ATK GEAR Launches 44g Blazing Sky Phantom With Hollow Carbon Fiber Shell and Dual 8K Polling

ATK has launched the ATK Blazing Sky Phantom, a symmetrical wireless gaming mouse that pairs a hollow carbon fiber composite shell with a 44g +/- 3g weight and 8,000Hz polling in both wired and 2.4GHz wireless modes. Internally it runs the PixArt PAW3955 Master sensor on a Nordic 54LM20 MCU with ATK’s ApexShark MAX firmware, and the company rates click latency at 0.174ms. The Phantom is listed at USD 99.98, down from a USD 119.98 list price, across four finishes.

The Shell Is the Story

The headline number is the 44g weight, and ATK gets there with a hollow carbon fiber composite shell rather than the honeycomb cutouts that usually define this weight class. The pattern ATK uses is a staggered cutout arrangement across the body, which keeps material where the shell needs stiffness and removes it everywhere else.

The body measures 119.7mm x 62.5mm x 37.3mm, which puts it well under the 125mm shells ATK uses elsewhere in its range. ATK positions the Phantom at small-to-medium hands and lists claw, palm and fingertip as supported grips on a symmetrical, low-profile shape.

Sensor, MCU and Latency

The Phantom uses the same PixArt PAW3955 Master sensor that ATK puts in the plus tiers of its Dragonfly A9 range, which we covered in our ATK GEAR Dragonfly A9 Series review. ATK lists it here at 1 to 50,000 DPI with 850 IPS tracking and 75G of acceleration, and lift-off distance is adjustable from 0.7mm to 1.7mm across 11 levels.

• Sensor (PixArt PAW3955 Master): 1 to 50,000 DPI, 850 IPS, 75G acceleration.
• MCU (Nordic 54LM20): the newer flagship part in ATK’s stack, running the company’s ApexShark MAX firmware.
• Click latency (0.174ms): ATK’s own rating, and lower than the 0.181ms it quotes for the Dragonfly A9 family.
• Polling rate (8,000Hz): available in both wired and 2.4GHz wireless modes, which is what ATK is calling Dual 8K.
• Lift-off distance (0.7mm to 1.7mm): adjustable across 11 steps.

An All-Optical Input Stack

Both the main buttons and the scroll wheel go optical on the Phantom. The main switches are Omron optical units, and the scroll wheel uses a Raesha optical encoder rather than the TTC Gold mechanical encoder ATK fits to the Dragonfly A9 line. Going optical on the encoder removes the mechanical contact wear that eventually causes scroll drift on a conventional wheel.

Battery, Connectivity and Dongles

Power comes from a 300mAh cell that ATK rates at roughly 200 hours of wireless use at 1,000Hz polling. That is the same capacity as the A9 Air, and as with any 8K-capable mouse, running the full 8,000Hz rate continuously will pull that figure down substantially.

Connectivity covers wired USB-C and 2.4GHz wireless. The notable inclusion is that ATK ships two receivers in the box rather than one, a GEM 8K dongle and a Nano 8K dongle, so buyers can pick between the larger receiver and the low-profile one without a separate purchase.

Colorways and What Is in the Box

The Phantom launches in four finishes: Dune, Verge, Eon and Prime. All four sit at the same price.

• Mouse: the ATK Blazing Sky Phantom in the selected finish.
• Receivers: both a GEM 8K and a Nano 8K dongle.
• Cable: a paracord-style USB-C cable.
• Skates: replacement mouse skate sets.
• Documentation: manual and warranty material.

Full Specifications

Where It Sits

At USD 99.98 the Phantom is the most expensive mouse ATK currently lists, sitting above the USD 79.98 plus tiers of the Dragonfly A9 range that share its sensor. What the extra money buys is the carbon fiber shell, the smaller 119.7mm body, the newer Nordic 54LM20 MCU, the all-optical switch and encoder stack, and the second dongle in the box. Buyers after the same sensor on a larger and cheaper shell still have the A9 line to look at.

The ATK Blazing Sky Phantom is available now from the ATK store.