By Meng Vang
Manufacturer: Corsair Components, Inc.
Product Name: M65 PRO RGB FPS Gaming Mouse
Model Number: CH-9300011-NA
UPC: 843591074902
Price As Tested: $59.99 (Newegg | Amazon)Full Disclosure: The product sample used in this article has been provided by Corsair.
Built for FPS games, the Corsair M65 PRO RGB brings back the same exterior features as its predecessor. Instead of the laser sensor seen in the previous model, Corsair has included the PixArt PMW3360 optical sensor with a maximum DPI of 12000. There is also a weight system for adjusting the weight and a dedicated sniper button, which can be assigned to serve various functions. The Corsair Utility Engine software allows great flexibility for customization and can also manage all of your Corsair devices in one software. Benchmark Reviews will be taking a look at the Corsair M65 PRO RGB FPS Gaming Mouse. Let’s go over an overview of what this mouse has to offer.
- 12000 dpi high-accuracy sensor
- Aircraft-grade aluminum structure
- Advanced weight tuning system
- Surface calibration tuning utility
- Optimized sniper button positioning
- Harness the Power of CUE
- Eight strategically placed buttons
- High-capacity OMRON switches rated for 20 million clicks
- High-mass scroll wheel
The M65 PRO RGB mouse performs well with games and general computing. The PixArt PMW3360 optical sensor is very accurate and can track movement while flicking the mouse across the mouse pad. The sensor can still track at 12000 DPI with a bit of jittering, but I am sure the majority of computer users would not want to run at 12000 DPI all day. The CUE software enables the user to adjust the DPI levels in steps of 50, giving some flexibility to almost fine tune the DPI setting.
The body design remains the same as the previous M65 RGB. I like the looks of the mouse with its rubber coated top and the aluminum frame underneath. This gives the mouse a stealthy look and can easily complement a Corsair keyboard, like the K65 and K70. The RGB lighting may not be the most accurate, but it is difficult to find a peripheral device that can accurately display colors, especially white.
In terms of construction, the mouse feels very solid all-around and no sensor rattle was present during my tests. The high-capacity OMRON switches are rated for 20 million clicks, which should be plenty of clicks to last a very long time. The durable aluminum structure helps to reinforce the entire body, but it does make the mouse heavier even without the weights installed. In this case, heavier is not always better since there are no rubberized grips on the sides to make gripping easier.
When it comes to functionality, the M65 PRO RGB does everything it was advertised to do. Five DPI levels are available to switch the DPI on-the-fly along with a sniper button, which can be adjusted to reduce or increase DPI. The 3360 optical sensor works well and allows for surface calibration through the Corsair Utility software. The CUE software is great to use and I like how flexible the software is to the enthusiasts. One thing I did not like about the software was it must run in the background for the lighting effects to work. If you are using an older computer with a low-end CPU or are stress testing your computer and it ends up crashing because of a bad overclock, you will experience the animations slowing down, lagging, and sometimes not working at all since the animations are done through the software, which runs on the CPU. And if you like to run the lighting effects and animations at all times, you must start the application with Windows. To most people, it may take 10 to 30 seconds for the CUE software to start; no big deal, just grab a beer to past the time. But for someone who needs their computer up and running the moment it gets into Windows, well you may want to stick with a static color theme.
As of June 2016, the Corsair M65 PRO RGB is currently available online for $59.99 (Newegg | Amazon). This puts it next to the Cooler Master Sentinel III optical gaming mouse and the Razer Deathadder Chroma. I do not see much innovation coming from the M65 RGB to the M65 PRO RGB, so if you own a M65 RGB, I suggest you stick with it for now. But if you want to upgrade from an older gaming mouse or if you just want the 3360 optical sensor, then knock yourself out with the M65 PRO RGB.
+ Great optical sensor
+ Excellent build quality
+ Dedicated sniper button
+ Good weight adjustment system
+ CUE software is extremely flexible for both beginners and enthusiasts
– Not a lot of innovation
– RGB lighting is not the most accurate
– CUE software must run to have lighting effects work
– Heavier than most mice even without weights installed (although this can be a pro for some)
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Performance: 9.50
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Appearance: 8.75
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Construction: 8.75
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Functionality: 7.75
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Value: 8.00
Recommended: Benchmark Reviews Seal of Approval.
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