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I used to equate mouse quality with its weight, much like most electronic devices, because being too lightweight means that the device is typically missing core components or simply feels cheap and hollow. But ever since I got the Logitech Pro X Superlight, one of the best mice I’ve ever used, my mind’s changed indeed.
That’s why I was excited when BenQ offered their new Zowie U2 mouse for review. It’s been touted as a Superlight killer and used by many gaming professionals, so obviously I’ve got to try it out.
Build & Design
As a gaming mouse, naturally, the Zowie U2 is incredibly lightweight, even slightly lighter than the Superlight at 60g. Size-wise, it’s ever so slightly bigger than the Superlight with a higher arch and a broader rear section. That provides a little more palm support, so overall, it’s very comfortable to use.
Despite the lightness, the mouse is pretty sturdy, so it can certainly withstand quite rigorous use without getting badly damaged.
The Zowie U2 only comes in black, with a matte coating that provides excellent grip. However, it’s very fingerprint-prone, especially if you have sweaty palms like I do, so that’s one thing that I didn’t like much.
On the bottom, the U2’s mouse feet come smooth out of the box, with the option of extra mouse feet included in the box. The U2 didn’t glide quite as smoothly as the Superlight, to be honest, but I do appreciate the light resistance for more precise movements.
Speaking of speed, one thing I really liked about the Zowie U2 is the DPI buttons on the bottom of the mouse. That means it’s very easy to change the DPI quickly, unlike the Superlight, which requires downloading and logging into the Logitech Hub just to change the DPI.
Other than the DPI buttons, the Zowie U2 comes with the same side buttons as the Superlight, along with the standard left and right buttons and scroll wheel. The buttons are less clicky than the Superlight, but just as tactile. In this regard, I do prefer the U2’s quieter buttons.
The scroll wheel, though, is a little too rigid for my liking. Like the buttons, it’s also tactile, so you can feel every step as you scroll, but that comes at the cost of slower and less smooth scrolling speed. This is obviously a personal preference, just like the clicky buttons.
Performance
Equipped with a PMW 3395 sensor, the Zowie U2 delivers stable and accurate tracking performance. I’ve yet to experience sensor malfunctions or significant lag, which we’ll get to later.
The mouse offers up to 1000Hz polling rate (as inscribed on the bottom of the mouse). That’s the same as the Superlight, which is quite sufficient for my gaming and regular needs.
There are three ways to hook up the Zowie U2 to your PC: with the 2.4Ghz dongle, wired, or via ZOWIE’s enhanced receiver that also doubles as a charging dock. Unlike the Superlight, there’s no need to download any additional programs or drivers to use the mouse.
The enhanced wireless receiver is the star of the show here. It’s pretty unique and practical since you can just rest the mouse on the dock overnight and never need to worry about recharging it.
In that same vein, though, I have to say that the wireless enhanced receiver makes the U2 more suitable for a desktop PC or static gaming laptop with lots of ports, because despite claiming itself as a “wireless mouse”, you do still have to connect the Enhanced Receiver via a cable if you want to experience the low-latency “wireless” feature.
The enhanced receiver is also a slight pain in the fact that it’s an extra thing on your table that takes up space, albeit minimal. For a workspace that isn’t quite large enough in the first place, it’s not the best thing—though of course, it is pretty handy since I could just park the mouse at the receiver when not using and just let it charge. No more worrying about running out of battery at the most inconvenient times!
Battery
To be honest, it’s hard to run out of battery with the Zowie U2 mouse because of the enhanced receiver/charging dock. For the interest of reviewing, though, I tried using the mouse without the dock (connected using the 2.4Ghz dongle), and it lasted a good two weeks on that. During this period, I spent a good 20 hours on Sims 4 and played Overwatch every other night.
