Gamers are always looking for gear that will give them an edge over the competition. Keyboards and gaming mice are some of the most readily available items out there, and there are a ton of potential options. The UTechSmart Venus MMO Gaming Mouse has a lot of options and features that gamers can appreciate. See how those features work, and what makes this a Techaeris Top Pick in our full review.
Specifications
The UTechSmart Venus MMO Gaming Mouse has the following specifications and features
- Up to 16400 DPI
- 12000 FPS
- 1000 Hz polling rate
- 30G acceleration
- 100-150in/s cursor speed
- Avago sensor
- Omron micro switches
- 18 programmable buttons
- 5 memory profiles
- 8-piece weight tuning set (2.4g x8)
- Over 16 million LED color options
- Durable smooth TEFLON feet pads
- Contour body for ultimate gaming control.
- Ergonomic Right Handed Design
- 6ft braided-fiber cable with gold-plated USB connector
- Special Setting Switch Button
What’s in the Box
- 1 x UtechSmart Venus MMO Gaming mouse
- 1 x CD Driver
- 1 x Weight Tuning Cartridge
- 1 x Quick Start Guide
- 1 x Backup Durable Smooth TEFLON feet pads (pair)
Design
When you first take the Venus MMO Gaming Mouse out of its packaging, your eyes will almost certainly be drawn first to the numbered programmable keys on the left hand side of the mouse. The buttons are a departure from most mice you’ll see, with four rows of three buttons for a total of twelve. The buttons are angled slightly, with two “valleys” between the 1-3/4-6 and 7-9/10-12 buttons. These valleys allow you to better orient what buttons you are pressing without having to look. A small thumb rest resides just below these buttons, providing a means of keeping your thumb up and off of your desk.
The top of the mouse includes your standard left and right mouse buttons as well as your scroll wheel. Near the back, you’ll find the UTechSmart “S” logo, which doubles as an LED light. Towards the middle you’ll see two more buttons and a series of 4 LEDs, which we’ll discuss in much greater detail in later sections. Just to the left of the left mouse button is an additional programmable fire button. The right side of the mouse has a dedicated ring finger rest, which also helps support your pinky, keeping everything up and out of the way.
Around the front there are a series of chevron-shaped openings for front LED lighting. The six foot braided USB cable attaches on the front of the device as well. The gold-plated USB connector has a very sturdy feel to it, with a couple inches of plastic above the USB plug to add to the durability.
The bottom of the mouse includes the mouse optics as you would expect. The bottom also includes a profile switch button, which will also be discussed in greater detail in later sections. The bottom also features a pair of durable Teflon feet pads that keep the mouse sliding smoothly.
Near the back of the bottom of the mouse is a circular port used for the adjustable weight/balance options. By default, all of the weights are inside of the mouse. If you’d like to remove some weight or change the balance you’ll need to turn the cover to unlock it, and then you’ll probably want to turn the mouse over to allow the weights to slide out. The weights are attached to the circular cover, so straight out is the best way to remove them.
The mouse is constructed out of plastic, but the majority of the area where your hand touches is coated in a slightly rubberized plastic, which provides excellent grip. The ergonomics of the mouse are also fantastic. The left and right mouse buttons are slightly concave, and really cradle your fingers nicely. I was honestly very impressed with how comfortable the Venus MMO Gaming Mouse was to hold and use.
Software
With all of those buttons, you’re going to want to be able to customize their functions, and you are able to do just that. The mouse itself comes with a mini CD including the installation software for the mouse, or you can download the software from the UTechSmart website if you’d prefer. Once installed, the software is pretty easy to get around.
There are five available memory profiles that you can adjust and adapt to certain games or programs. In each of those profiles you can set each of the buttons on the mouse to do a nearly endless number of things. Each button can be bound to a key, a combination of keys, or even a macro to help you get the most out of each button press. You’ll also assign each profile its own LED color, which you’ll want to actually do if you intend on switching profiles frequently.
When you save your changes in the software, all profile information is sent to the mouse. You can then switch between profiles at any time using the profile switch button on the bottom of the mouse. Your only indication of what profile is selected will be the LED color displayed, so it is definitely a good idea to pick some different colors for each profile.
Not only are you able to configure each button for five different profiles at a time, you can also adjust the pointer speed and acceleration, scroll speed, double click speed, polling rate, and even tweak the four DPI settings to your liking. The software has plenty of options to tailor just about everything on the mouse to your best use-case.
Ease of Use
The UTechSmart Venus MMO Gaming Mouse is incredibly comfortable to use. The ergonomics are nearly perfect even for larger hands. Your index and middle fingers are cradled nicely by the indentations on the mouse buttons. The ring-finger rest on the right side of the mouse helps keep your ring and pinky fingers comfortable, while the thumb rest just underneath the 12 programmable buttons offers a nice spot for your thumb, keeping it up and off of your desk or mousepad.
The slightly rubberized top coating provides excellent grip without making your hand uncomfortable or sweaty. It is really just a very pleasant tactile experience in your hand. The weighting system allows you to find the exact feel and weight that you want. By default, all eight 2.4g weights will be inside of the mouse. You can remove any or all of them to arrive at the weight you prefer, or remove select weights to achieve a different balance if so inclined.
Performance
Just a bit of a housekeeping item, since every single button on this mouse can be customized or changed: for any performance discussion, any buttons I refer to will be discussed as though they are in their default settings, unless otherwise indicated.
If you’ve not used a high DPI mouse in the past, the experience can be a bit overwhelming as 16,400 DPI is honestly pretty ludicrous. If you even twitch, your cursor is all the way across the screen. While I don’t doubt there are some who thrive using this high setting, for the rest of us, the DPI is mercifully adjustable. The top two buttons that reside under your palm handle the DPI switches, with four LEDs to show which setting you are on. No lights represents the lowest DPI setting, while all four lights represent the craziness discussed a few sentences ago. For the most part I stuck with one, or on occasion two lights if I was feeling saucy.
All of the standard mouse buttons work exactly as you would anticipate. The left and right button as well as the scroll wheel all work flawlessly. The action of the buttons are powered by Omron Micro switches. The customizable side buttons are not mechanical, but they still provide good feedback. I have bigger hands, and I did have some problems reaching all twelve of the programmable side buttons during normal operation, and the 10, 11, and 12 buttons were just a bit uncomfortable for me to reach during fast-paced gameplay.
By default, the side buttons are set to the numbers 1 thru 12, however as mentioned above you can change those to nearly anything you could want. With five profiles available at any one time, and the ability to save and load profiles as needed, you should be able to set up profiles for games you are playing and programs that you’re using in configurations that will be helpful.
For example, the default side buttons work perfectly for games like Minecraft or Stardew Valley, where inventory slots are assigned to the number keys anyway. The other game I’ve spent the most time on lately is Overwatch. For my Overwatch profile I set the 1 – 3 keys as Left Shift, E, and Q respectively. For anyone not playing, those three buttons control your special abilities in the game. I set 4 as “R” for reload, and 5 for “T” which tags your assigned spray. Last but not least, the programmable fire button mutes or unmutes my microphone. You can still obviously use any of those keys on the keyboard if you’d prefer, but using the buttons on the mouse keeps your left hand on WASD where it should be.
You can tailor your profiles to nearly any game or program that you want. You can set buttons to work with Photoshop keyboard shortcuts, or map Excel functions, etc. As I mentioned in the software section above, you can easily switch between five set profiles at a time using a button on the bottom of the mouse. Say you’re using your Photoshop profile and want to start playing some Overwatch, just press the button until you get to the appropriate profile. The color you assigned in the software will show you which profile you are using.
I’ve said it a few times already, but the Venus MMO Gaming Mouse is really very comfortable in your hand too. Movement is very fluid with the Teflon feet pads, and the sensor is very accurate for anything you’re working on. You should be able to work or play for hours without any issue at all as far as comfort is concerned.
Price/Value
You can get the UTechSmart Venus MMO Gaming Mouse for just under $40 on Amazon. At that price this mouse in an absolute steal. It’s incredibly comfortable to hold and use and the weight/balance options will provide enough settings for most people. The software provides a ton of customization options with enough buttons to do nearly anything you might want.
Wrap Up
With a ton of buttons, nearly infinite customization options, and an exceptionally comfortable design, it’s pretty easy to see what makes this a Techaeris Top Pick. UTechSmart might not be a household name, but the Venus MMO Gaming Mouse should be on your radar if you’re a gamer in need of a gaming mouse.
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Last Updated on February 20, 2020.
