Lenovo's refreshed ThinkPad E Series delivers even better performance

At IFA 2015, Lenovo refreshed its ThinkPad E Series laptops. Designed for small and medium businesses, Lenovo says that its 14- and 15.6-inch E series notebooks deliver performance at an affordable price, and the laptops now come with the latest processors from Intel and AMD along with optional extras such as a fingerprint scanner, Intel RealSense 3D cameras and ample ports.

These laptops feature up to a 10% increase in processing power and up to a 34% in the integrated graphics department compared to the previous generation models.

ThinkPad E460 and E560

The ThinkPad E460 comes with a 14-inch display, while the E560 is equipped with a 15.6-inch screen. Users can choose between an HD or FHD resolution panel on either display size.

The Intel-powered E460 and E560 can be configured with up to a Core i7 Skylake processor, optional AMD Radeon R7 graphics, a maximum of 16GB DDR3 RAM and up to 1TB hard drive. The laptops are rated to last for nine hours on a single charge.

Both laptops come with three USB 3.0 ports, single HDMI connection, OneLink and a 4-in-1 card reader. The larger E560 also comes with a VGA port for legacy connections and an optical disc drive.

The E460 measures 13.35 x 9.41 x 0.90 inches (339 x 239 x 22.9mm) and has a starting weight of 4.2 pounds (1.9kg). The larger E560 has a starting weight of 5.2 pounds and measures 14.84 x 10.03 x 1.07 inches (377 x 255 x 27.1mm).

ThinkPad E465 and E565

The ThinkPad E465 and E565 are similar to the E460 and E560, except that they run on AMD's processors. The 14-inch E465 tops out with an A10 processor, while the 15.6-inch E565 can be configured with up to an AMD FX processor. Users can configure these laptops with an optional AMD Radeon R5 for discrete graphics.

The AMD models have a maximum 6.5 hours rated battery life, and feature similar ports and design as the Intel-based counterparts.

Pricing and availability

The ThinkPad E460 starts at $549 (£357, AU$771) and the E465 starts at $449 (£291, AU$630). The 15.6-inch E560 starts at $549 and the E565 starts at $479 (£311, AU$672).

All laptop models will be available starting November.

• Read our review of the ThinkPad E550 and E555

September 01, 2015 at 11:01AM
Chuong Nguyen

Smaller version of New Nintendo 3DS is coming to the US

Reggie Fils-Aime was telling the truth, the smaller version of the New Nintendo 3DS will be heading to the US in the fall.

Bundled with Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer, the more petite version of Nintendo's new handheld will cost $220 and come with two interchangeable faceplates and one amiibo card - an NFC chip-equipped piece of paper that acts like Nintendo's line of plastic toys.

It's safe to assume that Nintendo will bring more faceplate designs, as well as more amiibo cards, to the US in the coming months and that this is just the first step in Nintendo's big holiday push.

The New Nintendo 3DS XL has been on sale here in the US for a few months alongside the standard 3DS, the 3DS XL and Nintendo 2DS, but until today the more manageable version of the New 3DS was only available in Japan, Europe and Australia.

Nintendo has yet to say if or when the console will be sold outside of the bundle or when more faceplates will be available however there's a very good chance that will happen before Dec. 1.

• Nintendo NX: A closer look at the mystery console

September 01, 2015 at 06:26AM
Nick Pino

Mac Tips: Pages for Mac: best tips

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Apple's Pages is a solid starting point for anyone looking to do a little writing or page layout, and while the program is pretty simple, it packs more of a punch than you might think. As evidence, we present the following 13 tips, which are sure to turn you into a word-processing pro.

1. Add a watermark to every page of a document

Just to set your levels of expectations for this tip, we haven't uncovered a way by which Pages can add a real watermark to your documents – that is, a design that becomes visible when you hold the paper up to a light. No, this just adds a light-colored graphic automatically to every page of a word processing document – perhaps a company logo or the word "Confidential."

Prepare your graphic, and if you're doing anything even remotely complex, the easiest way to do it is in a page layout document rather than a word processing document (even though you'll eventually use it in the latter). So, create a new document, choose the Blank template, and then immediately click File > Convert to Page Layout. Now prepare what you want in the watermark. It might just be the word "Draft" or a more involved design. Once you're done, select everything, group it (from the Arrange menu), and then copy and paste it into your word processing document.

When you do this, don't worry if all the text moves around. With the graphic still selected, click the Format button (top right of the document window), then make sure Stay on Page (not Move with Text) is selected, and drop the Text Wrap option down to None.

Get it to the right position and size (perhaps setting it to a jaunty angle), then tweak its opacity. For this you'll probably need to ungroup complex objects so the Style tab shows up to enable you to drag the opacity slider down. Immediately after, group everything again so you can't break your design by dragging something out of place. The last step is to select Arrange > Section Masters > Move Object to Section Master. Your watermark now appears on every page. If you need to tweak it afterwards, select Make Master Objects Selectable from the Arrange > Section Masters menu.

2. Make a letterhead appear on every page of a document

You can use a similar technique to add a company logo and address to every page of your correspondence, and one advantage of using the Section Master feature is that the page elements appear to be completely "burned-in" on the pages, and people can't move them around. You just have to omit the opacity tweak step from the watermark technique. It's easy to distribute a template and default to it when you're starting new documents, too – read on!

3. Export and import templates

Lots of what we'll show you in these tips is helpful in setting up standard, reusable templates so that you won't need to do the same work over and over again. Once you've set up your styles, letterheads, and so on, you can easily share the template with others just by selecting File > Save as Template. You'll be given the option of adding it to your Template Chooser – the gallery of options that pops up when you create a new document – or saving the file externally so you can share it with others. Your recipient should just double-click the ".template" file, and they'll be given the option of adding it to their own Template Chooser.

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4. Create media placeholders

If you frequently update images in a document – like, if you're a teacher with a lesson plan template, or a real estate agent creating listings sheets – you should use Media Placeholders. With these, you create drop zones on a page, onto which you can drag new images. Images are immediately scaled and cropped to the correct size and have any object styles applied to them. Set an image how you want it to look (with crops, borders, reflections, and so on), then choose Format > Advanced > Define as Media Placeholder. New images can be dropped onto this, and scaled and moved within it. Optionally, save as a template.

5. Set a default template

If all you ever use Pages for is standard word processing documents, you're probably sick of creating a new document and then having to pick Blank from the Template Chooser. Go to Pages' preferences and you can specify what template it should use when you press Command + N. This could be the Blank template, one of the more fancy ones, or your own custom template. But what if you then want a different template? Easy: just hold down Option after you've clicked the File menu, and you'll see that New changes to "New from Template Chooser…" Alternatively, press Option + Command + N.

6. Define capitalization

See that little cog in the Text pane of the Format sidebar, next to the buttons for Bold, Italic, and Underline? There's also an option for capitalization in there. Select some text and you can force it to uppercase, for example. Note that the mixed or lowercase text you typed is still stored behind the scenes, and Pages merely displays it in whatever style you chose for capitalization. This is especially handy with Styles. You might have a style for captions which is set to All Caps, but if you change your mind and change that option, then — so long as you wrote in mixed case to begin with — words such as "THIS" will automatically change back to "This."

7. Apply styles with a keyboard shortcut

You can apply styles quickly by pressing Function keys. In the sidebar, click the downward-pointing disclosure triangle next to the style name, then hover to the right of the style you want to associate with an F-key. Click the rightwards-pointing chevron that appears, and pick an F-key under Shortcut in the pop-out menu. On Macs that don't have dedicated F-keys, hold the fn key and tap the corresponding number key on the top row.

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8. Define (and tweak) text styles

Most of us tend not to bother with styles – collections of characteristics such as font, size, line spacing, and so on that govern, say, how a paragraph of text looks – but it's something worth getting your head around. Not only do styles make your documents look more consistent, but they make it easier to change your mind later on.

Let's say you define the subheading style as bold, 14pt tall, and colored red. With that style applied to all your subheadings, if later you decide that italic, 16pt, and blue text would look better, you just need to update the style once and all your subheadings will change without you having to go through your document and laboriously update each of them one by one.

Your Pages documents will have a range of styles already, and it's easy to tweak them to suit you. Type a headline, select it, then apply the Title style from the Format sidebar. Now change all the formatting options you want. As soon as you make any change, you'll see "Title" change to "Title*" in the list, indicating that the current text is based on the Title style but doesn't use it exactly. You'll also see an Update button. When you're done, click this, and the style is then redefined, and the appearance of any text with that style applied to it is updated to reflect your choices.

You can also add completely new styles. Format some text as you wish, then click the downward-facing disclosure triangle next to the style name, click the + symbol in the top right corner of the pop-up that appears, and give your new style a suitable name.

9. Cascading styles

If you always switch to your Body style after using a style you've created called Pullquote, for example, you can have Pages switch automatically for you.

While on a piece of text formatted with Pullquote, click More in the Format sidebar, and ensure Body is selected for the Following Paragraph Style option.

10. Configure live word and character count

It's not particularly obvious, but Pages does have live word count, which you can activate from the View menu or button. Once it's showing, you can click it to see other statistics about your text or selected text, and from that menu switch which stat is always visible. You can also drag the word count anywhere on the page, and it will snap to the horizontal center.

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11. Customize the toolbar

This often-forgotten trick works in lots of apps, but it can be especially useful in iWork to set up your workspace with the tools you use most often, and dispense with those you don't. Right-click the toolbar at the top of a Pages window and choose"Customize Toolbar." Drag features you use often onto the toolbar, drag out those you don't, and rearrange and group the buttons using spaces and flexible spaces.

12. Adjust spacing between characters

Professional designers frequently tweak the spacing between characters, especially in headlines and titles, in order to D O E F F E C T S L I K E T H I S or to tighten things up. Although you don't have fine-grained kerning control between two characters in Pages, you can tweak the spacing for a word or more from the cog menu next to the Bold, Italic, Underline buttons in the Format sidebar.

13. Create custom bullet points

You probably know that Pages' controls for bulleted and numbered lists are rich with options, but unless you've really dug into them you may not realize quite how much flexibility they give you. One of their best tricks is the ability to use anything you like as a bullet point for each level of bullets. If you choose to use Text Bullets, you can replace the "•" with any character you can type – including emoji! Just hold Control + Command and press the spacebar, and browse or search in the Characters palette. Alternatively, switch to Image Bullets and you can use any graphic stored on your Mac – a small element of a company logo, perhaps?

September 01, 2015 at 05:47AM
Christopher Phin

Samsung Gear S2 smartwatch goes official with rotating bezel, Tizen OS

After teasing it a couple of weeks ago, Samsung finally spilled the beans on the hotly anticipated Gear S2 smartwatch. The high-end Tizen OS wearable device with rotating bezel will be on display during IFA in Berlin in two different variants - Gear S2 and Gear S2 classic. The sportier Samsung Gear S2 will be available with dark gray case with black silicon band, or silver case with white silicon band. The classic model on the other hand, will feature a black case and matching leather band. Specs-wise, Samsung Gear S2 features 1GHz dual-core CPU, 512MB of RAM, and 4GB of internal memory. The display of the smartwatch is a 1.2" fully circular Super AMOLED unit with a resolution of 360 x 360 pixels and 302ppi. Connectivity options for the smartwatch include Wi-Fi: 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.1, and NFC. A variant with 3G network connectivity and e-SIM will also be available. Physical measures of Samsung Gear S2 are 42.3 × 49.8 × 11.4mm, while its weight tips the scale at 47 grams. The classic model is a tad more elegant with measures of 39.9 × 43.6 × 11.4mm and a weight of 42 grams. A 250mAh battery will power both devices - it is rated to last for 2-3 days of regular usage. The 3G variant of the smartwatch will pack a larger 300mAh battery, which will last for two days of regular use. The measures of this particular variant are 44.0 x 51.8 x 13.4mm, while its weight comes in at 51 grams. Source...

In Depth: PAX 2015: Our favorite trailers

Verizon's LG G Vista is now receiving Android 5.1.1 Lollipop

In a bit of rather surprising news, Verizon has announced it will soon be rolling out the update to Android 5.1.1 Lollipop for the LG G Vista. If that name doesn't sound very familiar, that's understandable. After all, this is a mid-range phablet launched last year with Android 4.4 KitKat, and we assume not many people would have bet on it ever getting a big software update. Not only is it on track to receive just that, but the G Vista is amazingly skipping Android 5.0 entirely and jumping from KitKat straight to the latest publicly available version of Google's mobile OS. The official update documentation is now up on Verizon's website (see the Source link below), and the rollout should follow shortly. The new software version is VS88023A, and it brings with it plenty of changes. The software-rendered Android buttons have a new design, lock screen notifications show up, and Smart Lock uses trusted devices to auto-unlock your phone. The controversial Interruptions feature of Android Lollipop makes an appearance too, and you should expect to see Material Design everywhere. Screen Pinning lets you lock the display to a single app, Settings are now searchable, bad Wi-Fi connections can be avoided through a dedicated setting, and some unnamed security patches are in as well. Source (PDF) |...

Microsoft unveils new Xbox One Elite Bundle, white wireless controller

Microsoft has announced the new Xbox One Elite Bundle today. This will pair a matte finish for the console with a 1TB hybrid drive as well as the Xbox One Elite wireless controller. This isn't the first time we've seen an Xbox with a 1TB drive, but this iteration is the first to make that a hybrid unit - which stores frequently accessed files on a solid state partition. Thus, waking up from energy-saving mode is going to be 20% faster. On the other hand, the Elite wireless controller comes with hair trigger locks, interchangeable paddles, fully customizable features, as well as a "high-performance construction". The Xbox One Elite Bundle will be out worldwide in November for $499.99. In the US it will be exclusive to GameStop and Microsoft Stores throughout November, and pre-orders are already live. The new Xbox One Special Edition Lunar White wireless controller includes all of the features of the updated standard wireless controller, but it's white. With a touch of gold. It's also apparently got "improved grip texture for more control and comfort". GameStop will be exclusively selling this accessory starting in late September. It will cost...

Samsung Galaxy Grand On and Mega On seen entering India for testing

Earlier this month we got hold of some information saying Samsung is working on yet another series of smartphones - Galaxy O. This was apparently going to make its debut with two handsets, which later got revealed to be called Galaxy Grand On and Galaxy Mega On. We've already seen their most important specs leaked, along with their respective model numbers: the Galaxy Grand On is supposed to be the SM-G550, while the Mega On should be the SM-G600. These two models have now been spotted in an Indian import database, which also confirms their rumored screen sizes. The Galaxy Grand On will thus sport a 5-inch touchscreen, while the the Galaxy Mega On will come with a 5.5-inch display panel. This is everything that's been revealed this time around, but it's good to have another confirmation that these aren't just a figment of someone's imagination. And since the rumored screen sizes have been confirmed, perhaps the rest of the previously outed specs will turn out to be real as well. That said, there's still no telling when we'll see the two O-series devices in stores. Source (in...

Uncharted 4 release date gets mapped out along with a collector's edition

For all its wins at this year's E3, Sony missed a key opportunity to reveal a key detail on its biggest game of the year, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End. The game suffered a major delay earlier this year when gamers were told that they might need to wait an extra year for UC4 to hit store shelves.

Thankfully, we won't have to wait that long. Nearly two months later, however, Sony finally has a lock on Naughty Dog's next big title and has officially announced March 18, 2016 as the game's release date.

To make amends for the delay, Naughty Dog has announced both a special edition of the game, which includes a steelbook case, art book and in-game currency, as well as the gargantuan Uncharted 4: A Thief's End Libertalia Collector's Edition.

The latter includes everything listed above plus more in-game skins, weapons and a 12-inch statue of Drake himself. It's a regular El Dorado of Uncharted tchotchkes.

Uncharted 4: A Thief's End is due out on March 18, 2016, exclusively on PS4.

• Ten million gamers can't be wrong: The PS4 is the future of gaming

September 01, 2015 at 03:28AM
Nick Pino

Android Wear watches other than the LG Watch Urbane do in fact work with iPhones

Well, this is interesting. Just a few short hours ago, Google announced the Android Wear app for iOS, making it possible for smartwatches using its platform to connect to Apple's smartphones. There was just one problem: for now, Google says, only the LG Watch Urbane will actually work with the Android Wear iOS app. All future Wear devices should have support for iOS built-in, but what about all the other smartwatches out there? It obviously didn't take long for enterprising individuals to try and connect other Android Wear watches to the iOS app. And, surprise! Both the Moto 360 and the LG G Watch have been caught working with iPhones, despite Google's claims. The one prerequisite for this to be possible seems to be that your smartwatch run Android Wear 1.3, the latest version that started rolling out not long ago. However, there are some caveats. Although Wear devices other than the Watch Urbane do work with iOS, the performance isn't consistent, nor bug-free. Duplicate notifications have been spotted on the Moto 360, and some of those simply refuse to clear from the watch. Also, changing watch faces from within the Android Wear iOS app doesn't seem to always work. Clearly then, there are solid reasons why Google chose not to officially announce support for all Wear devices on iOS right now. But if you own both a Wear smartwatch and an iPhone, you may as well try the new app and see how it behaves for you. On the other hand, if you don't have a smartwatch but do have an iPhone and want an Android Wear device, you clearly should stick with either the officially supported LG Watch Urbane or wait for new offerings to come out. Source 1 • Source...

Oppo R7 Plus FC Barcelona Edition may arrive on September 8

Oppo became an official partner of FC Barcelona back in June, and now it seems like the Chinese smartphone maker is preparing a special edition device to celebrate its status. The image you can see to the left has been published on the company's official Weibo account. It unveils the fact that there's going to be an event on September 8, and this clearly has something to do with FC Barcelona given the players seen in the picture. Chinese publications are speculating that this is going to be the occasion on which Oppo will introduce a new smartphone, the R7 Plus FC Barcelona Edition. It's supposedly going to match the 'vanilla' R7 Plus in terms of hardware, but will feature the football club's logo on its back, along with some other FC Barcelona-themed additions. For one, the system theme shipping with the handset will be all about the Catalan club, as will the packaging and the accessories coming with the phone. Pricing hasn't been rumored yet, nor a release date or any hints about geographic availability. It might however be safe to assume that the R7 Plus FC Barcelona Edition won't be confined to China, since the football club has incredible brand recognition across the world. And it would be odd for Oppo not to try and capitalize on that. Source (in Chinese) |...

Updated: Buying guide: Best gaming mouse: top 10 gaming mice reviewed

Best gaming mouse rundown

PC gamers have never had it so good. The e-sports scene is enjoying unprecedented popularity, with plenty of (not entirely frivolous) talk about how gaming should be added to the Olympics roster.

Whether you fancy becoming the next League of Legends or Call of Duty superstar, or something more sedate, like leading a vicarious virtual life in an MMO or RPG, one thing is for sure: you will be at an instant disadvantage if you skimp on your choice of mouse.

And there's no excuse for that if you've lashed out eye-watering sums on an overclocked, water-cooled rig festooned with neon lights, or a top-of-the-range gaming laptop.

How to choose the best gaming mouse

Your choice of mouse depends very much on your gaming preferences: if you're into first-person shooters, say, finding the right balance of sensitivity and responsiveness is vital, so you'll need to pay attention to DPI ratings and decide between optical or laser sensors (fear not – leave the technical stuff to us). Whereas if you're into real-time strategy, MMOs or MOBAs, it's vital to pick a mouse that lets you map macros triggering the actions you use most to specially configured buttons.

So, we've picked the 10 best gaming mice: whatever your gaming preferences or needs, one of these will complete your ultimate PC or Mac gaming setup.

1. Roccat Nyth

The most customizable mouse, bar none

DPI: 1200 | Features: Custom button layout, Mid-finger fin switch, AlienFX Illumination, 3D printing support, 2x hotswappable sidegrips

See more Roccat Nyth deals

Highly customisable

Contoured body

Can't change length

Roccat's Nyth is one of the more innovative mice in recent times. Clicking a button pops out its 12 side buttons, which you can then re-configure in any order you like - giving you a potential 36 side button combinations. Mapping is done using Roccat's Swarm driver, which lets you create custom button configurations and map buttons to programs. That makes it suitable for not just MMOs, but a whole range of genres - from FPS to MOBA titles. If you've got a 3D printer, you can even 3D print your own buttons for it.

Read the full review: Roccat Nyth

2. Cougar 550M

Feels and looks more expensive than it costs

DPI: 6400 | Features: Braided cable, Omron Micro Switches, Gaming-grade scroll wheel, Programmable trigger buttons, Anti-slip flanks, Premium pro-graming surface, 1000-Hz polling rate/1ms response time

See more Cougar 550M deals

Satisfying clicking action

Smooth scroll wheel

Not suitable for small hands

If you prefer your mice to be a little more restrained when it comes to design, the Cougat 550M does the job with minimal fuss. Packing a responsive, gaming-grade optical sensor that can track up to 6400DPI, a grippy scroll wheel and an on-the-fly DPI button, the 550M has enough features for the average gamer. Its two-zone RGB lighting is illuminating without being overbearing, and can be controlled using the Cougar UIX software. Its textured grip lends it a solid grip, but the mouse itself may be slightly large for small hands.

3. Razer DeathAdder Chroma

Sports a classic design and has an insane DPI

DPI: 10,000 | Interface: USB Wired | Buttons: 5 | Ergonomic: Yes | Features: Textured rubber side grips, Chroma lighting, 1000Hz Ultrapolling, On-the-fly sensitivity adjustment, Always-on mode

See more Razer DeathAdder Chroma deals

High DPI

Grips well

Pedestrian design

No macro buttons

Many pro gamers swear by Razer's PC peripherals, and the Death Adder Chroma mouse is one of the most popular gaming mice around. There's nothing too flash about it (except for the ability to make various bits of it glow in different colours), but it feels right in the hand, is light, the rubber side-grips come in handy at frenzied moments, its optical sensor is tried-and-tested and it goes up to an insane 10,000DPI (probably too sensitive for mere mortals, but it's there if you need it). MMO fans may be slightly disappointed by a less-than-generous allocation of macro buttons, though. But in the world of gaming mice, it's considered something of a design classic.

Read the full review: Razer DeathAdder Chroma

4. Roccat Kone XTD

A true button-basher

DPI: 8200 | Interface: Wired | Buttons: 8 | Feature: Ergonmic design, 1000Hz polling rate, 1ms response time, 12000fps, 10.8megapixel, 30G acceleration, 16-bit data channel, 1-5mm Lift off distance, 72MHz Turbo Core V2 32-bit Arm based MCU, 576kB onboard memory, Zero angle snapping/prediction

See more Roccat Kone XTD deals

Plenty of buttons

Fast response time

Software bit gimmicky

With a clever easy-shift system that effectively doubles the number of its buttons, Roccat's Kone XTD scores particularly highly with those who crave macros at their fingertips. But it's a great all-rounder which is built to last, with easily adjustable sensitivity and a rugged wheel. With a 32-bit processor and ability to analyse your mouse-pad and automatically set lift-distance, it might just be the most high-tech mouse on the market. Plus it looks and feels spot-on. Some of the software may be a tad gimmicky, but it provides all the customisability any serious MMO, MOBA or RTS gamer could desire, and can hold its own on the first-person shooter scene.

5. Turtle Beach Grip 500

Laser-guided

DPI: 8200 | Interface: Wired | Buttons: 7 (plus scroll wheel) | Feature: Avago 9800 laser sensor, Omron switches, Customizable software to program buttons, Independently adjust X and Y DPI, Create up to 50 macros with up to 100 commands each, 16.8 million colour effects, Non-slip, soft-touch coating

See more Turtle Beach Grip 500 deals

Lift-distance control

Independent X and Y axis DPI

Lacks right-edge buttons

Turtle Beach is best known for its gaming headsets, but the Grip 500 suggests it's ready to muscle its way into the gaming mouse market. It's competitively priced, but a decent all-rounder, with 8,200DPI sensitivity for the first-person shooter brigade, and the ability to load several different macro setups into its own memory, which you can switch between on the fly with the help of colour-coded LEDs. With a maximum of 45 macros possible, it's ideal for those who favour MMOs and MOBAs. And aesthetically, it's a bit more discreet than some of its rivals.

6. Mad Catz R.A.T.M

Small rodent

DPI: 6400 | Interface: Wireless | Buttons: 12 (10 programmable) | Feature: GameSmart Multi-platform, USB Nano Dongle, Bluetooth, 1 year from 2 AAA batteries, Adjust grip in 0-15mm in 5mm increments, dang

See more Mad Catz R.A.T.M deals

Built-in Bluetooth

Adjustable grip

Fits better in smaller hands

Finding the right mouse is a perennial problem for gamers who prefer laptops to PCs, but Mad Catz's R.A.T.M has been specifically designed to solve that conundrum. As is typical for laptop-specific mice, it's tiny (which could prove problematic for the giant-handed), but at least it's size-adjustable, and packs surprisingly decent specifications for such a tiny package, with 6,400DPI sensitivity and a clever four-way button that can run five macros. And it's wireless – with a built-in Bluetooth dongle so it works even if your laptop doesn't have native Bluetooth. Worth considering for those who place portability at a premium, but like to play MMOs and MOBAs.

7. SteelSeries Sensei

A shot in the (32-bit) ARM

DPI: 6400 | Interface: Wireless | Buttons: 12 (10 programmable) | Features: Customisable lift distance, Button functionality and CPI, Ilumination, Macros, SteelSeries Engine, 32-bit ARM CPU, 1 - 5,700 CPI, 10.8-MP HD image correlation at up to 12,000 FPS, Tracking movements of up to 150 inches per second

See more SteelSeries Sensei deals

Handy 8 macro buttons

Customisable "lift distance"

Bland design

SteelSeries peripherals have a huge following among the professional gaming community, and many pros swear by the Sensei. With 11,400DPI sensitivity and a handy eight macro buttons, it comfortably straddles the first-person shooter/MMO/MOBA divide. Meanwhile, underneath its deceptively conventional looks, it's precision-engineered for all the precision and sensitivity you could desire. And it even lets you customise its "lift distance" – so whatever surface you use it on, you can get it performing perfectly. We can't vouch for your general level of talent, but the SteelSeries Sensei will at least put you on a par with the pros in terms of equipment.

8. Logitech G602

Battery warrior

DPI: 2500 | Interface: Wireless | Buttons: 2 | Features: 250 - 2,500 DPI, 20G max acceleration, Max speed 6.6ft/second, 250-hour battery life, 9.8ft wireless range, In-game sensitivity switching, Performance mode, Logitech Gaming Software

See more Logitech G602 deals

Long battery life

Low DPI

SteelSeries peripherals have a huge following among the professional gaming community, and many pros swear by the Sensei. With 11,400DPI sensitivity and a handy eight macro buttons, it comfortably straddles the first-person shooter/MMO/MOBA divide. Meanwhile, underneath its deceptively conventional looks, it's precision-engineered for all the precision and sensitivity you could desire. And it even lets you customise its "lift distance" – so whatever surface you use it on, you can get it performing perfectly. We can't vouch for your general level of talent, but the SteelSeries Sensei will at least put you on a par with the pros in terms of equipment.

9. SteelSeries Sensei [RAW]

White hot metal

DPI: 62155 | Interface: Wired | Buttons: 8 | Features: Advanced macros, Scalable pointer speed from 90 to 5670 in increments of 90, 10.8-Megapixel HD image correlation at up to 12,000 FPS, Tracking movements of up to 150 inches per second, White illumination, UPE material

See more SteelSeries Sensei [RAW] deals

Long battery life

Scalable pointer speed

Low DPI

The Sensei [RAW] is a cut-down, and considerably cheaper, version of the classic Sensei, which keeps all the Sensei's most important attributes, but does away with some more exotic features – notably the 32-bit ARM processor and the LCD display. In terms of all its mechanical bits, though, it's the same as the Sensei. So you get that tournament-honed feel and precision (and it's available in a nice rubberised finish, too). Worth considering if you're pretty sure that you don't possess the raw talent to make it to the very top of the online gaming world, and happen to be a tad impecunious – yet still want a mouse that handles impeccably.

10. Logitech G502 Proteus Core

Tunable gaming mouse

DPI: 200 - 12,000 | Interface: Wired | Buttons: 11 | Features: Control weight and balance, Comes with five 3.6g weights, 11 programmable buttons, In-game DPI shifting, Dual mode mouse wheel, 32-bit microcontroller, 3 on-board profiles, 1 millisecond report rate, Mechanical microswitches, Rubber grips

See more Logitech G502 Proteus Core deals

In-game DPI shifting

Adjustable weight and grip

No right-hand buttons

If you like a bit of weight in the hand, as it were, Logitech's bombastically named G502 Proteus Core is undoubtedly the mouse for you. That's because its weight is customisable: it comes with five weights that you can add and reposition (making it nose-heavy, say) to your heart's content. Beyond that, its specification is sufficiently tasty for it to have made inroads into the pro-gaming community, with 12,000DPI sensitivity (adjustable on the fly) and 11 programmable macro buttons. And even its wheel can be adjusted between clicking and scrolling. A top-notch all-rounder.

September 01, 2015 at 01:15AM
Steve Boxer