SteelSeries Rival 5

Jack of all trades, master of none

- DAVE ALCOCK

IT ISN’T ANY SECRET that we really do enjoy using SteelSeries products. Its hardware often checks all the relevant boxes, and it’s very rare that the company launches a complete dud, so when we saw the Rival 5, we had to grab one.

The Rival 5 is marketed as being inspired by a chameleon for being able to meet the needs of many, and being versatile as it does so, but how well does it hit the mark?

The shape of the mouse is pretty solid—it is similar to the Logitech G900 but with a less bulbous rear, making it fit comfortably in your hand, especially with a palm or claw grip. Eight out of the nine programmable buttons are easily accessible, even with smaller hands; however, the large silver sniper-style thumb button is quite far forward, and those without large hands will struggle to reach it.

The paddle takes some getting accustomed to, as well, but once you’ve used it for a few days, it’s quite intuitive. We used it for voice comms more than anything; paddle up for TeamSpeak and down for Discord. Great if you use different comms while gaming. The sensor is fantastic, too, and didn’t skip a beat during our testing. It tracked decently, had an impressive lift-off distance, and didn’t stutter or struggle with any of our usual surfaces. To our knowledge, the sensor is based on the PixArt PAW3335, a low-power sensor, usually reserved for wireless mice. It’s capable enough, and would only be outdone by something like a PMW3389 or similar. It’s certainly more than enough for a mouse at this price point. The switches feel fine; they’re not the best of the best, but unless you’ve tried hundreds of mice, you wouldn’t notice.