It's time to cut the cord.
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The hunt for a wireless mouse has always been a little tricky for gamers on a budget. Even if you can find the right mouse with low latency and a decent sensor, the best wireless mice typically require a serious monetary investment. Or at least, they used to. The new Logitech G305 (See it on Amazon) is made specifically for anyone who has been eager to go wireless, but was turned off by the steep price tag. At just $59.99 it's the most affordable high-end, wireless gaming mouse I've seen thus far, and even better, it doesn't sacrifice quality or performance to achieve its lowish price tag. It's even available in white, if that's your thing.
Design and Features
If you glance at the Logitech G305 quickly, you’d be forgiven for thinking it’s the Logitech G Pro mouse. Beyond the obvious lack of a cable and lighting—the Pro is an esports-centric wired mouse—the build and design is quite literally identical. That said, the G305 is a bit lighter than the Pro, weighing in at only 99 grams compared to the Pro's 129 grams. Personally, I prefer a mouse with a little more weight under my hand, and there’s no ability to add on optional weights like on the flagship Logitech G903 wireless mouse. But the shell still feels well-constructed and sturdy enough you could throw it into a laptop bag without worrying about it breaking.
The curvature on top of the G305 is subtle and is very comfortable in the palm of the hand. I personally prefer playing with a palm grip, but I found the G305 equally comfortable and all of its six buttons easy to access with a claw grip, as well. There are two standard thumb buttons on the left side of the G305, and while this mouse has a symmetrical design that would work for both lefties and righties, the thumb buttons are not swappable like they are on the G903. The mouse wheel is wide and scrolling is smooth and pleasant.
Under the hood, Logitech has packed in the same HERO (High Efficiency Rated Optical) sensor you’ll find in the company’s pricier wireless mice. This is an excellent sensor with great accuracy, and its 100 to 12,000 DPI range means there’s a setting for basically anyone and any gaming scenario. The wireless USB dongle can be stored under the removable top cover of the G305 if you're taking it on the road, and the mouse uses Logitech’s Lightspeed wireless technology to keep the mouse connected with 1ms latency. Input lag has long been an issue for wireless mice, but the G305 absolutely feels like using a wired mouse in terms of responsiveness.
Battery life is another concern in regards to wireless mice, but the G305 has some impressive figures in that department. A single AA battery will keep the mouse running for up to 250 hours with the previously mentioned 1ms response time—not too shabby for a mouse offering that level of performance. But if you’re just using the G305 for general work applications or surfing the web, you can drop it into “endurance mode” via Logitech’s software and the mouse will reportedly run for nine months on a single battery with an 8ms response time. That’s a handy feature for anyone who needs a laptop mouse for the road, since it can still offer precision gaming performance when needed.
Missing from this equation, however, is Logitech’s Powerplay technology. Last year’s G903 and G703 are compatible with a Powerplay mousepad that provides wireless charging. Clearly, the AA battery setup works great, but it would have been nice if the option for Powerplay compatibility was available. Then again, it probably would have increased the price, negating one of the G305's main benefits.
Software
As is the case with most Logitech peripherals, every device can be controlled and modified using the company’s Logitech Gaming Software. The latest version of LGS provided to me during this review carries on the same streamlined features and ease of use as the previous versions. While there’s no flashy lighting or customizable RGB effects on the G305, there is a bit of customization available.
All six buttons on the G305 can be assigned new functions via simple drop-down menus. There’s a range of different pre-set options you might expect for the thumb buttons, for example. But if you want to dig in further, it’s also possible to assign macros. Personally, I’ve never found too much use for customizing mouse buttons—particularly a simple, six-button mouse—but it’s nice that the option is there and easy to use. More importantly, the software allowed me to customize DPI settings to my liking. Behind the mouse wheel is a button that lets you toggle DPI presets, and you can have a maximum of five, or less if you're like me and prefer having just two presets. Setting up a slow DPI for certain game types and a fast DPI for others makes things super easy. But you can load up to five presets, if you wish. The LGS is also where you can switch the mouse’s response rate if you want to extend its battery life for taking it on the road.
Gaming
The G305 is an excellent wireless gaming mouse. I spent many hours playing PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, Overwatch, and Far Cry 5 and was immediately impressed by both the responsiveness and simplicity of this affordable mouse. When it comes to speed and accuracy, the HERO sensor is absolutely flawless. Whether I was making a quick turn-around in Overwatch or using the lower DPI setting for headshots in PUBG, the G305 never let me down. Acceleration is incredibly smooth, and sudden stops felt completely accurate. The mouse glides exceptionally well, particularly on a hard surface mouse pad.
Logitech’s wireless Lightspeed communication tech remains unsurpassed. If you’ve ever played an intense game with a laggy, run-of-the-mill wireless mouse you know the irritation of always wondering if that last death was brought on by slow response from the mouse to the receiver. But as stated earlier, the G305 feels just like a wired gaming mouse. While I’m unable to scientifically test Logitech’s claims of 1ms response with this mouse, I can certainly attest the "in-hand" results felt like it was wired.
And that’s really what the G305 is all about: removing the distractions and pricey features to get you into the game quickly and keep you there. My aim in Overwatch felt as great, if not better, than with any other wired gaming mouse I’ve ever used.
Purchasing Guide
The Logitech G305 has an MSRP of $59.99, and since it's launching now it's the same price at retail:
The Verdict
While the Logitech G305 won’t win any awards for being the flashiest, most extreme gamer mouse, it does its job amazingly well. Perfect response times, flawless connectivity, extreme accuracy, and all of that for about half the price of other wireless gaming mice. If you’ve been on the fence about a wireless mouse, this is the mouse that'll make you want to join the club.
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