Corsair Scimitar RGB Elite review

If you're an MMO enthusiast, then a five-button mouse may not be enough to handle the dozens of macros you'll use to slay elder gods and stomp hostile players.

The Corsair Scimitar RGB Elite has you covered. At $80 dollars, it's a great choice for anyone looking to free up some binds on their keyboard. And while the Scimitar RGB Elite is specifically designed for MMO and MOBA players, it's also surprisingly serviceable as an FPS mouse.

If you don't mind the lack of plug-and-play and if you enjoy fine-tuning your binds, then you'll find the Scimitar RGB Elite to be an excellent mouse, with lots of customization, comfort and accuracy.

Design

The Scimitar RGB Elite is big and heavy. At 6.9 x 4.5 x 3.1 inches and 9.6 ounces, this mouse is for palm grippers and arm aimers.

The mouse's smooth surface is made of rubber, with Corsair's fully rigged ship logo on the bottom. At the front is a textured scroll wheel with two DPI buttons below it. On the right is a textured cutaway for resting either the pinky or ring finger.

The side keypad on the left side features 12 programmable buttons, providing the mouse with 17 programmable buttons overall. For the visually inclined, the RGB lighting appears on the scroll wheel, bottom palm logo and the side keypad. Coloring schemes are adjusted through Corsair's iCUE software.

Features

Among MMO mice, the Scimitar RGB Elite has a pretty standard feature set. There are 17 programmable buttons, and the sensor supports up to 18,000 DPI (but the vast majority of people will play at under 1,500). The mouse also has a polling rate of up to 1,000 Hz (you'll probably land somewhere between 500 to 1,000) and a 1.8-meter braided-fiber cable. 

The 12-button side keypad is where this mouse really shines. The second and fourth rows of buttons are textured to allow for easy identification and defense against embarrassing fat-finger mishaps. The keypad itself can be moved forward or backward with an included key slider.

However, your mileage may vary on iCUE, Corsair's software and driver platform. The Scimitar RGB Elite isn't a plug-and-play device, so that fancy side keypad I just praised is a dead weight unless you download iCUE and program all the commands yourself. Hardcore hobbyists will find a lot to love in iCUE for the customization it offers, but the software could also be a hassle for gamers who just want a solid gaming mouse and aren't interested in the minutiae of tweaking the light scheme.

Performance

I've been using the nimble Logitech G Pro Gaming and thus haven't palm-gripped in years, so I was surprised at how natural the Scimitar felt in my hand.

I was worried about the layout of the side keypad, which looked small and too crowded. But in practice, the adjustable placement and alternating textured rows made for easy navigation. I play a druid on World of Warcraft, a class known for having a notoriously large ability pool. Thanks to the intuitive side keypad, I was able to heal my teammates in caster form, transform into cat form to dash to safety, then snap back into caster form again to send out a battle rez, all without having to stretch my fingers over the keyboard.

But despite being designed specifically for MMOs and MOBAs, the Scimitar was also a surprisingly serviceable FPS mouse.

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Aiming with my arm on this mouse was a breeze. Even wrist aiming felt precise and smooth. The finger rest and tapered end on the right side allowed my wrist and the bottom part of my palm to rest on the mouse pad, giving me the grounding I needed to make fine motor movements. By tracking targets with my arm and sniping with my wrist, I could easily pop heads in Overwatch and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

Bottom Line

The Corsair Scimitar RGB Elite is a fantastic choice for gamers who want to take their MMO gaming to the next level. At $80, it's priced competitively with other mice in its class, with the added benefit of the adjustable side keypad.

However, Scimitar's reliance on iCUE could be a turnoff for some. Gamers looking for a great MMO mouse that works right out of the box should consider the Razer Naga Trinity.

If you're looking for a high-performance MMO mouse that has a design that still shreds and that you can use for the occasional FPS session, then you can't go wrong with the Corsair Scimitar RGB Elite.