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Among the many gaming mice out there, the Cougar 550M Gaming Mouse ($59.99) stands out with its simple design, grippy thumb rest, and dozens of software customizations, all at a fairly affordable price. The dots-per-inch (dpi)-switching button (which also serves as a dedicated Sniper button when gaming) is located in an awkward spot, right under the scroll wheel, and reaching for it will jerk the cursor—a fatal move in a tight game. Still, this lightweight gaming mouse is a more sophisticated and customizable version of the Cougar 300M Gaming Mouse with a better grip, but it also costs almost twice as much as the latter. It doesn’t quite have the comfortable design or wireless features of the Editors’ Choice Razer Mamba ($119.99 at Amazon)(Opens in a new window) , but it’s also significantly less expensive.
Design and Features
At 1.8 by 2.7 by 5.3 inches (HWD) and 4.2 ounces, the 550M is small and lightweight, but it’s sturdy. It has a glossy finish over its blue and orange panels, with rubberized grips on either side, as opposed to the smooth, matte finish of the Cougar 300M. The 550M and the Cougar 300M are quite different mice, design-wise; the 550M has an ambidextrous form factor, while the Cougar 300M is made for right-hand use only. The mouse comes in two color options: iron-gray and orange and the metallic blue and orange of our review unit.
The mouse has a standard right- and left-click setup, with a clickable scroll wheel between the buttons. The right- and left-click buttons use Omron micro switches, which should last about five million clicks, according to the company. Right beneath the scroll wheel is the dpi-switching button, which lets you cycle through dpi modes. In this case, you have press the button toward the back with your middle finger to switch between three set dpi modes, which can jerk the cursor a little. With the Cougar 300M, you simply press down the dpi-switching button. On the left side of the mouse, right above the rubberized grip, are two programmable buttons, and directly in front of themthree LED lights that indicate which dpi mode you’re in. There is an LED light accent at the bottom of the 550M.
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On the bottom of the mouse is a sensor that will work on any surface and can move from 50dpi to 6,400dpi. The mouse is wired, with a 6-foot braided cord that’s a little stiff, but works fine. The Razer Mamba offers both wired and wireless functionality.
The 550M comes with onboard memory, so it can remember its customized settings from computer to computer, as well as with Cougar’s UIX software. In the UIX software, you can set up to three dpi modes, assign commands for all eight keys on the mouse, and customize the lighting from 16.8 million colors. The software could be more straightforward, with text in black boxes. In comparison, The Razer Mamba’s Synapse software is much clearer and easier to use, and is one of few to offer a quick how-to guide when first launched.
Performance and Conclusions
In my tests, the mouse exhibited no lag. Playing Witcher 3 ($39.99 at GameStop)(Opens in a new window) with the 550M set to about 1,000dpi was a mostly good experience for me—the only snag came when I needed to switch dpi modes. Having to push the dpi-switching button backwards to switch modes caused the mouse to jerk in my hand. Though this isn’t a deal breaker, it might be a bigger problem in intense games where a sudden error could mean your demise.
Another nit: Instead of smoothly scrolling, the 550M’s scroll wheel would make incremental stops. I often ended up far past what I was aiming for on a webpage, which could be distracting at times.
In testing, the rubberized thumb grip was comfortable to use, much more so than on the Cougar 300M. The grip is similar to the one on the Razer DeathAdder Chroma ($44.89 at Amazon)(Opens in a new window) and the Corsair Vengeance M65 ( at Amazon)(Opens in a new window) .
It doesn’t have the Razer Mamba’s great ergonomic design, dpi range, extensive customizations, or wireless functionality, but the Cougar 550M is still a capable gaming mouse for a lot less. The placement of the Sniper button could be impoved, and that millisecond or so when the mouse jerks can potentially ruin an intense game, so I don’t recommend it for gaming pros. For an entry-level gamer, though, the 550M is worth considering, but for $20 less, the Cougar 300M is a better value, and for the best gaming mouse money can buy, the Razer Mamba is our Editors’ Choice.
3.5
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The Cougar 550M Gaming Mouse has a comfortable design, and plenty of buttons to customize, but the awkward placement of one of its key buttons holds it back.
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Source link : https://www.pcmag.com/reviews/cougar-550m-gaming-mouse
