Cooler Master MasterMouse MM520 and MM530 Review

As the mice are £35 and feature a rather impressive sensor, we were not expecting a huge deal in terms of software. Cooler Master isn't new to this game though and it seems that it gives customers that little bit extra. Now, the Cooler Master software for these mice is a little bit clunky, but overall it is fine and more importantly, it works.

This is the main control screen. Here you can rebind the buttons on your mouse to do pretty much anything you like. You can assign browser controls, media keys, shortcuts, macros and more. You can also assign multiple profiles and use your own images to ensure you recognise them. The images need to be 384 x 100 pixels, if they are not, they are stretched like our bit-tech logo. 

One other button you can assign is the TactiX button. This button allows you to use one of the buttons similar to a Shift key. So, if we now press button 6 as well as button 11, we would change the LED profile. It basically doubles the number of functions that the mouse has, so it really is quite clever. 

Recording a macro is rather easy too. Simply press start, choose what delay options you would like, then record the macro. Even after you have recorded the macro you can edit the delays and delete keys, so you have full control.

Multiple profiles can be imported/exported and transferred between computers which is always handy. The lighting options are not the most intuitive, but you are able to change the colours nicely and there are plenty of lighting modes. This isn't really high up on our important features, but we know a lot of you do like the RGB lights. 

There are plenty of options to fine-tune the mouse, such as being able to set multiple DPI levels, changing angle snapping and lift-off distance. There is also a mouse pad calibration tool which features some rather dodgy English. 

The final screen allows you to change OS sensitivity and double-click speeds as well as changing button respond times. You may have noticed that we went through all of the software using the MasterMouse MM530 but the software is exactly the same for the MM520, with the only difference is that you have one less button to play with.

Conclusion

I received the specifications for these mice long before I actually received the hardware, so on paper I thought that they looked fantastic. A PMW-3360 along with two different shapes to appeal to a wide audience as well as a full software suite for £35? Yes please! More to the point, Cooler Master has delivered. For the price point, they are fantastic. 

Comfort is always personal preference and your experiences may differ to mine, but I had no problems with either mouse for any grip style. Both mice were comfortable with all grips, except the MM530 suited palm grip better and the MM520 suited the claw and fingertip grip better. This is simply down to the shape and width of the mice though.

In terms of performance, both mice performed very well and acted as you would expect with a PMW-3360 sensor. The 12,000 DPI is way more than most people will need, especially at any competitive level, but it is there if you do need it. The 1-to-1 movement wasn't really noticeable to me over any other high-end mouse, but knowing that the movement I make with my mouse is exactly what is input is a very nice idea which is being adopted by other companies such as SteelSeries. 

The software does feel a little bit clunky, but quite honestly, it works and that is the main thing. It doesn't look the prettiest, but in terms of functionality, there isn't anything missing. The RGB lighting features and options could be a little bit better, but again, this isn't really a priority. There are a few small English mistakes throughout the software also, but these are easily fixed.

Overall, you are getting two mice that perform very well for £35 each. Most mice are at least £15 more for a similar spec and both the MasterMouse MM520 and MM530 have more features. Cooler Master has done a fantastic job with these mice and if you want a gaming mouse that is rich with features and doesn't cost the earth, make sure you check out both of these options.

We are going to give both of these mice our Exceptional Award. There are very few mice at this price point that would be able to compete with them, so it only seems right.