LOGITECH G900 CHAOS SPECTRUM
Nailing that wireless conundrum
LOGITECH’S G900 Chaos Spectrum seeks to innovate in one of the most difficult markets to master—that of the wireless gaming mouse. Long despised by true gamers, wireless mice have earned themselves a reputation fraught with woe. Whether that’s jitter bugs, interference issues, sluggish battery life and charging methods, or a clunky design, there’s always been something to put off gamers on the hunt for a truly cable-free experience. Can Logitech shake off the brutal dogma attached to wireless mice? Is this Chaos Spectrum enough to finally decimate the wireless competition?
Unboxing the G900 is a messy affair. Removing the outer sleeve and opening the single-hinged container, you’re greeted with a plethora of angled cardboard shapes; shapes that look more akin to desktop wallpaper than something designed to protect the intricacies of your new, meticulously crafted, pinpoint-precision machine. Still, the G900 will gleam up at you, sitting there in its simplicity, ready to play. Removing the mouse and then the bottom packaging reveals the optional secure lock Micro USB cable—for those battery-less moments you’re caught short—and the wireless dongle housing, which also serves as a USB pass-through if you do intend to use the cable more long-term, and need a little extra length. The wireless 2.4GHz-capable dongle is minuscule in comparison to the rest of the setup. Plugged into a keyboard’s USB pass-through, it’s hardly noticeable, making it a bit of a nuisance to remove.
The G900 sits comfortably in the grasp of a palm-gripper, reassuringly supporting your, well, palm, and protecting your pinkies from drag and discomfort. It almost feels like it’s angling your hand upward, certainly compared to something like a SteelSeries Sensei or a Rival, as the angle falling off the back of the Chaos is far deeper than that of its competitors. But this isn’t a negative; interestingly, it makes it incredibly easy for those used to palming to swap to a more claw-like grip if need be—perhaps you’ve got a painful case of hand cramp today.
LED BATTERY EATERS What's intriguing about this particular rendition of wireless depravity stems from Logitech’s Gaming Software, which is how the Spectrum manages that mighty 500mAh battery sitting in its guts. In short, there’s a lovely little battery tab on the bottom row of the software. What’s particularly interesting here— and somewhat a rather obvious inclusion in our opinion; seriously, why doesn’t everyone do this?—is that it shows you how much battery life you have left, calculated in both percentage and hours. The thing is, it also contains four different settings for lighting presets: “Color Cycle,” “Cyan Breathing,” “Lights Off,” and “My Setting,” all of which affect how much predicted battery life you have left. For instance, at 45 percent, “Color Cycle” nets us 11 hours of estimated usage. However, if we were to go to “Lights Off,” we gain an additional three hours of battery life. Yep, those two tiny LEDs, which you rarely see when your palm hits the metal, eat up almost a third of the overall battery life. And if that’s the case for the Chaos Spectrum, you can bet your ass it’s the same for other wireless peripherals—looking at you, headsets.
All RGB lighting aside, the G900 Chaos Spectrum is a stunning peripheral. The unlockable middle mouse wheel for continuous scrolling is a dream, the additional buttons useful, the comfort great, battery life good, and utility excellent. On top of that, it’s impressively light—questionably so, considering it’s still lugging around that 500mAh battery internally. Precision is great, and using it over a lengthy time—one working week— we haven’t come up with any problems. There’s absolutely zero jitter or wireless anomalies from this 2.4GHz beauty, certainly in our testing, and on top of that, the huge number of features gracing Logitech’s Gaming Software is more than enough to keep even the most ardent esports lover happy. –ZAK STOREY