sensitivity and 400 IPS movement tracking.
	RELIABLE AND DURABLE for EXTREME GAMING OMRON switches are rated up to 60 millions clicks. These crisp, reliable mechanical switches register every click register with deadly precision.
	ULTRA LOW LATENCY! Built with the latest 2.4G RF wireless technology, latency is reduced to just 1ms resulting in responsiveness almost 10x faster than the typical wireless mouse on the market.
	GLIDE LIKE NEVER BEFORE Pure PTFE skates provide a near frictionless glide for accurate high-speed mouse movements. The skates have a singledirectional surface texture and double-cut edges to reduce friction.
	CHARGING DOCK & USB DONGLE INCLUDED! Charge the GM41 Wireless from 0% to 100% in just 90 minutes, for up to 80 hours* of usage on a full charge. Need to keep playing? 10 minutes of charging time can recharge up to 9 hours of battery life. The USB dongle can be stored in the mouse for travelling.
	MSI FRIXIONFREE CABLE The detachable MSI FriXionFree cable can be connected to the charging dock or directly on the mouse, allowing you to keep fighting if your battery ever runs low.
	RGB MYSTIC LIGHT Light up the battlefield with millions of colors or approach with stealth with the lights turned off. Choose from predefined effects or synchronize lighting with the rest of your RGB setup.
	DRAGON CENTER Access an array of settings such as lighting control, button remapping, precise DPI changes, and macro recording in MSI Dragon Center.

Packaging

The GM41 Wireless is packaged for hanging in retail stores. When shipped, the product arrives in whatever shipping box your retailer uses, be it Amazon, Newegg, or whomever. The display quality box is very attractive and lists the major features, specifications, product requirements, and internal contents. Inside there is a thicker black cardboard box with internal padding to keep the contents safely secured during transit.

Contents

Once inside, we find a multi-lingual owner’s manual, charging base, wireless mouse, and charging cable. Gone are the days of including a disc with drivers and software, so you will need to download MSI’s Dragon Center software to customize the device.

GM41 Wireless Gaming Mouse

This mouse is identical in appearance to the wired version, with the obvious exception of a cable tethering it to your PC. Its design is best suited for claw and palm grip users. However, as a fingertip grip user, I found no issues with the shape of the GM41. It is constructed primarily of black plastic with a satin finish. It weighs only nine grams more than the wired version, which is remarkable considering the addition of the battery, Bluetooth technology, and charging circuitry.

Front

Looking at the front provides the best view of the large left and right buttons. Beneath each of these resides a pair of Omron 60M switches. They provide a strong tactile click when pressed with minimal travel. The scroll wheel, located at the center, is rubberized with a diamond pattern and functions as an additional button. The wheel does not scroll from left to right for left and right side scroll users.

Left and Right

From the sides, we see the smooth dome-like arch. This is what defines this mouse as a palm or claw grip primarily. Both sides are covered in a rubberized diamond pattern matching the scroll wheel. This pattern, along with the rubber texture, provides excellent grip. The left side features a pair of pre-programmed thumb buttons as forward and back buttons for most applications.

Rear

The back of the GM41 displays the recognizable MSI dragon. Beneath the frosted plastic is a programmable RGB LED controlled via a combination of button presses (DPI switch + MB2, MB3, MB4, or MB5) or via software utilizing MSI’s Dragon Center software.

Bottom

Six large Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) skates are located strategically around the bottom face providing maximum support with minimal resistance. At the center is the PixArt PAW-3370 Optical Sensor with a DPI range of 100-20,000 and 400 inches per second (IPS) movement tracking. Notice the circular-shaped depression; this is where the mouse rests on the charging base and features two gold contact points. An on/off switch helps preserve the battery life when not in use for extended periods. Sitting opposite the on/off switch is the DPI adjustment switch.  Pressing this button will toggle between five different DPI settings, which can also be customized in the Dragon Center software. At the very front of the bottom is a micro USB port. The channel that it resides in is keyed to prevent incorrect alignment, which could damage the port. This port functions as a charging connection and allows the mouse to be used as if it were wired.

Charging Base

The charging base has an angled conical shape with a flattened top. A grey painted MSI Dragon is at the back, along with a slot at the bottom for the charging cable to feed through. Looking at the top are the two spring-loaded gold charging posts.  Located above them is a USB port for mounting the dongle. The Clutch GM41 Wireless can function with the dongle located on the base, or if you need to travel, the dongle can be removed and used on a laptop without the base. Remember, the mouse can be charged via the cable without the base if needed. The bottom of the base is fitted with a rubber ring for a steady purchase while on the surface of a desktop. A micro USB port is also located here to power the dongle’s USB port and charging pins.

Below are a few images of the mouse mounted on the base and with and without the charging cable.

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Dongle & Cable

With the dongle removed from the base, we can see it has a black plastic cap with an MSI logo impression. The plastic that houses the inner pins is magenta in color. It looks and feels like any other mouse dongle aside from those two differences.

The charging cable is braided with MSI’s patented Frixionfree braiding and measures two meters in length. Gold plated connectors ensure the best possible transmission of data and feature the same magenta plastic insert as the dongle. Finally, there is an attached rubber strap for keeping the cable tidy and untangled.

Software

The Clutch GM41 Lightweight Wireless mouse is compatible with MSI’s Dragon Center software and is free to download from the MSI website. While this review doesn’t cover all of Dragon Center’s functions, we will demonstrate the basics needed to customize your GM41 mouse.

Once Dragon Center is installed, it will recognize all of your MSI components that are Mystic Light compatible. With the Home icon selected, pick the Mystic Light option and the GM41 Wireless appears. Notice there are three profiles available, so if you share your rig with others, they can program their own settings, leaving your’s alone. Below the profiles tabs are three different linking options so you can link the settings to your other MSI components. Note, this is only available if you have additional Mystic Light compatible MSI products. At the far right, there are five LED styles available, Off, Steady, Breath, Rainbow, and Custom. Once the style is selected, you can set the color, light speed, and brightness.

With the LEDs set the way you like, let’s switch to the Gaming Gear option. There are two main tabs in this section, Buttons and Sensors. With the Buttons tab active, you can re-program all five mouse buttons with one of five actions, default, mouse buttons, multimedia, macros, and DPI. These setting adjustments will be saved in one of the three profiles as well. Finally, if we switch to the Sensors tab, we have the ability to adjust the polling rate to one of four settings, from 125 Hz to 1000 Hz. Below the polling rate is the lift-off distance setting; it can be either high or low. Angle snapping and motion sync are located at the bottom left. Moving to the right side is the DPI adjustment, with a range of 100-20000 in increments of 100. There are five programmable levels that can be defined here. Once set, you can use the DPI button, located under the mouse, to toggle between these five levels. Below the DPI adjustment section is the battery life indicator. When the mouse is in wired mode, this will be a grey bar, and when it is wireless, the bar will be red and display a percentage of battery life remaining.

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Conclusion

The MSI Clutch GM41 Lightweight Wireless mouse is certainly worthy of consideration. It is comfortable and extremely lightweight. The Omron 60M switches feel fantastic, and there is zero noticeable lag from the PixArt PAW-3370 Optical Sensor. The battery life lasted well past the rated 80 hours and within one hour of charging reached the 84% battery life displayed in the above image. MSI’s Dragon Center software is one of those programs that you either love or hate. With that said, it is an intuitive, easy-to-use program that is highly functional and the extreme level of adjustment that MSI provides is fantastic.

Retailing from $84.99-$95 (MSI hopes the price drops when more stock is available), the GM41 Wireless costs considerably less than similar products like the Razer Viper Ultimate, Razer DeathAdder V2 Pro, and Logitech G Pro X Superlight Wireless. With the features presented above and the very reasonable price tag, we find the MSI Clutch GM41 Lightweight Wireless gaming mouse to be a great value. For this reason, it receives the Overclockers.com Seal of Approval.

-John Nester (Blaylock)

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