Everything you need to know about Logitech G300 gaming mouse

Overview

The exalted gaming industry is poised to fetch revenues of over a whopping $50 billion by 2012. Though in this astronomical figure, PC gaming has taken a slight bump in actually projecting a downward trend by losing around 15 percent. But again we should also consider the importance of Steam (which is not tracked in sales) and rampant unauthorized distribution in the PC gaming domain. In view of this a slew of gaming peripherals are certainly making their presence felt in PCs, for that 'elevated' gamer's experience. The Logitech G300 optical gaming mouse is one of them, and it is making its presence felt not by its highfalutin technology, but rather by its inherent low cost. After all, it was Logitech that started the gaming mouse revolution by introducing their MX518 optical mouse, and now it seems things have finally come to a full circle. So, are we looking at a direct competitor to Microsoft's more flaunting SideWinder X8 Mouse? Well, only time could say.

Logitech G300

Pricing and availability

In this not so propitious time plagued by bouts of recession, why should the avid gamers be left in the open by our ever thriving electronic industry? As a solution (and marketing ploy) to this issue, Logitech has set the MSRP for the G300 at a nigh paltry $39.99. It was made available commercially throughout outlets in the United States and Europe by September of this year.

What’s great

The contemporary sleek bearing with a supposedly ergonomic shape is expected to help the gamers in their virtual quest for glory. After all when judging computer mice, everyone of us would like to have good feel about the user friendly design part and how it 'sets' within the claw grip. In relation to this convenience, Logitech has rather notched it up a level by the making the mouse completely ambidextrous. This special sculpting means that while most of the mouse products are made for right handed people, the G300 can cater even to the deprived southpaws.

The ultimate phrase that describes the functionality of this mouse is - budget gamer. The practicality of the price can be comprehended in a more useful light when we compare its cost with the SideWinder X8. Initially projected at a whopping $99, in the present scenario the X8 can be bought for $70. Still the G300 costs $30 less, which is around 43 percent price reduction (we will save from your fuzzy maths capability). As a matter of fact, the mouse also costs $10 less than Logitech's very own MX518 / G400.

What's not so great

The mouse has a 2,500 dpi optical sensor. Now, this may appeal to some gamers out there, but then again, some may find it to slow for their preference. In relation to this low range, there are no dedicated DPI indicator lights for the visual convenience. Bringing out the comparison meter, the X8 is touted to offer a reasonably large range of sensor sensitivity, from 250dpi to 4,000dpi.

The inward curvaceous design can pose to be a problem for palm grip gamers as the surface in touch is actually reduced in the design. The design format also doesn't include side scrolling for extra buttons.

And finally, the macros cannot be created on the fly as can be done easily by the X8.

Things to watch out for

The top sided buttons with nine programmable controls keeps everything within the reach of the user. Moreover, the infused on board memory of the mouse can store up to three simple profiles, while there are 7-color customized lighting based on this selection of profiles. These profile settings can allow you to configure the mouse for particulars games, while you can use the normal mode in browsing through the PC. And finally, the ambidextrous quality makes it super practical for the lefties and, of course, the 'righties' too.

Verdict

All in all, the allure of Logitech's G300 can be more comprehensively mapped in the bigger group of budget gamers rather than the exclusive category of hardcore gamers. Now, it may not provide advanced configurations, or high levels of DPI. But the again with its cheapness, ambidextrous quality, sleek attributes and profile managing, the mouse will certainly hold its own against our conventional mice products.

Word around the web

Engadget says,

The G300 isn't a gaming mouse for the twitchy virtual gun slingers out there, it's for folks that fire up the occasional shooter, but want better performance than they get out of the pointer packed with their PC.