Corsair Sabre RGB Pro Wireless Champion Series gaming mouse review: Less RGB, more freedom

(Pocket-lint) - Corsair has added different rodent to its line-up of Champion Series products: the Sabre RGB Pro Wireless. After we tested retired the fantabulous wired Sabre RGB Pro, we're pleased to spot a wireless mentation of this mouse. 

Naturally, being that it's wireless, this summation to the Sabre Pro line-up is simply a tad heavier than its wired brother. It besides doesn't person the insane 8,000Hz polling rate, truthful mightiness not beryllium arsenic appealing to those looking for an Nvidia Reflex latency analyser compatible mouse. But if you inactive privation a large wireless rodent that's feature-rich, comfy and agile, past this mightiness beryllium it. 

• Best gaming mice: The champion wired, wireless and RGB gaming mice to bargain today

Comfortable ergonomics

• 2.4GHz Slipstream wireless, Bluetooth 4.2 + LE and USB-C connection
• 90 hours artillery implicit Bluetooth, 60 hours implicit Slipstream wireless
• Lightweight 79g frame
• 100% PTFE feet

The archetypal happening that strikes astir the Corsair Sabre RGB Pro wireless is its comfy signifier and size. This rodent was designed and tested successful collaboration with apical eSports players to effect successful a rodent that ticked each the close boxes successful presumption of shape, show and comfortableness and it shows. If you person larger hands oregon simply admit a rodent that pushes up nicely into your thenar and conscionable fits comfortably past you'll bask the wireless Sabre. 

At 79g it's not the lightest rodent we've tried. The SteelSeries Prime is 10g lighter for example, arsenic is the wireless Aerox 3. But value isn't everything and there's plentifulness much to similar astir the intelligent ergonomic plan of the Sabre Pro wireless. We thoroughly bask the ample broadside buttons, for example, which are casual to entree and arsenic casual to press. They're besides nicely differentiated with a tiny spread truthful you cognize which 1 you're pressing without looking. 

On top, the Sabre RGB Pro wireless has a DPI button, but that's nicely recessed truthful you don't accidentally swap DPI levels erstwhile you don't mean to. That fastener besides has an indicator to springiness you a colour-coded ocular cue truthful you cognize what DPI level you're connected which is nifty. 

Another tiny item we thoroughly bask is the wide finish. It doesn't person immoderate textured side-grips oregon rubberised zones, but what it does person is an ever-so-slightly unsmooth matte finish. This is particularly noticeable connected the near and close buttons and gives you a pleasant grip that doesn't slip. 

Naturally, there's a batch to beryllium said for wireless state excessively but much connected that successful a bit. 

Pro-level specs successful a wireless mouse

• Corsair Marksman sensor, 26,000 max DPI (in 5 stages, positive sniper mode)
• Quick strike, zero-gap buttons with Omron switches 
• 1,000/2,000Hz polling rate
• 650 IPS, 50G acceleration

As you mightiness expect from a rodent that's labelled "pro" and portion of a "Champion Series", the Sabre RGB Pro Wireless offers immoderate decent specs - including a nifty 650 IPS (inches per second) and 50G acceleration - truthful determination the rodent accelerated and it'll correspond connected surface - and a frankly insane 26,000 max DPI - meaning it's ace sensitive.

When plugged successful with the braided USB-C-to-USB-A cablegram you tin alteration settings successful the iCue bundle that see switching to 2,000Hz polling complaint (the fig of times per 2nd the rodent 'talks' to your PC) for a faster effect and besides make and prevention up to 5 profiles to the onboard memory.  

Where the Corsair Sabre RGB Pro Wireless shines done is successful the hardware nether the hood. This rodent packs Corsair's Marksman optical sensor that was crafted successful conjunction with PixArt to guarantee a precocious level of accuracy.

It besides has alleged Quickstrike buttons which are pre-tensioned and designed with zero-gap betwixt the fastener and the Omron power that sits underneath. This results successful a crisp and responsive fastener click and astir instant actuation - important for a large gaming session. We besides recovered this rodent to person 1 of the astir satisfying click responses we've felt. 

Wireless vs wired

There's evidently a batch to beryllium said for wireless freedom, particularly if you person a low-latency connection. This rodent has that with a sub-1ms transportation utilizing Corsair's Slipstream wireless dongle. Yes, you person the prime of Bluetooth connectivity too, but if you're gaming past it's the 2.4Ghz transportation that volition springiness you the champion results.  

The underside of the rodent has a fastener to power betwixt the antithetic modes, arsenic good arsenic a small lodging to store the tiny dongle erstwhile it's not successful use. So nary request to fret astir losing it. 

Plugging successful the USB cablegram does much than simply complaint the rodent though. When wired you tin take the higher 2,000Hz polling complaint and tweak settings to store successful the mouse's onboard memory. Corsair claims that this rodent tin negociate 60 hours of artillery beingness successful wireless mode - assuming you person the RGB lighting turned off. Which surely isn't a fig to beryllium sniffed at. We're blessed to study that we hardly had to plug it successful for a complaint during our gaming sessions either. 

Talking of RGB, the Sabre Pro Wireless is marketed arsenic having 2 RGB lighting zones. Those areas crook retired to beryllium conscionable the Corsair logo and the teeny weeny DPI indicator. So you're not truly getting overmuch glow retired of this mouse. There were much lighting zones connected the wired Sabre Pro, truthful the wireless mentation isn't rather arsenic snazzy, but we presume this is done connected intent to maximise artillery beingness and minimise weight. 

Software tweaks

As with different Corsair products, the Sabre RGB Pro Wireless is customisable successful Corsair iCue. This includes everything from lighting effects to cardinal assignments and everything successful between. 

There are six programmable buttons connected this rodent (the seventh fastener is underneath and lone controls illustration switching). Those buttons tin beryllium tweaked to enactment each sorts of things from antithetic fastener clicks to macros, keystrokes, media controls and more. You tin adjacent adhd actions for Voice Mod if that's your benignant of thing. So you tin click a fastener and alteration your dependable to entertain your audience. 

There are besides settings for DPI levels wherever you tin take 5 antithetic levels to power betwixt - and a sniper mode too, which lets you take a circumstantial fastener to press-and-hold to driblet into a impermanent ultra-low DPI for close aiming. 

iCue besides lets you calibrate the rodent to immoderate aboveground with a fewer spirals of your rodent truthful you tin beryllium definite it's behaving arsenic it should connected your mousepad oregon table pad. All these settings tin of people beryllium tweaked, past added to a circumstantial illustration which you tin past power betwixt connected the alert utilizing the fastener connected the underside. 

Writing by Adrian Willings. Editing by Mike Lowe. Originally published connected 9 October 2021.