SteelSeries Aerox 5 - Holey RGB Gaming Mouse - Ultra-lightweight Water Resistant Design - 18K DPI TrueMove Air Optical Sensor

This mouse makes Razer mice (Deathaddr, Viper, Basilisk) feel like a joke. Could be Razer QC issues. But just my thoughts, not throwing Razer under the bus, but they have to sort out their QC issues.

Needed a handy mouse asap and this mouse provides excellent bang for buck. It's light, comfortable, and reliable.Definitely get this if you need a gaming mouse.

Lightweight, respond fast and have a good grip while playing.It's a bit pricey and I don't like the app.Not recommended to gamers that like to feel the weight of the mouse.It looks great and the rgb lights can be customize but once your hand on the mouse you can barley see it.

This is the best mouse I've ever used, not a SINGLE issue with it besides maybe 1 or 2 nitpicks, but overall a very great mouse.

To save you time from reading my rant the 4 main take aways are: The scroll wheel is a common issue with all of their mice (Experienced it with 2 aerox, 1 prime, and 3 rivals). The quality for the price isn't up to par, the battery life is overstated, and the RMA process needs improvement.I felt this mouse was a little over priced compared to the quality I've received from other brands at this price point. I'd compare it to the quality of the Glorious brand mice, which is exactly where this one landed for me.I've been a loyal customer to steel series for some time, partly because I didn't know as much about computer accessories as I do now. From dealing with them over the years, I've noticed a downward trend in quality and customer service all while keeping premium pricing.From the 2 aerox that I've owned, the scroll wheel encoder has been the main issue from what I can tell. When scrolling down or up, the wheel tends to bounce back and forth between directions. This can be frustrating in game when changing camera zoom or weapons, as well as simply surfing the internet. The problem existed from the start with both of them, but I waited until it was completely unbearable to see if RMA'ing would be worth it. This is where the experience really changed my opinion about steel series.In order to process the RMA, they make you jump through various loops with there super generic scripts that are meant to make you feel like they care, all though it's more like they're not even listening. Following all the trouble shooting and submitting the personal info to process an RMA, they then tell you that your RMA is pending but they want you to either destroy the product and send evidence of it destroyed, or pay to send it back to their facility so they can then send you a new unit. This means you'd have to go without a mouse for some time, and potentially dish out money to get a replacement that is likely to show up with the same issue.

I am an avid player of First Person Shooter games (FPS) and as such I demand a low weight, high precision input device. The Aerox 5 fits the bill for me. I am coming from a pedigree of Basic Packard Bell (1990s) -> Microsoft Explorer -> Razer Deathadder -> G502 -> Glorious Model D Wireless -> Aerox 5.While I really enjoyed the Glorious Model D, I immediately missed the extra buttons from my G502. I adjusted to the reduction in mouse buttons by grabbing a foot pedal for PTT voice comms (similar pedal: https://amzn.to/3VwdEuD) which turned out to be an amazing upgrade.The Model D only lasted a few months before the scroll wheel malfunctioned. The wheel would randomly scroll causing me to weapon switch during intense left-click firefights. The right click mouse button also started sticking.So, looking for an upgrade, I stumbled upon the Aerox 5.The things that immediately drew me to the Aerox 5 were the 9 programmable buttons. I love that the mouse is an ultra light, weighing only slightly more than the Model D I was upgrading from. The mouse is pretty much perfect in every way, however there are a couple of annoying things I will point out here:1. The dongle is USB-C. I do not have a USB-C port in my PC, so I was running the dongle with a long USB-A -> USB-C connection... until I stumbled upon the direct plug adapter (2nd pic). You can get one of those here https://amzn.to/3GmkoH6. I wish they had included one with the mouse.2. The mouse profiles in the SteelSeries GG software don't reliably automatically switch. I have different profiles set up for each of my games with different button bindings and while the profile normally switches just fine, it's not 100% reliable. Easy to fix. I would recommend just having the 1 default profile and setting the extra mouse buttons to the NUMPAD keys and then change your key bindings in game accordingly. That way you don't have to mess with profile switching. That's how I'll be setting it up once I reformat and lose these profiles.3. There is no DPI indicator light on the mouse that I can tell.4. The battery life is not the greatest but more than adequate. It'll last 2 or 3 days before needing a charge. I normally just connect it back up when I'm done playing and never really notice it.All in all, a great mouse and I highly recommend it. If you found this review helpful, please consider using my link to purchase yours. https://amzn.to/3WQZg0U