SteelSeries launches mouse with 32-bit ARM processor

SteelSeries will launch its latest gaming peripheral at GamesCom next week, but rather than harp on about over 9,000dpi sensor technology, it’s the processor that sits behind the sensor that takes the headlines. The new Sensei mouse will use a 32-bit ARM processor, which sounds overkill for a pointing device.

SteelSeries says that the Sensei is ‘the most customisable mouse to ever hit the competitive gaming industry’, which is quite the claim given the array of customisation that a modern gaming mouse benefits from.

Furthermore, the Sensei’s ‘32 bit ARM processor allows for the advanced SteelSeries ExactTech calculations to be done directly on the mouse and allows for easy configurations via its LCD screen.’ This isn’t the first SteelSeries mouse to have on-board customisation via an LCD – the SteelSeries Ikari had a basic example back in 2008.

Unfortunately, we haven’t seen an image of the Sensei’s screen, so can’t comment on how big or detailed it is. It has got a big logo light toward the rear of the upper shell though, which is nice. The wheel and the sensitivity indicator also light up.

SteelSeries says the lighting supports 16.8 million colours, so you can tweak your mouse to match your clan’s colour scheme. The Sensei is also said to have ‘an ambidextrous design with a metal, non-slip grip coating’ that’s comfortable no matter your grip style, and eight buttons.

Bruce Hawver, CEO of SteelSeries, says ‘The Sensei is really the culmination of thousands of hours of research and testing with competitive players that combines a distinctive aesthetic design with the access to superior functionality for all levels of players.’

This ‘superior functionality’ includes a sensitivity range of 1-5,700cpi (SteelSeries doesn’t believe in dpi, preferring Counts Per Inch rather than Dots Per Inch as a measurement), with a Double CPI feature that increases the range to 11,400cpi – this is recommended for multiple monitor use. It also has the ExactSens, ExactAccel and ExactAim customisation options of SteelSeries’ ExactTech technology. The laser sensor ‘boasts 10.8 megapixel image correlation at up to 12,000 frames per second and the ability to handle tracking movements of up to 150 inches per second.’

The SteelSeries Sensei will be available in September for around $90 or €90, no UK pricing has been confirmed.

Do like the look of the new mouse, or do you not like ambidextrous mice or millions of features? Let us know in the forum.

Check our GamesCom 2011 news hub for all the information from Cologne this year.