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SteelSeries is one of the premier gaming peripheral manufacturers in the world, with products ranging from keyboards and headphones to mice and mouse pads. As one of the prominent sponsors for E-Sports (video games being held at a professional/tournament-level), SteelSeries brought in two dozen professional gamers to weigh-in on what features of a mouse are the most important. SteelSeries used this feedback to craft the SteelSeries Sensei — in this article we will see if it’s able to reach its lofty expectations.
Specifications and Features
Below is a list of the specifications from SteelSeries’s website:
| MSRP | $99.99 ($109.99 @ Newegg) |
| Buttons | 8 (7 customizable, 1 CPI switch) |
| Weight | 102 grams |
| Height | 38.77 mm |
| Width | 68.3 mm |
| Length | 125.5 mm |
| Sensitivity | 1 to 16400 CPI (Counts Per Inch) |
| Cord/Connection | Braided 2 meter USB 2.0 |
| Compatibility | Windows, OSX |
Marketing Features from the SteelSeries website
| MLG Edition |
| The SteelSeries Sensei MLG Edition is the most award winning gaming mouse in history armed to the teeth. With upgraded armaments like a more powerful laser sensor and tournament grade button switches, we made no compromise when building a mouse for professional gamers looking to dominate the Major League Gaming circuit. On-board memory means that no matter what championship you travel to, your profiles are loaded directly onto your mouse and ready to use. The black gun metal casing provides a bad ass look and a non-slip grip. Illuminated MLG logo lets the world know that you don’t just compete, but you support eSports, Major League Gaming, and the competitive spirit. |
| Best-In-Class Technology |
| Featuring an improved state of the art laser sensor that offers a consistent and reliable performance, the SteelSeries Sensei MLG Edition boasts 10.8 megapixel HD image correlation at up to 12,000 frames per second and the ability to handle tracking movements of up to 150 inches per second. |
| Advanced Macros |
| Thanks to the support of the SteelSeries Engine software, you can record even extremely long and advanced macros to the Sensei. The macros can be layered and can include keystrokes and precise timing. How you will decide to use this advanced feature is up to you (choose your configurations wisely and adhere to any rules that you may need to abide by during gameplay); we are only presenting you with the capabilities for endless possibilities. |
| To Correct or not Correct? |
| SteelSeries FreeMove eliminates path correction, which makes the mouse predict, correct and make your movement straight. With the SteelSeries Sensei, you can adjust the amount of path correction or completely disable it for 100% control of your movement. |
| 32 bit ARM Processor |
| The processor in SteelSeries Sensei MLG Edition is a 32 bit ARM processor and it is as fast as the original Pentium 75 MHz processor released by Intel in 1994. That is fast, incredibly fast. This reference may sound like overkill, but it’s this type of power that allows us to do sophisticated calculations directly on the mouse – without the need for software drivers and without having to rely on the user’s computer.Our industry leading ExactTech settings, like ExactSens, ExactRate, ExactAim and more, are calculated directly on the mouse providing the user with a mouse movement that is completely free of any interpolation or extrapolation, without any delay, filtering and without using up memory or resources on the user’s computer. |
| ExactAim: Slow Down and Focus |
| SteelSeries ExactAim will allow you to be more precise. Headshots anyone? As you slow down your cursor the mouse will decelerate even more allowing you to focus on your target. |
| ExactAccell: Move Fast, No Even Faster |
| SteelSeries ExactAccel does just the opposite as ExactAim. As you increase the speed of your mouse movement, ExactAccel will accelerate your movements even faster in order for you to move across your game or page faster. |
| Glide Like the Wind |
| Material: Gaming grade high performance UPE material covers 16 % of mouse bottom to ensure maximum glide. We recommend changing glides regularly as they will eventually be worn down |
| Make It Your Own |
| It also allows you to upload your own bitmap picture, offering a great way to personalize your mouse – and help prevent theft at LAN-events, gaming cafes and other public places. Design your own unique picture for the Sensei LCD display, download to your computer and upload to your Sensei via the SteelSeries Engine software. |
| Developed With The Best |
| We are proud to be associated with some of the best players in the world of eSports. We maintain strong relationships and have continuous dialogue with teams like SK Gaming, Fnatic, Evil Geniuses, Natus Vincere and others who help in the development and improvement of our products.To ensure maximum performance in all gaming scenarios we enlisted help from world-class StarCraft® II, Counter-Strike, DotA, League of Legends, Heroes of Newerth, WarCraft® III and Doom players. Click here for a list of the players who helped us with testing and refinement of the Sensei. We owe them a lot of thanks, so if you like the Sensei these are the players that helped make this mouse what it is. |
| Plug, Play, Win |
| There’s no need to install software of any kind in order to use the Sensei. The built-in driver can be adjusted through an LCD menu on the backside of the mouse. Simply plug in the Sensei and play. For the PC Gamers* who want really advanced customization options, the Sensei is supported by SteelSeries Engine technology. (See Note In Initial Impressions) |
Product Showcase
Aesthetically, the Sensei is quite attractive. It features a shiny carbon/metallic finish and an ambidextrous design. There are also customizable LEDs on the device that allow you to make your mouse unique. Below are some pictures of the mouse:
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SteelSeries Engine Software
The customization and features of the mouse can all be set using the SteelSeries Engine software package (available here). Below are some images of the customization and options available in the program.
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Testing and User Experience
Test Setup
- Intel i7 3770k (Overclockers Approved!)
- Asus Maximus V Extreme
- 4GB G.Skill RipJawsX DDR3-2200
- MSI 7970 Lightning Edition
- Crucial M4 128 GB SSD
- SteelSeries QCK+ Mouse Surface
Games Tested
- Battlefield 3
- Guild Wars 2
My Experience/Impressions
Upon opening the box and plugging the mouse into a USB port for the first time, Windows7 had issues installing a driver for the device. Until I installed the SteelSeries Engine software/drivers and updated the firmware of the Sensei, the mouse would jump around on the screen and was very choppy. To verify the issue I tried it on my office PC and noticed the same problem, but after installing the drivers the choppiness went away, and the mouse began to work as expected. One other issue that I ran into was the mouse had trouble waking up after putting my system in sleep mode/standby. In order to fix this, I had to make sure that USB power saving was turned off (set to full performance) via the power options in Windows 7. As soon as that was rectified, I no longer had issues with the mouse not responding after waking the PC.
Once the software/driver issue was situated, the first thing I noticed is how much lighter and smoother the mouse moves on my mouse pad when compared to either of my Logitech G500 mice (with no weights installed). I then put the mouse to the test and loaded up Battlefield 3 to try out the default software settings, and found that the sensitivity was far too high for my normal play-style. Of course, the sensitivity level is all personal preference and is extremely customizable in the software. I hit the “ExactAim” (AKA headshot button) to turn down the sensitivity so I did not have to close out of the game, and it felt about right. Once I got used to the weight and smooth movement of the mouse I felt more and more accurate with my aiming in the game.
After that BF3 session I started playing with the software options and customization. My wife was nice enough to create an Overclockers logo for the LCD on the bottom (see picture below) and I began toying with the ability to create profiles. I created a profile for Guild Wars 2 which bound the two right-side buttons to the keyboard keys 8 and 9 so I wouldn’t need to stretch my hand to reach them. Overall it was a very positive game play experience due to the smooth and accurate control and movement.
Conclusion
From a software standpoint, the SteelSeries Sensei: MLG Edition is one of the most customizable mice that I have seen in quite some time. It features multiple profile options for sensitivity, path correction, macros, acceleration, mouse-lift compensation, and more. It lacks a couple features that some other gaming mice have, such as a additional weights or shape-customization to fit more than one hand size, but those should not be reasons to ignore this mouse. At just under $100, this is one of the more expensive gaming mice on the market. Therefore, it’s worth considering the non-MLG version of the Sensei for $10 less, which has almost all of the same features. Overall the SteelSeries Sensei: MLG Edition is a great peripheral for any gamer that has the cash to pick one up, and thus it earns the Overclockers Stamp of Approval.
Click the Approved stamp for an explanation of what it means
– Don Fisher (Janus67)
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