SteelSeries Xai Laser Gaming Mouse Review Comment Thread

[SKYMTL]

Gaming mice are usually known as feature rich yet slightly tacky looking peripherals which sometimes cost a small fortune. SteelSeries' attitude towards this niche is slightly different since they offer the same features as their competitors' products but do so without resorting to designs that stick out like a sore thumb. Their newest Xai laser mouse...

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[JMCD]

The design reminds me of my old microsoft optical mouse, definitely the most comfortable mouse I've ever used. This looks very appealing.

[Supergrover]

I have had my eye on this mouse since my CM mouse started dieing about 2 weeks ago. Definitely like the shape. Be picking one up next time I see one an a decent sale.

[shayan288]

I have had this mouse for around 4 months so far ever since my Ikari broke. I must say, I am enjoying this mouse much more than I enjoyed my Ikari. The plain feel to it is just perfect.

[Narsil]

I would SO love to try this mouse for my upcoming Sandy Bridge build, but..... for me, there are 2 huge knocks against it.
Firstly, the 'Net is full of reports of this mouse causing very long boot-times. SteelSeries themselves admit this in their FAQ's. The solution? Go pester your mobo manufacturer to update their BIOS. Hmmm, sounds abit "backwards" to me. The mobo I am getting (Asus P8P67Pro) definitely has this problem. Asus' solution is to have owners unplug the mouse every time the PC boots, let the OS load, then plug in the mouse. Very,very strange... ( And frankly unacceptable to me.)

The second issue is that it seems that mouse Acceleration simply cannot be fully turned OFF. (Despite having a setting in the software of "0" for this.) TBH, I've never personally tried mouse Acceleration, but from what I've seen & read about it, I don't think it's for me. If at all possible, it should be an option that can be disabled.

If there is ever newer firmware released which addresses these 2 concerns, I'd be the first in line to buy it! But it doesn't sound like that is likely, so my search for a great mouse continues, I suppose.
Thanks for the review !