Logitech G502 Proteus Core Review

When it comes to gaming, there’s no device that people are more particular about than their mouse. After all, while skill matters quite a bit, the mouse is the be-all, end-all when it comes to how a player performs.

UPDATE: Logitech has reached out to clarify any potential issues with the G502’s scroll wheel.

"That mode is intended for scrolling the web, and isn’t really designed for gameplay. The other mode gives you click to click precision, which is best used for gaming."

Original: One of the biggest design flaws, and one that really leaves a sour note with this reviewer is the scroll wheel. The wheel is a heavy piece of metal that has two modes, restricted and free roll. The restricted mode still allows the user to scroll without the annoying crank action, but there is some resistance to it. The free roll allows the scroll wheel to spin for as long as it wants to make for super-fast scrolling. You can switch easily between the two modes with a simple click of a switch on the top of the mouse.

While it sounds like a good idea, the heavy metal wheel wobbles greatly during the free roll mode which causes risk of damage.

As usual with all of the G-series products, the G502’s macros and performance can be adjusted with the Logitech Gaming Software.

Performance:

The mouse is as responsive as you’d like a wired mouse to be. However, where this mouse shines is its ability to be adjusted in terms of overall weight as well as surface tuning.

The mouse is shipped with five 3.6g weights that users can easily install to the bottom of the mouse to adjust its center of gravity and overall weight. This was something that came in handy more often than expected. As switching the mouse’s weight based on the game and need makes quite the difference.

The mouse can also be adjusted to work better depending on the surface it’s being used on. Whether it’s a cloth mouse pad or you are resting it on a desk, the Proteus Core can be tuned to perform and respond better on every type of playing surface. This was another performance feature that helps separate it from the other mice available on the market.

The game also has DPI tuning that has an incredible range from 200 to a ridiculous 12,000. This type of sensitivity customization ensures that response and accuracy will never be an issue.

While the mouse has plenty of good in terms of performance, there is some bad. And most of it centers around the heavy metal scroll wheel.

When in free roll mode, the wheel can become a burden when trying to play a game. Because of not having the mechanic to stop itself until it’s all spun out, the wheel will require you to lift a finger off the other buttons in order to stop.

You may ask yourself why you don’t just let it spin. Well, say you’re playing a game like League of Legends. If you accidentally hit the wheel and just let it spin, then there is a pretty strong chance that you will watch the screen scroll to the bottom of the map.

Another big issue comes with the fact that when the wheel is spinning in free roll, the mouse has an extra bit of weight that can impact speed and sensitivity. The difference in movement when the wheel is spinning compared to when it’s not is small, but highly noticeable in the right situations.

It basically leaves on of the “key functions” of the mouse useless when playing a game which is never something you want to see on a gaming device.

Verdict:

The Logitech G502 Proteus Core is a mouse that is built around a number of awesome concepts. Most of which work out to near perfection. However, as mentioned countless times, the oddly-weighted and designed scroll wheel stops this device from being as great as it could be.

Still, for the price of just $79.99 and the high-end sensor that is installed in the mouse, the G502 is one that most gamers should definitely check out.