NZXT Avatar Gaming Mouse

Looking at the side view of the Avatar mouse, it has a nice curved shape that fits well into the curve of your hand, though it is flatter than some mice on the market. There are two buttons of the left side and right side of the mouse, which, when combined with the two standard buttons, the wheel, and the two macro buttons, gives you a total of 7 buttons. The bottom of the mouse has 3 Teflon-coated mouse pads to provide smooth gliding.

Installing the mouse is straightforward; simply plug the mouse into a free USB port and install the special software that comes with it. Once the mouse is plugged in, the sides of the mouse and the sensitivity LEDs become illuminated, which I found to be a nice-looking feature. However, I did run into some software problems when I tried to install the software. Nevertheless, I preserved and was able to get the software installed.

The Avatar software allows you to customize your mouse such as programming the 7 buttons, adjusting the sensitivity, and setting the scroll wheel speed. But one thing I would have liked to been able to do would be to store different button configurations.

I tested out the mouse for a few days in both gaming and non-gaming situations, and in both cases the mouse performed great. The mouse glides smoothly and fits well in my hand, and the buttons are responsive and solid. While I found the scroll wheel to have a little too much friction, it does have obvious detents. When playing Quake 4 2, I found the multiple different DPI modes to be a handy feature. While it was pretty easy to tell what setting the mouse was in without having to look at the LEDs, I still found the different colors to be appealing. Also, while I still prefer a right-handed mouse over the ambidextrous design, I eventually got used to the feel and didn’t have any issues with it.

The NZXT Avatar Gaming Mouse delivers on all of its advertised claims that are geared toward taking your gaming skills to the next level. Its adjustable DPI setting, 7 programmable buttons, and attractive design make this mouse a definite competitor to other gaming mice made by Logitech, Razor, etc. Despite a couple of personal nits, overall I would recommend you consider it for your next gaming mouse purchase.

+ Multiple DPI settings

+ Great looks

+ 7 buttons

+ Responsive mouse

+ Ambidextrous design

Cons:

- Software not verified to work with Windows XP

- Can’t store different button configurations

- Scroll wheel is a little stiff at first