i-Rocks Gaming Peripherals Review

As all three of i-Rocks' Rock-series peripherals turned up at the same time, having recently hit etailers' shelves, rather than spread reviews around we thought we'd look at all of them in a single roundup. They're certainly likely to appeal to those on a budget too; the most expensive is the A05 gaming headset, which retails for £30, while the K10 keyboard and M09 mouse are even more wallet-friendly at £22 and £12 respectively.

Despite these low prices, the M09 mouse features on-the-fly DPI adjustment and adjustable USB polling rate, the A05 headset sports large, plush cushioning and 40mm drivers, while the K10 keyboard offers a different type of POM tactile key switches - not a membrane, plus 30-key anti-ghosting too. All are reviewed over the next three pages, starting with the M09 mouse and you can head over the page to see the K10 keyboard review and to the final page to see the A05 headset review.

i-Rocks M09 Gaming Mouse Review

Manufacturer: i-Rocks
UK price (as reviewed): £12.36 (inc VAT)
US price (as reviewed): N/A at time of writing

At just £12, this is quite possibly the cheapest mouse we've ever reviewed. The M09 could be considered off limits as a result for anyone that's bought a sub £20 mouse and regretted it but thankfully you can continue reading without hearing a familiar story.


Aside from its Thundercats-esque logo, the M09 is actually a remarkably sturdy mouse. It's relatively small compared to the likes of a Mionix Naos or Logitech G5xx series for example, but is still comfortable and supportive. Its moulded buttons allow it to fit snugly in your hand, although if you prefer a full-support palm grip style mouse then you may find it doesn't quite offer the volume you need.


Incredibly, despite the low price tag there's a 1.8m braided cable and illuminated scroll wheel too. The wheel itself was fairly responsive, but has a sturdy clunk-clunk to the rotation. It's not cheap-feeling but lacks the smoothness of other mice we've tried. The underside is equipped with twin tri-position sliders - one for switching between 125, 500 and 1,000Hz USB polling rates and the other for 500, 1,000 and 1,750 DPI settings.


Having these underneath the mouse is likely necessitated by the mouse's relatively small size, although we've seen a few others this size that have included top-side adjustment, at least for the DPI setting. The USB polling rate is likely something you'd set and forget but being able to quickly toggle between DPI is a popular feature and we're not sure having this on the base of the mouse is particularly useful unless you literally spend the whole game in sniper mode, for example. If you regularly switch sensitivity in-game then top-side buttons are going to be much less hassle.

There are side buttons too - worth mentioning as we've seen several cheap gaming mice negate these in the past. They're well-placed, of good size and are pleasant to use too. Ergonomically, the M09 is easily on par with mice costing twice the price.


Conclusion

At just £12, the M09 is an absolute bargain. If you've toyed with the idea of buying an extra mouse for laptop gaming sessions or just want a backup then there's very little not to like. Externally we have no complaints and you even get USB poll rate and DPI switches too. There's no software to speak of, though, but if the DPI buttons were on the top of the mouse, this would have bettered many sub £30 mouse we've used.

As it stands, it's likely not quite slick enough for an every-day gaming mouse if you're used to premium models. However, if the thought of spending more than £20 on a mouse seems absurd and you're not too fussed about instant access to DPI buttons then the M09 is worth every penny.