Steelseries Rival 700 Elite Performance Gaming Mouse Review

My first impression of the Rival 700 Gaming Mouse is hard to describe.  It looks great and it just fits.  I have a pretty normal hand size often called medium and it felt nearly perfect right out of the box.  That’s proper research and engineering targeted at the most common size on the market.  It feels just like the Logitech G502 and slightly smaller than my favorite Roccat Kone XTD and is a bit heavier than both at ~135g.

The two primary buttons are manufactured out of reinforced plastic reach almost to the middle of the mouse distributing the force evenly making both fingertip and claw styles possible.  Each button is rated to 30 million clicks and branded as SteelSeries switches.  The Scroll wheel is a bit small and offers a slight but noticeable tactile click.

Removing the back rubber name plate provides a simple way to remove the back cover. Both can be completely customized thanks to SteelSeries releasing 3D printer designs for both.  Many companies promise 3D support but SteelSeries already offers the files for download!  I liked the patterned back plate but can easily see different colors and textures dialing things in for even the most picky gamer. SteelSeries even offers additional styles on their website without gouging you.

Most of the really fun stuff is located on the left surface.  Two oversized thumb buttons are located just below the top and are comfortable and easy to reach.  A third button is forward and can be reached with a bit of a stretch for me.  The longer buttons make the shifted grip easier than most implementations but it is still a bit awkward.  In the very front is the much anticipated OLED screen. 

Patience, more on that in a minute!

Two textured double-injected rubber grips provide a solid foundation that should work for even the sweatiest grip. The two odd looking orange dots in the left grip surface are designed to help center your grip much like the bumps on your F and J buttons for Qwerty typists.  Yes I did have to search that!

Upending the Rival 700 provides a view of the top rated Pixart 3360 optical gaming sensor.  This is the same optical sensor most Pros swear by! Two cables are provided with proprietary connectors to power the mouse.  One is about 6feet long and in the traditional braided sleeve; the other is about three feet long and not sleeved.  This provides options for both laptop and traditional builds.  Both cables come with the gold connectors we have come to expect in a high end mouse

Don’t like the Pixart 3360 Optical sensor? First of all, what’s wrong with you?  Fine, you can order a top Pixart 980 Laser gaming sensor directly from SteelSeries and swap.  I do have to admit this seems to future proof your purchase as well.  A hot new sensor comes out?  SteelSeries can offer it as a swap.