To sum up this HyperX Pulsefire Haste review: this mid-range gaming mouse is minimalist, honeycombed and lightweight. It's also one of the best gaming mice you can buy today in 2022.
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The HyperX Pulsefire Haste is a fairly basic gaming mouse. Everything it says it can do, it does it very well. It doesn’t have all the extravagant features of a top-tier mouse, but considering its price, it has just about everything you need. The holey design does make me worry about crumbs, though.
HyperX Pulsefire Haste Review: Design and Setup
If we’re talking about how the HyperX Pulsefire Haste looks, well, it looks like a lightweight gaming mouse. I don’t mean for that to sound dismissive, but if you’ve used these before then you’ll recognise the same design principles. It’s small and light and has that honeycomb design that allows manufacturers to shave precious grams from the chassis.
It’s a compact mouse that measures 124.2mm x 38.2mm 66.8mm (LxHxW), with a weight of just 59g – 80g if you include the 1.8m hyperflex cable. That actually puts it among the best ultra-light gaming mice, and there aren’t a host of good options that are lighter. Certainly not in the price range.
Outside of the stand front two buttons, you’ll find two on the left-hand side of this right-handed mouse, as well as the illuminated roller wheel in the centre and a smaller button above that which can toggle the DPI. All of these can be reconfigured to your heart's content by downloading the HyperX Ngenuity software.
Indeed you can also customise the colour of the lights, as well as having several effects options (solid, cycle & breathings) for how you’d like it to display. That wheel is the only colour you’ll find on this all-black mouse, it’s nice and understated but if you’re into something a bit more flashy then you’re out of luck.
It’s a decent looking mouse and after applying the grip-tape that comes with it, it takes on a rugged air. I do worry about that honeycomb though as there’s no mesh or anything to catch debris. If you’re a desk eater like me then that’s a little concerning no matter how dust-proof the triggers are.
HyperX Pulsefire Haste Review: Performance and Features
The Pulsefire Haste feels comfortable to use, and even after hours with it in play I haven’t noticed it heating up at all. I found it to be incredibly responsive, and particularly good for more active games, where you’re scrolling a lot or trying no to be shot in the head – which is where ultra-light mice tend to shine. This is aided by the ‘pure virgin-grade PTFE skates’ on the bottom, which provide a frictionless glide.
The PAW 335 sensor at the heart of this mouse isn’t the highest spec, but it’s only the ultra-obsessive gamers that are going to notice. For people like myself, with no ambitions of joining a professional e-sports team, the Pulsefire Haste’s max DPI (dots per linear inch) of 16000 is plenty. To be honest, I’m quite happy much lower than that.
The Ngenuity software I mentioned earlier is fairly basic, you can configure your DPI settings, augment the lights to match the rest of your gaming setup and reconfigure the buttons. You can also create your own presets which can be switched in and out. I did some experimenting setting up a config to use as a rudimentary video controller which worked quite well.
It’s very hard to fault the HyperX Pulsefire Haste’s performance, more expensive mice will have a more responsive sensor, more buttons and deeper configuration options than Ngenuity’s admittedly basic offering but the Pulsefire Haste delivers on pretty much every promise it makes you.
HyperX Pulsefire Haste Review: Price and Verdict
The HyperX Pulsefire Haste is a great mid-range, ultra-light gaming mouse. It’s one of the more expensive mice in that price range, at around £49.99/$49.99, but I think it’s probably worth it. It does everything you really want it to, very well.
I’ve used this mouse to do a bit of everything, playing massive fiddly grand strategies like Stellaris, terrorising Night City in Cyberpunk and more basic clicking around the internet. It even helped me to half build a website. It might not be the pro gamer’s choice but I’ve had a blast.
If you’re the sort of person that needs a gaming mouse that can light up the room like a 1980’s rave, this isn’t for you. If you absolutely have to have the highest DPI, then sidestep it. But if you can forgive a basic design and a less expensive sensor then the HyperX Pulsefire Haste is a quality purchase.
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