ASUS Cerberus Gaming Mouse Review

Introduction

The second part of our look at the Cerberus trilogy is dedicated to the mouse. An optical offering with a partly-ambidextrous design, 5 buttons and hard-coded DPI stages. Simplicity and affordability is unquestionably the name of the game and a 2500DPI mouse with a textured coating and rubber sides for £20 places the Cerberus firmly in the value end of the mouse market. With dozens of models available from only a small increase in expenditure and plenty of excellent offerings at a similar price, has the Cerberus Gaming Mouse got enough to set the sales world ablaze? 

– Connectivity Technology: Wired
– Tracking: Optical
– Dimensions: 124.86 (L) x 68.72(W) x 40.11(H) mm
– Max. DPI: 2500 DPI
– DPI stages: 4 levels (500/1000 (default)/1500/2500 DPI) with LED indicator
– Buttons: 5 buttons
– Shape: Ambidextrous shape for both right- and left-handed gamers
– Cable & connector: Braided cable with gold-plated USB connector
– Cable length: 1.8 m

Up Close

Pay close attention to how high the section in front of the scroll wheel is, as this will be a vital part of our conclusion. Away from that the Cerberus comes with a nicely braided cable that belies the low price point of the mouse itself. The scroll wheel feels a little cheap, but it is so that’s to be expected. Equally the side and DPI stage buttons have a certain squishy quality to them. That isn’t a negative because the Cerberus is £20. It’s something to be aware of. We always think that there are so many mice on the market that you can get a massive upgrade by spending a few pence more. 

      

Those sculpted sides are swathed in high-grip rubber, keeping the Cerberus firmly under your control regardless of how tense the gaming situation becomes. The high arch in the back really helps it nestle into your palm and it’s comfortable for extended sessions.

      

Each stage of the DPI is matched up by a colour to give a clear indication of which one you currently have selected.

      

      

Conclusion

Our review of the Cerberus Gaming Keyboard gave us the idea that this was produced by another company and been slapped with the ASUS logo, and the mouse isn’t much better. The design, in terms of looks, is very nice. It matches up to many of the ergonomic designs we’ve seen over the years, with a deeply scalloped LMB/RMB and an ambidextrous design. It is, we suppose, ambidextrous in that it’s a fairly neutral shape, but the buttons are resolutely on the left hand side. Sure southpaws are probably used to that, but most other ambidextrous designs have buttons on the right hand side too so they truly support left-handed users.

The optical sensor might not pump out some of the biggest numbers we’ve ever seen, but at £20 it’s not surprising to see something around this level. It is very good with smooth tracking and the DPI stages are nicely set apart. It’s a sensor far more pleasant to use than you might imagine. Those deep scallops on the left and right mouse button are a victim of the design on our review sample. No matter how careful we were are in use, no matter how gently we pressed the buttons, the area in front of the scroll wheel rubs together. It’s like the two buttons overlap. They don’t, but they’re so tight to each other and the plastic is so flexible that every click is met with both an audible click from the microswitch and a less pleasant click as the two buttons rub together. It’s not the end of the world as the Cerberus is so affordable that we would expect minor inconveniences such as this. It’s just disappointing to find a quality control issue from the usually bulletproof ASUS range.

In a world with the genuinely ambidextrous Cougar 250M for £20 or the brilliant CM Storm Xornet then it’s not easy to wholeheartedly recommend the ASUS Cerberus, but at this price point you’re always striking a balance between what you place the emphasis upon. If you can handle the buttons – which as we say is probably just a problem with our test model – then the Cerberus Gaming mouse is certainly good enough to take a close look at. The sensor is excellent, it’s comfortable to use and is a good all-rounder if you don’t exist solely to game. At this affordable price it’s an easy winner of our OC3D Value for Money Award.

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