General: G5 Mouse Review

Stradden · May 2007

Staff Writer Jeremy Star continues his ever-growing series of hardware reviews as he looks at the new G5 mouse from Logitech.

Wait, wait wait. I can already hear some of you screaming before I even start, so let me explain. Yes, I know that the G5 mouse has been out for a while. A long while. No, this isn't a review of that mouse. This is a review of the new Logitech G5 mouse. It looks different, has different specifications, and is basically a whole different mouse now. Why they didn't call it the G6, or the G5 Revision 2, or HEY-The-NEW-G5-WOW! Is beyond me. It's simply the G5.

Everybody get it? Are we all clear? Good. Moving on...

The Hardware - The new G5, not the same as the old G5

The G5 is a laser mouse with a USB connection. It features in-game DPI switching, an adjustable weight cartridge, dual thumb buttons, a 2000 DPI laser engine, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) gaming feet, and a full speed, 1000 reports per second USB interface. The mouse wheel is also set up to allow not only up/down scrolling, but also left/right as well.

Read the whole review here.

Agent_X7 · May 2007

No longer pertinent.

Nothing to see here.

These are not the droids you are looking for.

Move along.

Coldmeat · May 2007

Though a second side button would be nice, I prefer the fade to orange look of my G5, even if it has mostly been rubbed off anyway.

Nice review, though, now I have something to upgrade too when my current G5 dies.

xxthecorexx · May 2007

i'm a "mouse freak" too, i can't tell you the number of mice i've tried and rejected due to various reasons. anyway.. i saw this new blue crackle version at a local electronics store, looked at it, thought "ooh two thumb buttons" and put it back down. my past experience with the G5 the cord was WAY too stiff and caused mouse creep which really irritates the crap out of me.

since it's just a matter of time until we see the G7 with 2 thumb buttons i'll wait for that. right now i'm happy with my G7 but to get to that point i removed the shell from my G5r1 since the original shell of the G7 was just WAY too slick and the shell of the revised G7 with the fake carbon fiber look just completely turned me off. i don't understand why they insist on using these graphic shells rather than what's been proven and works well, they need to take an example from razer on this.

blaam · May 2007

Originally posted by xxthecorexx

i'm a "mouse freak" too, i can't tell you the number of mice i've tried and rejected due to various reasons. anyway.. i saw this new blue crackle version at a local electronics store, looked at it, thought "ooh two thumb buttons" and put it back down. my past experience with the G5 the cord was WAY too stiff and caused mouse creep which really irritates the crap out of me.

since it's just a matter of time until we see the G7 with 2 thumb buttons i'll wait for that. right now i'm happy with my G7 but to get to that point i removed the shell from my G5r1 since the original shell of the G7 was just WAY too slick and the shell of the revised G7 with the fake carbon fiber look just completely turned me off. i don't understand why they insist on using these graphic shells rather than what's been proven and works well, they need to take an example from razer on this.

I used G7 for over a year.. probably the best wireess mouse outthere imo.. just toobad the Logithec doesnt have a supprot service to replace their crappy batteries.. i ended up with boh of mine not recharging anymore Bought a G5 , i was very happy with it but the shell was horrible to me.. so i took the G7 one and using it on my G5 right now.. and you know what ? i'm really happy with it.

skywisenight · May 2007

Originally posted by Agent_X7

That's a picture of the old G5 on the review. Technical glitch.

Here are some shots of the new mouse, courtesy of Logitech UK.

www.logitech.com/index.cfm/products/large_view/GB/EN,crid=2464,contentid=13419,sh=1

By bad there. I guess the logitech site is having a hard time keeping on top of having a new product with the same name too. This newer blue version is absolutely no where to be found on the Canadian or US site. Thanks for the link and I'll be updating the images today.

Agent_X7 · May 2007

Originally posted by skywisenight

Originally posted by Agent_X7

That's a picture of the old G5 on the review. Technical glitch.

Here are some shots of the new mouse, courtesy of Logitech UK.

www.logitech.com/index.cfm/products/large_view/GB/EN,crid=2464,contentid=13419,sh=1

By bad there. I guess the logitech site is having a hard time keeping on top of having a new product with the same name too. This newer blue version is absolutely no where to be found on the Canadian or US site. Thanks for the link and I'll be updating the images today. Yeah, I don't think it's in wide release here yet, I think they are trying to run through the stock of the old version first, so they haven't really put it up on their sites.

BTW, nice quote. I love Farscape.

Broodwich · May 2007

I wish the reviews had used another gaming mouse as a comparision besides to MX518. The main competitors to the G5 are the Razer Copperhead, Microsoft Habu, and the Ideazon Reaper.

Considering the Reaper can be found for cheaper than the MX518 it would have been a better comparison to make.

Just to note I use a Habu myself and considering it's cheaper than the G5 it's a better buy.

Seyrcim · May 2007

I've been using the first G5 since my mx1000 gave up on recharging. It also had the very annoying 5cm occasional jump which didn't go away with drivers.

The only real gripe I have with the G5 is the size, I wish it was more like the mx1000 as it fits perfectly in my palm and has a nice rest for the thumb.

Anyways, nice review, it clearly shows that I'll hardly upgrade to the new revision.

CleffyII · May 2007

I love my old G5, it works just so well. I have used many mice, and its definetly the best. Doubt I will upgrade to the new G5, its just unneeded since the old one is so good, its still working great after a couple years.

darkslider · May 2007

Hmm, this might be just the excuse i need to upgrade my rapidly Ageing Logitech MX510! I always preferred the G5 but the thought of going from the two thumb buttons i love to one button was always enough to convinced myself that i didn't *really* need an upgrade.

I might have some problems coming up with the same excuse for this new version... it could be awesome.

society · May 2007

And like the G5 before it, the RMB will break after a few months of use...

I *upgraded* to a razer copperhead from my G5. Im very happy with the move. Goes great with a Saitek Eclipse II.

skywisenight · May 2007

Originally posted by CleffyII

I love my old G5, it works just so well. I have used many mice, and its definetly the best. Doubt I will upgrade to the new G5, its just unneeded since the old one is so good, its still working great after a couple years.

While fixing the graphics for this article, I find the older G5 looks much cooler than the new one. What's up with the generic cracked-earth texture?

Mrbloodworth · May 2007

Originally posted by skywisenight

Originally posted by CleffyII

I love my old G5, it works just so well. I have used many mice, and its definetly the best. Doubt I will upgrade to the new G5, its just unneeded since the old one is so good, its still working great after a couple years.

While fixing the graphics for this article, I find the older G5 looks much cooler than the new one. What's up with the generic cracked-earth texture? Cracked is next-gen

norme69 · May 2007

I love my G5. This revision doesnt do much for me though. The new "design" is god awful, the extra button isnt of my extra use to me, and the extra speed can't really make THAT big of a difference between the two. The old G5's are a big upgrade to ordinary mice, doubling it has to be excess.

And again, the slippery complaint is a crock of bullshit. I've had zero grip problems with my G5, and find it to be of better grip than the crappy dell mouse I'm forced to use at work. I think our reviewer should be required to wash their hands before reviewing mice in the future because there's something else going on there.

xcryonicx · May 2007

Nice review. My "old" G5 is still doing great though. No real need to upgrade from it imo. Plus, it looks so much better than this new one.

fariic1 · May 2007

I use an MX revolution. I will NEVER buy another mouse again.

How come I haven't seen a review for this mouse?

The g5 looks cool, but not as cool as my revolution.

Agent_X7 · May 2007

Originally posted by fariic1

I use an MX revolution. I will NEVER buy another mouse again.
How come I haven't seen a review for this mouse?
The g5 looks cool, but not as cool as my revolution.

I will look in to having Logitech send me one for review. Thank you for the suggestion.

Droniac · May 2007

The information in this review is simply inaccurate.

There is no real technological difference between the previous G5 and this version. No the 1000 Hz polling rate is nothing new, install the drivers (setpoint) and press a button and you have the exact same friggin' thing for your oldschool G5 - no difference whatsoever. Indeed the only new thing about this updated version is a different look - oh and one extra button (not like you ever used the other one to begin with). And no - it doesn't offer more grip than the previous version, mainly because that version had no grip problems to begin with... I didn't think the buttons were sensitive at all either - try a Razer Diamondback: that is sensitive.

Considering the fact that the inherent technology hasn't changed at all - this remains an overpriced and underperforming mouse... and any gamer would do better with a Razer DeathAdder. It's not only less expensive, but performs infinitely better... because unlike the G5: it's not a laser mouse - and as such utilizes tried and true technology that's been utterly perfected... So where the G5 drops off after you accelerate it a bit (even when polled to 1000 Hz) and as such is not really a great mouse - the DeathAdder can handle anything any human can throw at it, easily.

Agent_X7 · May 2007

Originally posted by Droniac

The information in this review is simply inaccurate.

There is no real technological difference between the previous G5 and this version. No the 1000 Hz polling rate is nothing new, install the drivers (setpoint) and press a button and you have the exact same friggin' thing for your oldschool G5 - no difference whatsoever. Indeed the only new thing about this updated version is a different look - oh and one extra button (not like you ever used the other one to begin with). And no - it doesn't offer more grip than the previous version, mainly because that version had no grip problems to begin with... I didn't think the buttons were sensitive at all either - try a Razer Diamondback: that is sensitive.

Considering the fact that the inherent technology hasn't changed at all - this remains an overpriced and underperforming mouse... and any gamer would do better with a Razer DeathAdder. It's not only less expensive, but performs infinitely better... because unlike the G5: it's not a laser mouse - and as such utilizes tried and true technology that's been utterly perfected... So where the G5 drops off after you accelerate it a bit (even when polled to 1000 Hz) and as such is not really a great mouse - the DeathAdder can handle anything any human can throw at it, easily.

The information on the tech specs in the review comes directly from Logitech.

motorcyc · May 2007

Personally, I have the new G5 mouse and am presently using it. I haven't had any of the problems described in the review. I find that the sides of the mouse offer plenty of grip for my purposes. Also, I haven't had any issues with mis-clicks when pressing the middle mouse button. I also haven't had any issues with mouse creep. That may be due to the fact that I have a fairly large amount of weight in the weight tray and enjoy the heavy feel of the mouse. I also am running the mouse at 2000 dpi. I found the added speed to a bit of getting used to, but have been rewarded with a greater speed at a good precision when I finally got used to the extra speed. Using mice at work has come to be a pain with how slow and imprecise they are.

fariic1 · May 2007

Originally posted by Agent_X7

Originally posted by fariic1

I use an MX revolution. I will NEVER buy another mouse again.
How come I haven't seen a review for this mouse?
The g5 looks cool, but not as cool as my revolution.

I will look in to having Logitech send me one for review. Thank you for the suggestion.

Welcome.

To be fair I dunno if the MX is the best for gaming. More for multi tasking then anything, but for someone with nerve damage in thier hand I will say that it is the MOST confortable mouse I have ever found.

I debated in the store for about half an hour between it and the G5.

fantomas9 · May 2007

Has the mouse been ergonomicly designed for right handers of a particular hand size like the other highend logitechs or have they made one that can be used by either hand be the hand small medium or large? Couldn't see any comments on this in the review.

lekiz · May 2007

I have it(the older one, ya ya), still love it, but yes I agree with the cons. The middle button is a pain! I hate it, don't like the sidescroll for it either, so I switched it off with the software. The only complaint from me is the dang middle mouse button...If they fix it, hopefully they will, this mouse pretty much pwns them all... In my opinion of course.

I use to own the old Razer Diamondback mouse for a long time, it shorted out on me, got another one, and then that one shorted out on me. I pretty much gave up on Razer trend all together. Then switched to the MX500, great mouse for a while, then switched to the G5 which I still have to this day. It has not once shorted out, the roof hasn't worn yet, it has kept its tight grip, the weights do a really great job when you need that extra precision, on-the-fly sensitivity is the pwn of course, I always get a kick out of the little running guy on it, reminds me of a Cactuar sort of.

The Logitech G5 is a really wonderful mouse, it does take some time to get use to, even...again...that damn middle button! See, if you don't actually own the G5 you probably won't understand what people are talking about, because others have complained about it I'm sure. Here's the thing, I am an avid Firefox user, and instead of right-click open new tab, I like to use the middle mouse button to open a link to a new tab. The problem is, is sometimes it works fine, and then sometimes it likes to skip up and down the page, it thinks you're trying to auto scroll when you aren't, real pain in the ass, and repetitive. But, don't let it stop you from trying it though, the mouse does rock! Only, if you can get past the little things, you won't regret it.

Oh, and just to spice it all up, add in the G15 keyboard, it all matches... I did it.

jnn4v · May 2007

Originally posted by motorcyc

Personally, I have the new G5 mouse and am presently using it. I haven't had any of the problems described in the review. I find that the sides of the mouse offer plenty of grip for my purposes. Also, I haven't had any issues with mis-clicks when pressing the middle mouse button. I also haven't had any issues with mouse creep. That may be due to the fact that I have a fairly large amount of weight in the weight tray and enjoy the heavy feel of the mouse. I also am running the mouse at 2000 dpi. I found the added speed to a bit of getting used to, but have been rewarded with a greater speed at a good precision when I finally got used to the extra speed. Using mice at work has come to be a pain with how slow and imprecise they are.

I don't run at 2000 dps. I think I actually like 800 best so far, but I really do agree with you that the material on the sides offers adequate grip. I don't know what crazy secretions are coming out of the hands of the reviewer, but I find the G5 to be the grippiest mouse I've used.

- Jnn4v (Farmo / Lorindor)

checkthis500 · May 2007

Originally posted by skywisenight

Originally posted by CleffyII

I love my old G5, it works just so well. I have used many mice, and its definetly the best. Doubt I will upgrade to the new G5, its just unneeded since the old one is so good, its still working great after a couple years.

While fixing the graphics for this article, I find the older G5 looks much cooler than the new one. What's up with the generic cracked-earth texture? How else do you think they doubled the RPS. I mean if it was carbon fiber the RPS would be 5000.

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