The mouse is the most important peripheral that you can buy. It’s the very method with which you interact with the digital world, creating, gaming and generally being. It’s unfortunate that they are all so subtly different and so it’s hard to find the perfect fit. That and, while all sensors generally do well, they also all have their own idiosyncrasies that make the different. Finding the perfect mouse is even more difficult now that there are far more options available than ever. Cooler Master has a good option that’s sleek, barebones yet with one of the best sensors money can buy. And the price is right, too. The MasterMouse Pro L.
MasterMouse Pro L
Cooler Master is in the midst of reinventing itself, consolidating their product lines into something that’s more easily identifiable, and much more attractive to their audience. Out of the dust that settled from the vast re-imagining of their mice is the Cooler Master MasterMouse Pro L. This is minuscule mouse is a more simplified device compared to many others. The lighting effects playing second fiddle to the underlying sensor and ergonomics. The idea is to have a no-frills mouse that has all the trappings of something high-end, nearly the best sensor money can buy, and sell it for an attractive price. And really, the only things you really need in a mouse are a good sensor, long-lasting switches for the buttons and a shape that melts into your hand. Lights and other things are just extras of dubious value.
The MasterMouse Pro L has something that perhaps no mouse has. The ability to fully customize the grip. The SteelSeries Rival 700 potentially can do that, though it seems they only offer one extra grip that they themselves sell. Cooler Master is living up to the “Make it Yours” idiom that began with their reorganization. They provide you with the schematics to 3D print two different back and side covers. And with that, you can essentially mold it to your hand, if you wanted to. What Cooler Master has with their MasterMouse Pro L is a near perfect solution. Something you can tailor fit to your grip with some very good hardware underneath.
No sensor is perfect, and you may have a preference for how a laser tracks over your favorite surface. It is different, though maybe it’s nearly imperceptible and largely a part of our own mind. Regardless they’ve gone with an Avago PMW3360 optical sensor. This is a 1:1 tracking sensor that doesn’t add anything to the input, or output. It’s also capable of keeping track of some very fast movements. This sensor is lauded for its ability to accurately track movements without any acceleration or other nonsense.
Specifications
All of that wouldn’t matter if it were an overall poorly designed mouse anyway. The outside is made of hard plastic, durable not at all uncommon. Thankfully it’s completely replaceable if you so choose. The buttons are of Omron manufacture and are rated to 20 million clicks of endurance. Omron seems to have cornered the market. And for good reason. They do produce a satisfying click and have been known to last for some time. Your mouse should be able to last a long time. The specs could be considered “minimal”. There isn’t too much flash here, though the basic bits are some of the best.
Comfort
The MasterMouse Pro L is ambidextrous in shape and can accommodate large and small hands with those interchangeable parts. That and you can customize it for either the palm or the claw grip. I prefer the palm grip, personally, and appreciated the back with the added hump to it. All in all it’s a very nicely designed mouse. I think that over the many years that the mighty mouse has been the input device of choice, we’ve been able to at least get the basic shape right that the majority of people tend to enjoy. It fits the hand like a glove, and can be molded to your hand if you so choose. That is what truly sets this apart from any other mouse on the market right now. Even if the market is limited. Certainly there are a few manufacturers that do let you swap out the sides, the top or both portions though it’s limited to only a few actual choices. The implications are boundless, even if the gaming world isn’t exactly beaming with excitement at being able to have personalized equipment. Cooler Master is on to something here.
It would be very nice if Cooler Master themselves offered the ability to upload your schematics to be printed by them and sent to you. I can imagine custom mice being something in the future, even if it’s rare. Certainly we have custom fit IEM’s, so why not?
Certainly the MasterMouse Pro L sits a bit low to the ground in that the cord, until properly bent into place, sort of drags on the mousing surface. After a few moments bending it back into shape it’s no bother at all, though. Just a minor gripe that it has to be done at all. Sort of surprising.
The number of buttons on this thing are plentiful. What I like about it is that one of the buttons on the right side of the MasterMouse Pro L is very cleverly placed. It has a lip that easily accommodates my ring finger, making it almost natural to actuate. Meaning it could easily be setup as a tertiary button with ease. It was surprisingly useful for some functions that tend to be attached to the middle-mouse button, helping free my middle finger for other activities. The buttons are don’t protrude a terrible amount and are somewhat seamless. It’s very minimalist.