It’s not easy improve on something so ubiquitous as a computer mouse. Three buttons and an optical sensor — what more do you need? For competitive gamers, though? A lot, apparently. So it’s time for something brand new to hit the scene. Logitech have thrown their ideas hat into the ring and released the Pro X2 Superstrike, a mouse that "clicks" ... without a click.
First impressions on opening the box were positive. The mouse looks familiar, sleek, and simple. A white body with two side buttons. and black mouse buttons is a simple but tested design. It feels well-built and light at 61g and glides around on a mouse pad effortlessly. Wireless is achieved using a dongle, with storage for it on the base of the mouse, but wired is just as good, via an included USB-C to A cable.
It also came with some stick-on grips for the sides and the main mouse buttons. They’re not super grippy per se, just something to change the feel and texture, which I did appreciate. (So of course I immediately botched it and left an air bubble in one of of the grips — which did eventually work its way out.)
The main selling point of this mouse is the new system of registering a click. See, computer mice generally use micro-switches to determine when the click is registered. The point between the top of the mouse and the ‘‘click’’ is called the travel distance. This is usually a set distance, as the switches can’t typically be changed on the fly. But Logitech’s new Haptic Inductive Trigger System (HITS) replaces the micro switches with haptic triggers that allow customisation of the click, as it uses the pressure you place on the mouse buttons as input, using haptic feedback as a replacement for the traditional clicking sound. It leads to a completely different feel when clicking.
Changing the mouse settings requires the use of the Logitech GHUB software, and is very straightforward. Actuation Point is the amount of pressure you need to use before the click is registered, ranging from a ‘‘brush it lightly and it goes off’’1 to ‘‘you’ll need to put some effort in’’ at 10. I kept this at 5 throughout my time with the mouse. Click Haptics allows you to adjust the feel of a click, since it uses the haptic motors to simulate it. Max setting felt similar to a haptic feel one might get from VR controllers, while setting to zero makes the clicks silent but provides no tactile feedback, so it was hard to know if I was actually clicking at first. Rapid Trigger was a bit weirder. It determines the reset point when you let pressure off of the mouse and it allows for the next click. I couldn’t tell you the difference between each setting, though. Doing some clicks per second tests were inconclusive as I performed pretty much the same throughout all settings.
Even with all this new tech, the Superstrike boasts a long battery life of 90 hours of constant motion, and I can confirm at least 60 hours of my use were on one charge with the mouse still going strong.
So, with all the technical jargon out the way, how does it actually feel? It feels wonderful. It’s in a good sweetspot for me; light but not so light that it feels like it might fly away. The haptic feedback is such an improvement over micro-switches that I found it difficult to go back. Everything felt snappier and smoother than my usual mouse; I do miss the loud click, but it’s a trade-off I will gladly make if it means I can have the feel of the haptic system.
I personally would liked to have a button to free the mouse wheel for quick scrolling like the G502 X, but I understand that is more of a productivity feature than a gaming one so I know why it was excluded. The side buttons are also bit of a let down. They are a bit mushy, at odds with the insanely snappier main mouse buttons. The difference is honestly night and day. Maybe in the future, they’ll extend the haptic system to the side buttons too. One can dream.
There’s also the issue that this is brand new technology and we really don’t know how long it will last. Generally, micro-switches have a lifespan that is measured in the tens of millions of clicks; but we don’t have a lifespan metric on this mouse. I’m hopeful, but only time will tell how this haptic trigger system fairs in the future.
Logitech states that the mouse has up to a 30ms decrease in click latency, which is a big claim. For competitive gaming at the highest level, 30ms is an eternity. I’m not a technician with all the tools to prove that, but I find myself unconvinced. I ran the next best thing, a reaction time test against my current mouse, a wired G502 X. The X2 Superstrike was on actuation point 5, and also ran wired through the same USB port. After warming up, I did 5 sets of 5 tests per mouse. I then calculated the mean average per set and then the mean average overall per mouse. The G502 X hit 191.6ms average, while the Superstrike hit 191.2ms. Technically an improvement, but I don’t think I’ll notice less than a millisecond of latency. I believe Logitech’s tests were done at actuation point 1 though, which I will personally not be using as it is way too sensitive for me. Obviously though, my test isn’t scientific so take it with a grain of salt. I’ll just do the same for Logitech.
Let me say this: you likely don’t need this mouse. This is a high performance piece of kit for high performance applications — which I love, even if I’m sceptical on some of the claims. If you look at all the options, all this customisation and think "What’s the point?", then this isn’t for you. But if you find yourself salivating at changing options so you can have that perfect mouse feel for competitive gaming, or are interested in a potential future of mouse technology, then this is one to have a look at.
The ODT was provided with a Superstrike unit to review.
