Steelseries Sensei Ten

SteelSeries returns to its Sensei roots.

2019 marks the tenth anniversary of SteelSeries’ original Sensei mouse design, a truly iconic gaming peripheral that set the bar for high-performance mice in the years following its release. It’s seen several different iterations along the way, the most recent being the Sensei 310 released in 2017. While that mouse is a fantastic bit of hardware in its own right, many fans missed the classic Sensei design, a sentiment that SteelSeries has heard loud and clear.

Enter the new Sensei Ten, a return to form for one of esports’ favorite mice. SteelSeries has resurrected the original ambidextrous Sensei shape, and enhanced its performance with a top-ofthe-line sensor and a sleek, matte finish that feels great in the hand. There’s also some fancy RGB lighting, profile customisation, tilt tracking, and new click switches.

The Sensei Ten boasts a true ambidextrous design, with a symmetrical seven button layout that accommodates any grip style. The matte finish feels nice and smooth in the hand, and the silicon pads on the sides provide ample grip. We don’t experience any discomfort when handling the mouse, but the side buttons can be easy to click by accident thanks to the concave finger rests. After a while, though, our hands adjust and this ceases to be a problem.

Weight is one of the most important qualities to consider when picking out a gaming mouse, and everyone’s tastes are different. In our opinion, the Sensei Ten feels a bit on the lighter side, lacking the satisfying heft of some other options on the market. This isn’t a dealbreaker by any stretch, but it is certainly something to be aware of while weighing your options. The connection cable is also unfortunately not braided, which feels like an oversight for a flagship mouse model like the Sensei.

Moving to the buttons, SteelSeries employs a dual spring mechanical switch that ought to be industry standard. The buttons have one of the most satisfying and tactile clicks we’ve experienced in some time. There’s both a soft and crisp quality to them that’s hard to describe in a text-based review, but suffice to say they’re among the best mouse buttons we’ve played with this year. The thumb buttons are a bit lighter by comparison, but they perform just fine even if they’re not as gratifying as the left and right clicks.

The Sensei Ten is equipped with the TrueMove Pro optical sensor, designed by SteelSeries and PixArt. SteelSeries’ official site boasts that it’s the best tracking sensor on the market, and while that’s a difficult metric to measure, the Sensei Ten performs about as smoothly as they come. Capping out at 18,000 CPI, and boasting some impressive acceleration and deceleration customisation options, the Sensei Ten performs exceptionally during testing in Apex Legends and Overwatch.

The SteelSeries Sensei Ten comes with a sizable legacy to live up to, but it’s more than up to the task. It manages to retain the best parts of the original Sensei design philosophy while adding in some impressive tech and customisation, even if there are a few minor nitpicks on the design front.

SAM DESATOFF

• Ambidextrous design

• Smooth matte finish

• Onboard profile customisation

• No braided cable

• A bit lightweight

• Easy to accidentally click side buttons