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You may be wondering why we revised the Logitech G502 in 2018. The reasoning is good: this mouse is so good that Logitech kept it for years, and the improved Logitech G502-just like the wireless model, the Logitech G502 Lightspeed-gave us a new reason to go back. The classic design of the mouse is still the re, but with a new sensor to make it compete with the best game mice on the market. This is our Logitech G502 Hero Review.
Some will love the design, but its sharp, angular appearance makes it a strange appearance outside of game scenarios. It’s also built around many more buttons than the typical mouse, so not all grip types will be comfortable. But for those who like the design, the re’s almost nothing not to like.
Logitech G502 Hero Review: Design
If you are familiar with the previous iteration of the G502, don’t expect to see much change on the outside. It is still the dark, moody, angular, Batmobile-like mouse that it has always been. It looks weird in an office environment but fits perfectly in a gaming battle station. The construction combines matte black plastic for the primary buttons and handles and places glossy plastic between the aesthetically different sections of the mouse and on the additional buttons. The matte plastic does an excellent job of hiding the handle, but the glossy plastic does a worse job.
The wheel is shiny, metallic, and neatly carved. A button just behind the scroll wheel switches the notches, and it’s a real pleasure with pronounced clicks. By turning on the mouse for infinite scrolling, the wheel can rotate so freely that a proper click can make the mouse rotate for more than 10 seconds. Terms of service and other long documents have never been more comfortable not to read. Although the G502 feels reliable on the whole, it almost looks like this mouse could draw blood through all the hard corners.
The two buttons to the left of the primary click also hang strangely over the edge and feel like they can easily break off. The G502 Hero features adjustable RGB illumination for the DPI indicators and the Logitech G logo. Both lighting zones are cleverly positioned, so they’re visible between your thumb and index finger when you hold the mouse. By default, however, the DPI indicators don’t stay lit. For the most part, the placement of the buttons is excellent.
The three thumb buttons are easily distinguishable by feel, well within reach, but challenging to click incorrectly. Some people may have difficulty with the two buttons to the left of the primary mouse button. We keep them set to DPI switches, and the front one is easy enough to accidentally hit and feel the whiplash of a suddenly much faster mouse. The G502 Hero isn’t the most comfortable for larger hands. It’s a little on the thin side, and the side handles don’t offer much traction.
A claw grip works well enough, but deeper grooves and a softer rubber finish would provide a more reliable grip. A compartment at the bottom pops open, allowing up to five 3.6g weights to be added to give the G502 Hero a nice weight.
Logitech G502 Hero Review: Performance
The Logitech G502 Hero has the 1,000Hz polling rate and 1ms response time expected of a good game mouse, and we hardly notice any shortcomings in this section. But the Hero sensor helps the mouse shine. The Hero sensor offers flawless tracking from our experience with it. It supports a DPI range of 100 to 16,000, although we think the upper limit is mostly unimportant. What matters is how well it responds to our hand movements and how consistent it is.
We never notice strange mouse movements. And thanks to following the maximum speed of over 400 inches per second and the maximum acceleration of over 40Gs, it will be hard to push this mouse over its limit. We went through a lot of Black Ops 4’s Black Out mode and a lot of Overwatch to see how he kept up with the response times in a split second and the high precision required in each game, and he didn’t let us down in the slightest. Our only sore point is how many times we manage to click the button that increases the DPI incorrectly, and suddenly we’re at 5,000 DPI instead of 2,500.
The switches under the buttons feel good and give a responsive click with minimal operating force. There is enough resistance to prevent us from clicking incorrectly while putting our finger on the buttons, but none of them feels too squishy. Logitech’s personalization software is relatively easy to use and highly recommended for a mouse with so many buttons. To get the most out of the G502 Hero, you need a plan for all the buttons.
A game like Overwatch may not have so many buttons unless you want quick access to all your voice lines, but a game like Rainbow Six Siege can benefit if you have all your gadgets and motion options at your fingertips. By adding lean left and right with a simple movement of the center scroll wheel, you can perform several advanced maneuvers that would be more difficult with the game’s standard controls.
Price and Availability
At a starting price of $79 (£79, AU$129), the Logitech G502 Hero gaming mouse hits a fair price point for a gaming mouse that offers as much as it does. It runs up against the almost flawless SteelSeries Rival 600 at $79 (£79, AU$119), and costs more than the equally brilliant Rival 310 and Sensei 310 both at $59 (£59, AU$99). Considering how good those competing mice are, the Logitech G502 Hero only wins if you want the design or have a use for all the extra buttons.
Logitech G502 Hero Review: Conclusion
For the brilliant performance this mouse gives, and the incredible flexibility offered by all its buttons and weight adjustments, we give it a firm push. But we can’t ignore the giant shadow that SteelSeries casts over it. The Hero Sensor boasts higher maximum DPI and maximum tracking speed, but the TrueMove 3 in the latest SteelSeries gaming mice is effectively flawless in our book. And the TrueMove 3+ adds a secondary sensor that takes accurate mouse control to the next level with advanced take-off detection. The comfort and construction of the Rival 310, Sensei 310, and Rival 600 are also top-notch.
While some hands will enjoy the feel of the G502 Hero and the large buttons it offers, the wired gaming mice in the SteelSeries don’t cost more and effectively provide equal performance and more options for different grips.