[section_title title=”Performance and Testing”]
Performance and Testing
Underneath the magnesium alloy hood of the ASUS ROG Spatha, there is some serious hardware that deserves a mention before we delve into putting it through its paces. After carefully removing the outer shell courtesy of the small thumb screwdriver which ASUS included in its ROG branded accessories bag, we were greeted with a host of innards. In the centre, we have a yellow labelled 1000mAh 3.7v rechargeable battery, which is then surrounded by the Omron switches and of course the Alps encoder.
The ASUS ROG Spatha uses a Pixart ADNS 9800 sensor which is usually only present in the best gaming mice of recent times, something which of course should be a large contributing factor in the mouse’s actual performance testing.
Gaming Performance
With the Spatha being primarily aimed at MMO and MOBA gamers (World of Warcraft, League of Legends, DOTA 2 etc.), I figured that a slightly different approach was needed; I am a big League of Legends gamer so this mouse appeals to me on so many levels, at least on paper. So my games of choice to test out the Spatha?
- League of Legends
- Battlefield 4
- Counter Strike: Global Offensive
Starting with a MOBA (Massively Online Battle Arena), League of Legends isn’t just one of my most played games of all time, but it’s currently one of my top too; if not the top one on my list currently. So what’s the Spatha like for this? Well it’s an absolutely solid option for MOBAs; much like the Razer Naga, but much better, much much better! Not that I’m knocking Razer (quite the opposite) as I actually owned a Naga for quite an age when I played World of Warcraft, but the Spatha has something the Naga just doesn’t compete with; style AND substance. From the Omron switches, all the way to the feel of the magnesium alloy shell in my hand, everything just felt… great!
With a strong emphasis on being able to use the Spatha wireless or wired, either/ or works absolutely perfectly. One thing I do need to touch on is the weight and size of the Spatha; it certainly isn’t small and it certainly isn’t light, weighing in at around 175g when used wirelessly. If you aren’t a fan of the larger gaming mice, then the Spatha probably isn’t going to tickle your fancy, but for those who actually use the buttons when gaming, or use key bindings in games like League of Legends, then the Spatha is a huge contender which should definitely be considered.
On to more testing, this time with Battlefield 4, it did take quite a bit of getting used to over my main FPS daily driver; the QPAD 8K. Aside from getting used to it, I really don’t feel the Spatha is, nor should be for the primarily FPS focused gamer in my humble opinion. That isn’t to say you won’t like it or it’s a bad mouse for FPS, but it’s not designed for it and the sheer size made it pretty hard for me to do serious sniping with. This was the exact same scenario for me when playing competitively in Counter Strike: Global Offensive too!
One thing I will mention, it’s most definitely one of the comfiest mice I have used and in my current inventory of regularly used gaming mice (3 in total), it is certainly making me consider using it especially for League of Legends and World of Warcraft; if and when I re-subscribe depending on how the new expansion plays out in the coming months.
General Usage
Click here, click there, it’s a pretty simple concept in everyday computing; something the Spatha is equally good for. One main thing here though is comfort, the Spatha is one of the most comfortable mice I have ever laid my hands on (literally).That’s a very strong selling point for me, especially considering how much of my actual life is sat spent using one! The 2 buttons next to the left mouse button are very useful when it comes to web browsing as they default as backwards and forwards buttons. Just don’t get like me and become infuriated when you accidentally click one in the middle of a post on social media; it can be a tedious thing to happen!
Overall, the ASUS ROG Spatha performs like a true champion, but if everything was based on one particular area as opposed to the “whole” package, it wouldn’t be much of a review would it! Move on over to the next page and let’s see what the big deal is with this eagerly long awaited gaming mouse…
