Full Transcript
[00:00] You know what you want? Accurate tracking, quality materials, optimal weight, extra buttons, and ample RGB. But there are quite literally hundreds of gaming mice on the market, many of which take all of those boxes.
[00:13] So why the green flaccid **** is everyone buying this one? I mean, the fight is so one-sided. It's gotten to the point where this is not just the top seller on Amazon,
[00:26] But Logitech even made themselves their own little custom award to commemorate that they make the top-selling gaming mouse on the freaking planet. I mean, how can a product line that was first announced at PAX 2014 still hold that crown?
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[01:11] Dating nights have been around for over two decades at this point, starting with the Razer Boom Slang all the way back in 1999. Razer all the way. It was available with either 1,000 or 2,000 DPI, or dog print sensitivity, with the 1K version costing 70 US dollars, and the 2K model costing a crisp benjamin.
[01:30] But in spite of the outrageous price, it was so successful that it launched Razer into the publicly traded behemoth that it is today. Though, that's not really that surprising.
[01:44] I mean, gamers have always been hungry for any way to get an edge over their opponents, and seeing Razer's success, more companies obviously were going to follow suit. Logitech's first attempt also came in 1999, the Wingman, but in retrospect, its weird
[02:01] shape and lack of a scroll wheel are probably why Logitech acts like it never existed. Logitech's G-Series, though, released in 2005, was their first serious power move. They featured much better ergonomics,
[02:14] extras like side buttons or adjustable weights, and perhaps most importantly, no balls. The G-Series also marked Logitech's first salvo in what would be a never-ending marketing war to create the highest sensitivity gaming mouse.
[02:28] Over the next nine years, Logitech and their competitors used a combination of optical and laser sensors, with Logitech even building one mouse with an accelerometer in it to go from a practical 2000 dpi
[02:40] all the way to 12,000 dpi in the G502 Proteus Core, the distant ancestor of the world's most popular mouse today. Now, that 2014 model wasn't identical, but it features many of the key elements that we still love about the current iteration,
[02:57] including a braided cable 11 remountable buttons extra weights and a Logitech signature toggleable free scroll wheel But the engineers weren done Our Cursors MUST move faster
[03:09] So four years later, using the all-new Hero sensor, the G502 Hero was born. It was basically the same as before, except it could reach a staggering 16,000 DPI.
[03:21] Or let us just say it used to reach 16,000 DPI. Thanks to a recent firmware update, it can actually be pushed even further to 25,600 dpi. That is a lot of dog to branch.
[03:34] Now, we love Logitech mice around here. You'll find more than a few MX Masters kicking around at our workstations, and most of us, I think, are using their gaming mice at home. So it wasn't a huge surprise when we saw their name in the number one spot.
[03:47] But with at least 10 different designs featuring that same hero sensor, Why is this ancient body decaying? Let's start with a look through some of the 26,000 ratings for this mouse on Amazon.
[04:01] 82% of users give it 5 stars for an average of 4.7, with most reviewers pointing to the comfort of the design, the ease of access to all the programmable buttons, the sensor, and, surprisingly, the customizable weights.
[04:15] Now, this has been a feature for years, starting with the G5 in 2005, and in an age where going lighter and lighter is typically preferred, we were surprised to see so many current reviewers mentioning the weight.
[04:29] I mean, personally, I'm onto the G Pro Superlight at this point, so I can hardly imagine loading up the already chunky T502 to its 139 gram capacity. But, then again, I also don't really lift, so...
[04:42] Another positive is most people seem to feel like the software is pretty okay, and I guess I feel the same. From changing the RGB, to programming the buttons, to creating DPI profiles, setting up and using G-Hub is pretty solid,
[04:56] especially with a wired mouse like this one where you basically just plug it in and it works. And it is comfortable, with petite gamers like me able to switch between a palm or a claw grip, and more generously endowed gamers probably preferring a straight claw grip.
[05:11] With that being said, many of the complaints about the mouse from the 4-star or lower reviews are valid. It is a little on the small side, some of the buttons can be a touch too easy to press,
[05:23] looking at UGs 4, 5, 7, and 8, and while the thumb support wing feels good to some, it feels absolutely awful to others. The scroll wheel can also end up feeling too stiff when it's locked, and too free when it's unlocked,
[05:36] which is really hard to properly convey without letting you actually try scrolling with it yourself, but trust me, they've got a point. Something that surprised us was the handful of complaints about it being too much.
[05:48] But I guess that's kind of fair enough. I mean, not everyone needs so many bells and whistles, or 25,600 dpi for that matter. For lols by the way we did crank it up all the way to the limit to try it out and instantly backed off to somewhere in the 1200 to 3000 range It should be noted though that just because we not using that extra sensitivity
[06:09] on the slider, that doesn't mean it's necessarily going to waste, because it can contribute to additional accuracy. But whether those improvements are meaningful at this point is another conversation.
[06:21] The weight was another factor, with most unsatisfied buyers complaining about how heavy it is. Fun fact, though, we did find one outlier who thought the mouse was too light. Okay, then, suit yourself.
[06:33] And while you're at it, you can suit yourself up with our new indoor hoodie from lpqstore.com. The most crucial issue that stuck out for most, if not all, of the one- and two-star reviews, though, was switch failure. Primarily, double-clicking and click-and-dragging.
[06:48] Conveniently enough, we just so happened to have a torn-down G502 that our creator warehouse engineers were analyzing to find out what's so good and bad about it. And as it turns out, Logitech is using switches in this thing
[07:00] that aren't really meant for modern mouse designs. The Onron D2FC-S-7N switches used to work fine in older models that ran at a higher voltage and current,
[07:12] but Japanese Onron D2F-01F would work better for the mice of today thanks to their more robust build quality. Now, you can replace the stock switches entirely, and there are a few tutorial videos on YouTube to help you,
[07:25] but the reality is the average user isn't going to bother. They're going to log us in, ask for a refund, and probably buy a different mouse. So, with that damage to their brand on the line,
[07:37] why is Logitech trying to save a buck on one of their most popular products? Ah, well that brings us to the price. A decent new gaming mouse used to set you back between about 80 to 120 US dollars.
[07:49] More if you wanted something wireless or with new features. The G502 Hero? It's 50 bucks on Logitech's website, just $40 on Amazon, and we even found the SE variant, which appears to be just a different color,
[08:02] for $35 on Best Buy. I mean, even at the official price of $80, which you can still pay if you really want the KDA skin version for some reason, it's reasonably competitive, so getting it for less than half of that feels like a heck of a bargain.
[08:17] I can understand why Logitech might have wanted to cost it down to hit that price point. And besides, when something is affordable, people tend to be a lot more forgiving of minor grievances, like having to arm it, perhaps, or the lack of a finger channel on the right click, or a bit of extra heft.
[08:32] I mean, within Logitech's own product stack, there are really only two wired competitors. Both of them priced a little higher, the Pro and the G600. The G600 is labeled as the MMO mouse, and it's pretty clear why.
[08:44] It's got 20 programmable buttons for basically every macro you could ever need, while still being comfortable. And as for the Pro, well, many of you might be attracted to its symmetrical shape, zero sensor, six programmable buttons, onboard memory profiles, and extra RGB.
[08:59] If you like the look and feel of the Pro but you want to save a bit of money and you don need 25 DPI then the cheaper G203 Pro might be the mouse for you As for if you want something wireless well the price does jump substantially Of course you don have to stick with Logitech to hit this
[09:14] price point. A quick look reveals plenty of other options in the $30 to $50 range, many from repeatable brands. You can get a Razer DeathAdder Essential for $24 at the time of filming, but even at regular price it's down to $50, and the
[09:29] The Viper Mini Ultralight is just $40, $28 on sale right now. The Red Dragon N801 is $50, EDGA's X-16 MMO mouse is also $50, and the SteelSeries Rival 3 is $30.
[09:41] And we're going to have all of these listed in our affiliate links down below. I mean, sure, most of these don't have quite the same robust feature set, often sporting fewer programmable buttons or lower maximum DPI. But, like we mentioned before, many of you don't actually need, let alone want, something so extra.
[09:57] If you want to spend even less money, there are some interesting products from brands we've never heard of. Now, I certainly can't vouch for them, but hey, competition is good, right? $16 for a mouse with 7 programmable buttons, a high polling rate, up to 7200 DPI, and RGV?
[10:14] It's not a lot to lose if you feel like taking a chance. And that one is downright expensive compared to this bad boy. But coming down to the G5020, at this price, we can honestly say that we do recommend it.
[10:27] It's got unparalleled tracking, good software, and it's backed by Logitech's legendary support. But it also might be worth expanding your horizons a little, guys. You don't have to all buy the same mouse. The Razer Dasolus at hyper-speed wireless was only $35 at the time of filming,
[10:43] and Corsair's Night Sword RGB, while a little more expensive at $60 on sale, is a great choice if you're looking for something similar to the 502, but you prefer the Corsair ecosystem. Whatever route you go with, though, it's still probably better than the Amazon
[10:58] BASIC PC programmable gaming mouse. $65 for this thing? Looks like Amazon didn't get the memo. Gaming mice are really affordable now. You know what else is affordable? Our sponsor. Thanks to Zoho CRM for sponsoring this video. Zoho CRM is a 360
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[11:53] is a great solution to support you in your customer relationship management needs. You can learn more at zoho.com slash CRM. If you guys enjoyed this video, maybe check out our other Why is Everyone Buying This videos, like this HP monitor that everyone was picking up for something.