Xtrfy M4 RGB Ultra-light Gaming Mouse (Hardware)
Official GBAtemp Review
Product Information:
- Official Store: https://xtrfy.com/mice/m4/
Are you looking for a lightweight gaming mouse, with tasteful RGB lights and excellent performance? Perhaps the Xtrfy M4 can be that little something for you. As a well-known brand in the e-sports world, they won't skip out on quality for gimmicks, especially with their reputation on the line. Let's see what this mouse has to offer!
Tech Specs
Weight: 69 grams (excluding cable)
Mouse dimensions: 120 x 68 x 39 mm (at the largest points)
Mouse lifespan (L/R Switches): OMRON, 20 million clicks
Buttons: 5 + 2 settings buttons
Mouse Tracking Speed: 400 ips
Mouse Polling Rate: 125 / 500 / 1000 Hz
CPI: 400 / 800 / 1200 / 1600 / 3200 / 4000 / 7200 / 16000
Sensor: Optical Pixart 3389
Connection: USB, Wired (1.8m Xtrfy EZcord)
So, how is it?
This is an eye-catching mouse. While not the only one, there aren’t many mice out there with this kind of design: full of holes. The purpose of this design is to make the mouse lighter and to reduce fatigue over extended gaming sessions, but it also feels cooler to use, letting some air circulate under the palm of your hand. Even though it has all these holes, it feels really sturdy and solid. It creaks a little bit when squeezing the mouse, though that’s not something that I do during normal use--only for testing purposes. The holes also expose the components inside, so what about dust and liquid spills? The plastic is thankfully coated to resist those accidents, and if you do need to get rid of dust, you can blow small particles away with canned air or a vacuum.
The mouse is designed to feel ergonomic and easy to use, and it sure is. I have not felt tired using it at all, and it fits my somewhat large hands really well. There are no extreme design choices, only very slight asymmetries so it feels like a regular gaming mouse and not an ergonomic office mouse.
Equipped with PTFE feet, the mouse glides beautifully across your desk. But with a light mouse like this, there’s a risk that the cord interferes and is in the way - but the silky smooth, and light weaved cable doesn’t pose any trouble for your gaming. I’ve tested this mouse for several months, and have never run into the cord hindering my movements, nor getting stuck on anything on my desk. If you are worried about the cord getting stuck on any of your equipment, there are cord holders and cord bungees that can help you out (not included).
Just like every other gaming accessory out there, this mouse has RGB lights - however, it’s not the whole thing that glows, but a fun strip that runs along half of the mouse that you can customise in many different ways, giving it a more unique look. Customising the lights is easy and plays into the lightweight nature of the mouse. It’s pure plug-and-play. No external drivers or software required, the mouse itself controls the light as well as the CPI settings and polling rate. At first, it might be a little bit awkward to configure the light using the buttons on the mouse: cycle between effects by clicking the small middle button, hold that button down and adjust the brightness with the forward and backward buttons (thumb buttons). Hold the middle button and press the left mouse button to cycle between speed options, and the right button to cycle between colours. But this becomes very easy to play around with in a short while, however, if you are like me, you’ll find your favourite and stick with it for a long time.
I have 3 favourite settings: The first is where the strip lights up in different colours on the right or left side depending on which button you press. Another one is a quick and constant cycle of rainbow colours, and one is completely turned off - something that I appreciate if I play something really dark in a dark room, eliminating any distracting lights.
The polling rate is customisable on the bottom of the mouse, by setting a 3-way switch to your desired option. The CPI setting is set by pressing a button on the bottom of the mouse, cycling through the set values - and you’ll know which value you select by the colour of a light and referencing the manual. This might be bothersome when you start out, but once you find your preferred setting, you won’t have to bother with it again. I know that “green” is my favourite, and can go to that option without thinking about what the actual numbers are in case the settings are lost. This is not optimal if you are one of those who like to adjust the CPI on the fly in a game, when using sniper rifles for example. Since the button only goes one way, you would have to lift up the mouse, turn it upside-down, press the button to whichever setting you want, play with that, then do the same when you want to go back. Since the button has a one way cycle it will be even more troublesome and, let’s face it, won’t work at all if that’s your play style.
In the beautifully designed box, you’ll get the mouse, some stickers, an extra set of PTFE feet, a handy manual, and two custom Xtrfy keycaps for a mechanical keyboard. Always fun with some extra goodies!
The mouse comes in 5 different colour variations. Pictured below are two of them: the black one and my personal favourite, the retro with different shades of grey and red details, giving it a taste of Commodore 64 and NES. There are also pink, white and blue options.
There are a few things to keep in mind: The scroll wheel doesn’t tilt left and right, a feature I never used personally but might be a deal-breaker for some people. There is no thumb scroll, something I was missing at the start of using the mouse (I’ve used it as a volume control for the past 15 years) but quickly got used to not having it. The third and biggest thing to note is that it’s designed for right-handed users. It’s not impossible to use with your left hand, since the ergonomic design isn’t that extreme as other mice on the market, but it’s not optimal.
Verdict
- Designed in Sweden
- Tasteful RGB effects
- Lightweight
- Durable
- Comfortable
- Affordable
- No software
- No thumb wheel
- No tilting scroll wheel
- CPI switch placement for some users
