Price / Where to Buy:
US – Approx. US$44.99 – Newegg
We’ve taken a look at a couple of peripherals from Cougar in the past few months including the Cougar 600M gaming mouse and we’ve noted how aggressive the company is in rolling out new products. We’ve also seen their current flagship gaming mouse get souped up with the debut of the Cougar 700M eSports edition, but just a bit earlier we’ve seen the launch of the Cougar 500M, a mid-range optical gaming mouse and we have that exact mouse today for review. Let’s take a closer look at the Cougar 500M optical gaming mouse and see where it fits with the myriads of options out in the market right now. Read on!
Specifications
Product name |
COUGAR 500M Gaming Mouse |
---|---|
Sensor |
ADNS-3090 Optical gaming sensor |
Resolution |
400/800/1200/1600/2000/2400/3200/4000 DPI |
Game type |
FPS / MMORPG / MOBA / RTS |
Polling rate |
1000Hz / 1ms |
On-board memory |
YES |
Software |
COUGAR UIX™ SYSTEM |
Programmable buttons |
6 |
Switching |
OMRON gaming switches |
Profile LED backlight |
16.8 million colors |
Frame rate |
6400 FPS |
Maximum tracking speed |
60 IPS |
Maximum acceleration |
20 G |
Interface |
USB plug |
Cable length |
1.8m Braided |
Dimension |
135(L) X 70(W) X 45(H) mm |
Weight |
115g |
Closer Look
Cougar packages the 500M in their distinct packaging style: black design with a large print of the model in the front adorned with a glamor shot of the product in the middle. In the case of the Cougar 500M, there is a white edition and black edition and this is denoted both with the product shot in the front and a print in the lower right to distinguish each. In the back of the box are the marketing highlights for the Cougar 500M.
Inside the package is a simple bundle that includes the 500M mouse, a user manual and various Cougar stickers.
Taking a closer look at the Cougar 500M optical gaming mouse, top-view shows us a very familiar design and if you’re like me that have been with a few mice before, this certainly follows the DeathAdder mold which was similarly used by the likes of the FinalMouse. Due to the success of this design, its totally not surprising that something like the Cougar 500M would adopt it. The Cougar 500M though does make its own adjustments. First off, its slimmer and almost will always be mistaken for an ambidextrous mouse due to its shape but there is a slight difference in shape in both left and right sides because of its ergonomic design. Another distinction is Cougar’s preference of placing their wire in one side rather than the center. The most distinct difference here is the DPI trigger which we’ll discuss more on later. There’s not much to discuss about the base as everything is as expected here. There’s no weight adjustment option so the base is purely just the sensor and teflon feet.
From the side we can see the textured side grips of the Cougar 500M. The Cougar 500M isn’t coated so the plastic itself is molded to have this distinct perforations for better grip, that said though, it does feel a bit rough but one eventually gets used to it. The thumb rest features the two extra side buttons which are customizable for extra functions.
Also in this side is the DPI indicator which shows the 3 possible DPI settings which you can change in the UIX software. More on that later.
Arguably the most unique feature of the Cougar 500M, is the DPI trigger switch. Instead of a normal button, users can pull back on the trigger, toggling-DPI settings. This switch is also customizable and can be swapped out with other functions.
Cougar UIX System
As seen before, the Cougar UIX System is the software behind the company’s peripheral line and serves as a unified driver and firmware update utility. For the Cougar 500M, the Cougar UIX system allows modifying performance parameters, button customizations and DPI status LED display color options.
User Experience & Conclusion
Normally we take a short while to adjust to a new mouse but in the case of the Cougar 500M, it was an easy adjustment. Albeit, I expected a familiar fit because of the design but due to the slimmer width of the Cougar 500M, it feels a bit akward in my hand as it weirdly wants to angle a bit inwards in my grip (I’m a fingertip-grip person.) More on that later. Performance-wise, the Cougar 500M is sharp and precise and using it on both a cloth and hard surface both yield excellent tracking. The 500M seems to go better with hard surfaces but cloth still do fine.
Comfort-wise though, there is no coating on this mouse as well as the side grips being textured plastic instead of rubber so gripping it harder makes the perforations feel rough and hard to the skin. The shape also, as mentioned, forces you to palm the 500M as the bulge below the thumb will force the mice to tilt inwards when fingertip-gripping or clawing the mouse.
Overall though, the performance is superb for an optical mouse and for only $45, it competes heavily with other high-performance, laser-equipped gaming mouse in the market. If you’re in the market for a gaming mouse and won’t go past $50 for your budget, this is a good choice if you’re after performance.
The Cougar 500M optical gaming mouse is another step forward for the company with regards to their gaming mice port folio. While it doesn’t have anything revolutionary to brag about, its smooth and precise tracking plus excellent build quality makes it an easy choice for anyone looking a new gaming mouse.
Cougar backs the Cougar 500M with a 1-year warranty. We give it our B2G Recommended Award.