Cooler Master Storm Sentinel Advance Gaming Mouse Review

Packaging and Accessories

Ok let’s get something out of the way and then move onto the actual box itself: ninety nine times out of hundred we hate plastic windowed boxes. This is a personal preference that this reviewer has developed over 2 decades of buying, building and using kit and I have literally lost count of the number of times there has been “issues” with a product that was easily traced back to those god awfully protection-less windows. They just don’t provide the protection we would want when shipping an item over vast distances.

Does this mean that we dislike this windowed box? Surprisingly, we love it. The reason for this is mice, unlike many peripherals, really need to be seen and handled before you know if you are going to like it. Everybody’s hands are different and the fact of the matter is every mouse manufacturer trades off size versus ergonomics versus price and builds their unit to fit as many people as possible. On the surface this would mean that they build for the mythical “average human” but the key to understanding things is the fact that the hand placement for a World of Warcraft gamer is probably different from that of a hard-core FPS player. As such, the amount of time and effort companies spend on R&D for their high-end peripherals is astronomical. What this means is that they want you to know the feel of their mouse before you buy it and as such, a form-fitting plastic sleeve is the perfect packaging medium.


This is where this jumbo sized window comes in handy as not every computer store has demonstration models set up. With a simple grope and squeeze of this box’s window you instantly know what the mouse will feel like in your hand. Absolutely perfect.


When you do open this box up there really are no surprises as the mouse and its cardboard backing is on full display beforehand; however with that being said this is one striking looking mouse.


The accessory list which accompanies the Sentinel is surprising full and packed with interesting tidbits. As expected you get the typical mini-CD with the software but this is pretty much par for the course with gaming mice these days.

The real standout is the anti-theft device that is included. On first glance we thought this little accessory was an odd looking wire holder used for shortening the cord length and keeping things neat and tidy. We suppose you could use the anti-theft device for just that purpose but we wouldn’t do it since it’s made of heavy metal and more importantly is shaped like an oddly cut PCI cover plate.

Yes, much like the Storm Guard seen in their Sniper series of cases, Cooler Master has made it so this anti-theft device installs within a free PCI- bracket on the back of your case. You then braid the mouse cord through the device’s openings and it will be firmly locked into place. This is perfect for anyone who regularly attends LANs where high-end gaming accessories tend to go “missing” if left unattended for too long. All in all, it is very cool and intriguing idea and we were impressed with Cooler Master’s forethought and we can't believe that no one thought of this before.