Page 3 - Subjective Performance Tests
After installing the software and configuring through the software to my preference, we put the Cooler Master Storm Xornet II through our series of standard tracking performance tests. This includes normal office usage in Microsoft Windows environments, as well as gaming within first person shooting game such as the Counter-Strike 1.6. Graphics work was done in addition to regular office usage with Microsoft Visio. The majority of the tests were done on a normal tracking surface. Please note these are subjective tests, but we will attempt to make it as objective as possible with our cross reference testing methods.
In order to review this mouse, I switched my daily driver, a Logitech M510, which is a wireless palm grip mouse, to the Xornet II. I would like to say that I did not want to switch back to my original mouse right after I put my fingers on the Xornet II. The major reason was due to the excellent ergonomic design of this device. It was easy to find a comfortable way holding the mouse, even for the first time using it. The ring finger could comfortably sit on the dedicated finger rest. It is worth noting the finger rest was long enough to provide support for the whole length of the ring finger. Rubber grips on both sides provided enough frictions to enable me to precisely control the mouse. As I have mentioned before, this Xornet II is quite wide proportionally. This design allowed all of my five fingers to naturally hold the mouse instead of forcing my fingers to be compatible with the shape its shell. In other words, the product was designed to fit my hand, not my hand to fit the design of the product. In addition, since this is a claw grip mouse, the Xornet II is fairly short, which can be considered as an advantage if you need to carry it when traveling.
On Cooler Master’s website, the Xornet II is ascribed as a gaming mouse. This product worked perfectly for first person shooter games like Counter-Strike 1.6. From my tests, it had precise tracking and quick response time for a lag-free experience. The Omron switches also provided crisp and responsive clicks. Its maximum 3500 DPI sensitivity may not sound too much, but the Avago optical sensor provided just what I actually needed to perform quick turns in FPS games. Since this mouse does not support weight adjustment, if you are picky and do not like its stock weight as professional gamers and enthusiasts would prefer, then you will be out of luck. However, I found it to still be a great product for both gaming and office working.
In terms of the productivity work, like office work and graphic designs, the Xornet II was equally as capable. The ergonomic design made it really comfortable to hold for hours of hard work. All the buttons were properly located such that it was hard to accidentally press any one of them. If you have different preferences when performing different tasks, you can also easily switch between your predefined three sets of DPI settings on-the-fly. Generally speaking, in terms of both gaming and productivity work, there were no obvious shortcomings for me to point out on the Cooler Master Storm Xornet II after weeks of using it. The Xornet II was very well balanced, and personally speaking, I have no reserve in using it as my daily working mouse.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. A Closer Look - Hardware and Software
3. Subjective Performance Tests
4. Conclusion
