The Bottom Line
Introduction, Specifications, and Pricing
With nearly a decade passing since we first got our hands-on the M60 and M90 mice, Corsair has been a train running at full speed, dropping off products at every stop. No matter your grip style, gameplay preferences, or aesthetic choices, it is nearly guaranteed that Corsair has made a mouse to fit your hands. Even though many of the designs along the way were more typical, for multiple grips and general usage, every once in a while, a product comes along that is more specific to certain tasks than others. The trick with such products is keeping all of the basic ideas while adding in the changes, and not coming up with something gaudy or beyond what the market is willing to accept.
Corsair has done a reasonably decent job at this in the past, although we do find that many of their mice are designed for larger hands than our own, but, when their mice do fit under your hand, the union can be spectacular. In most of the samples we have seen from Corsair in the past; we only saw designs with overly large "sniper buttons" typically placed slightly out of our reach. But we also saw the Dark Core RGB recently, which delivered a new look on how to arrange three buttons on the side.
However, the move in this new mouse is entirely different. While we have seen mice like this in the past, we do feel that Corsair took the right steps this time to ensure this MOBA/MMO gaming mouse fits the needs of more users, as not to become some niche product that only a few gravitate towards enough to make a purchase.
With the Scimitar RGB Elite mouse that we have for you today, if you are that type that never has enough buttons on their mouse, you will want to continue reading. With seventeen programmable buttons in total, over various profiles, the amount of control you can have under your right hand is impressive. Not only that, but where some of the previous layouts failed to fit our hands, Corsair thought long and hard to address this issue intelligently!
While it will need an adjustment period to familiarize yourself with everything the Scimitar RGB Elite can do for you, we will come right out and say it is well worth the time and energy it takes! If we have piqued your interest, please continue reading, as we have a ton to show off, do deliver everything we know about the Scimitar RGB Elite MOBA/MMO Gaming Mouse!
Within the chart borrowed from the Scimitar RGB Elite product page, we see many features and specifications to discuss, as well as many, we will add along the way. Rather than following the chart as presented, we are going to try and keep everything related, together. The first thing we see is that Corsair displays the warranty term of two years to get things rolling. Next in line is a mention of the seventeen programmable buttons, which include the twelve on the left side, the main pair of buttons, the press of the scroll wheel, and another pair of secondary switches just behind the scroll wheel. All of the buttons can be programmed across three onboard profiles, and more profiles can be stored on the PC and swapped out via iCUE.
While still on the topic of buttons, the main pair is backed with 50-million click Omron switches, Kailh provides the secondary switches, and as to the twelve on the left side, they are pad style switches. Next in line is the sensor, and Corsair opted for the PixArt PMW3391 to track the movements of the Scimitar RGB Elite.
The PMW3391 is an optical sensor with a maximum DPI of 18,000 and can be set in a range from 100 DPI to 18,000DPI, in one DPI increments. Adjustments can be made with a slider, which is not as finite as using the box to enter the DPI you desire.
The Scimitar RGB Elite does contain RGB lighting, and it is contained in four programmable zones. There is a "floodlight" on the left, which casts its glow on the twelve side buttons. There is the logo on the heel of the mouse as the first, the scroll wheel is the second, a trio of slots at the front make the third, and the twelve buttons are the fourth.
Finishing up what is left in the chart, we will start with the fact that the Scimitar RGB Elite is a wired mouse, with 1.8 meters of cable covered with braided fiber for longevity sake. The palm grip design weighs in at 122 grams without the cable and designed with MOBA and MMO users in mind. We also see that there is an adjustable polling rate, which gets adjusted in iCUE.
What is not in the chart are the material and dimensions. By our measurements, the Scimitar RGB Elite is 120.2mm from front to back, it is roughly 80mm wide, and is approximately 45mm tall. Most of the material used is plastic, some shiny, some matter with a rubberized coating, and some of the surfaces are covered with brushed metal appliques. The last bit we should cover pertains to the feet, where four PTFE feet are used to support the mouse while delivering a glide that many are used to.
As we took to the internet to find this mouse for sale, we ran into search issues with Amazon. They do sell the Scimitar RGB Elite, but the only way it surfaces is by using the Corsair page to link you to it. With the Corsair Product page showing the MSRP of $79.99, we are pleased to see them slightly cheaper on Amazon at just $73.74. For those of you who prefer Newegg, the only listing we found there was a third-party seller, with a listing of $128, which is well beyond out of line! Unlike many other mice that we have liked in the past for nearly $80, we can say that, at least on paper, the Scimitar RGB Elite has most of them beat based on functionality potential alone!
Chad's Peripherals Test System Specifications
- Motherboard: ASUS Prime X299 Deluxe - Buy from Amazon
- CPU: Intel Core i9 7920X - Buy from Amazon
- Cooler: Corsair H150i Pro - Buy from Amazon
- Memory: G.Skill TridentZ RGB 3600MHz 32GB - Buy from Amazon
- Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti Hybrid SLI - Buy from Amazon
- Storage: Samsung 960 EVO 250GB - Buy from Amazon
- Case: Cooler Master Cosmos C700P - Buy from Amazon
- Power Supply: Thermaltake Toughpower DPS G 1050W - Buy from Amazon
- OS: Microsoft Windows 10 Professional 64-bit - Buy from Amazon
Packaging, Accessories, and Documentation
The Corsair Scimitar RGB Elite comes in a bright yellow box, which grabs your attention. The image on the front panel is a top-down view of the mouse, delivering a basic idea of what to expect. We see the notation for iCUE support as well.
The right side of the packaging is black, utilizing white and yellow for the text that is provided. Again, we see the company and product name near the bottom, and at the top is "control freak," which we have seen before on another product.
Back to yellow for the backdrop on the back of the box. Under the name of the mouse and iCUE icon, we run into a list of features. The list includes things like the seventeen programmable buttons, the first mention of the patented Key Slider for the twelve side buttons, a max of 18,000 DPI, the inclusion of 50-million click Omron switches, and concluding with the durability of the scroll wheel and its flexible braided cable. At the bottom is where the system requirements are presented, which comes down to a free USB port, Windows 7 or newer OS, and the ability to download iCUE.
The top half of the last panel of the packaging is the same as what we found at the bottom, on the other side of this box. However, while small, this is the first time we get to see the twelve-button panel, and get an idea of how the Key Slider technology comes into play as we notice room to either side of the panel for it to utilize.
Indies of the box is a secondary protective layer, where cardboard is cut and folded to help support the outer packaging, preventing the box from being crushed as easily. There is the third layer of protection with the form-fitted plastic cover, which ensues if the box were to fail, the mouse could still come through in good shape. As to this sample, we are pleased with the condition of our Scimitar RGB Elite mouse.
Found under what we saw in the previous image, you will locate the paperwork, as well as abstaining access to remove the Allen-key tool, which is what allows the Key Slider to work. The literature is a two-volume collection of how to connect the muse and where to get the software to the left, while the warranty guide is at the right, explaining the terms of coverage for two years.
Corsair Scimitar RGB Elite MOBA/MMO Gaming Mouse
The left side of our Scimitar RGB Elite is where most of the add-on magic happens. Starting with a wide section of shiny plastic at the front hiding an RGB illuminated zone. Where we typically find a pair of side buttons, a large opening has been made into the mouse, to allow for the twelve buttons on the side, which has brushed metal behind it for high contrast and style points. At the back, we see that the molded plastic is covered with a matte rubberized coating for added grip.
At the heel of the mouse, we can see the two-part construction coming to a point as the meet, leaving an undercut angle at the bottom. The line you see to the right side of the heel is a trim line, as the mouse does not come apart there, but that line does lead us up to the RGB backlit Corsair logo.
The right side of the Scimitar RGB Elite has a defined ridge a third of the way up the side, supporting your right hand much better. As you move from the matte finish at the back, at the midway point, things change over to a highly textured rubber section, which grips your ring finger, and adds a place for the pinky to get a grip to lift this mouse.
The center tips of the main buttons are protruding forward the most, with a gap between them, exposing a large portion of the RGB backlit scroll wheel. Below the main buttons, we see that the cable is off-center due to the open design, and to the left are three slots, which are also RGB backlit.
From above, we see a wavy pattern in the rubber ring of the scroll wheel, which works as well as many other designs. There are a pair of shiny black buttons behind the wheel, with default functionality to change the profile and DPI setting.
Under the Scimitar RGB Elite, we see a lack of stickers, which we appreciate, as they tend to collect garbage from the mouse pad. We see some linear cues designed into the surface, flanking the brushed metal section around the eye. Four medium-sized feet support this mouse and can make this heavier mouse glide smoothly. You may also notice the Allen screw south-east of the eye, which is the lock to the Key Slide feature.
Insert the Allen tool into the screw, and with a twist to the left, the tension on the twelve button section is lessened, so that you can adjust it to fit your hand. When you get the panel in the proper location, use the tool to tighten it into place so that it will not move again until you want to change its position in this manner.
Upon first glance, the twelve buttons were set all the way to the back of the Scimitar RGB Elite. To show maximum adjustment, we have sent it all the way forward, which you will need big hands to use them in this location, but it can also be adjusted freely between both extremes.
The cable connected to the Scimitar RGB Elite has a few noteworthy features. If you are into braided cables, it has that. If you want cable management, it has a hook and loop strap to make traveling with it more manageable. We also find that the USB 2.0 connection is wrapped in a stylized cover to make it easier to identify in the rear I/O of your PC.
Inside the Scimitar RGB Elite
The removal of four screws, which happen to be under the feet, allows you into the Scimitar RGB Elite. The top portion is all plastic components, and as we can see, there are no connections that need to be handled with care. The lower half holds all of the bits inside of the mouse, as well as the bulky Key Slider arrangement on the left side.
At the front, we see the large RGB LED, which illuminates the side "floodlight" which sends a blast of light over the twelve-button keypad. Behind it is an Omron D2FC-F-K(50M) with a blue stem. The actuation force is not weak, and when depressed, you get a sharp audible click. Behind the Omron switch is an ALPS sensor for the scroll wheel movement, which is not as heavily segmented in its action as in other mice.
Backing the two shiny buttons found behind the scroll wheel on the outside of the mouse, are this pair of Kailh switches with black stems. The Kailh switches require similar force to activate as the Omron pair, but the click that comes through is more muffled.
In control of all of the business that is mouse related, Corsair went with the NXP LPC11U37F processor. This is a 32-bit ARM Cortex-M0 chip with room for storage and is where your profiles and settings are housed.
When it comes to tracking the movement of the Scimitar RGB Elite, we are looking at the PixArt PMW3391DM-T4QU optical sensor. With a range of 100 to 18,000 DPI and the option to adjust in one DPI increments, you can find the perfect setting for you, not something close, but spot on!
Back to the front once again, as we stare down the second Omron switch. Since we already know all about the Omron switch, we move to the pad switch used for the scroll wheel press. This is the toughest button to activate, and the noise that you get is more muffled than we head from the Kailh switches.
We would like to end things with a couple of glamour shots of the Scimitar RGB Elite. Keep in mind that these lights could be any color or shifting through many predefined patterns from iCUE. The three slots deliver a wide glow in front of the mouse in a dark room, and with that much of the scroll wheel exposed, it emits more light from that area than we typically see.
From the back, we see the second pair of zones illuminated as well. The heel's logo matches what the scroll wheel is doing, but the "floodlight" we have been referring to is currently set to change with the DPI settings. The twelve-button pad also is backlit and is the fourth zone, as we noticed the floodlight is not programmable by the user.
iCUE Software
Once installed and opened up, iCUE delivers a ton of options. First is the actions menu, where clicking on the "+" icon allows you to start to remap, reassign, and assign Macros to all of the buttons. This portion of the software will enable you to keep a library of actions as time goes by so that you can easily swap out one for another, and just a few click notice.
Out of the many options of preset choices of actions, we opened the Macro editor to have a look around. Nothing has changed since our last mouse review, as it is intuitive to use and select options along the way via the advanced settings and start settings.
Lighting effects can be set as a whole as we did, or you can address each of the four zones on an individual basis. We also opened up the lower half of the menu, displaying all of the presets, custom options, and the Link options.
DPI is straight forward. There are up to five DPI settings to use, plus an additional Sniper level. The slider at the left has to be to the right, but if you do not need as many, slide it left to disable them. The color in the boxes is representative to which DPI setting is used, and they can be changed with the RGB codes and color wheel to the right. Changing the DPI is as easy as moving the sliders, or you can go to the X DPI and Y DPI boxes and directly enter a DPI setting, down to the last DPI.
The performance section does not offer much, but what is in here is essential to some. You can enable angle snapping, which is off by default, and change the LOD from low, middle, or high. You could also disable pointer precision as well as pointer speed.
As with most of the Corsair mice we have seen recently, you can also use iCUE to tune the sensor to the mousepad. Generally, the tracking is suitable out of the box, but various materials can make the mouse react differently. Tuning to the mousepad in use is recommended to get the most accuracy for your specific setup.
Gaming and General Impressions
DOOM Eternal & Warzone
In our typical game genre, FPS titles, we were still able to utilize the Scimitar RGB Elite, not all of the buttons were programmed, but we did use six of the twelve on the side while leaving the rest of the mouse buttons to their default purposes. Not so much in DOOM Eternal, as it is our fast-twitch sensor accuracy test, which the Scimitar RGB Elite handled perfectly.
When we got into Warzone, spraying, explosives usage, calling out enemies, and a few other quick fixes that have us hunting the keyboard typically, but not any longer. Even with longer sessions, our hand was not tired, uncomfortable, nor did we have to change our hand positioning, due to the smart Key Slide implementation.
Since neither of those titles was geared for what the Scimitar RGB Elite was designed for, we did force ourselves to pay a few rounds of DOTA 2 to take advantage of the multitude of programmability. So on another of the three profiles, we loaded up much of what we wanted, but by the time we got used to the mouse and the layout we made, we got bored of the game and shut it down.
While MMO/MOBA titles are not our bag, we can still appreciate the Scimitar RGB Elite for its intended market, but as a user who is not a fan of these games, we still had loads of fun and cut a lot of our day shorter using them outside of gaming as well.
Windows and Productivity
As our daily driver, no matter how you want to set up the mouse, there is a learning curve for the mussel memory of your thumb, as you try to keep track of all twelve buttons. However, using the Scimitar RGB Elite for as long as we have, we found setting the mouse up for Photoshop to be the best use of it. You could use one button for a lower DPI just for editing images; you can set another to save, resize, well, you get the idea.
The same can be said for music or video production. With this many buttons at your disposal, your mind is the limiting factor. The glide of the mouse is smooth; tracking of the optical sensor is excellent. However, our usable spread of the DPI was from 800 to 7000 DPI, beyond that, while you can clear more considerable distances with less effort, stopping where you want and double-clicking a shortcut are another story.
As we saw in gaming, even with hour after hour of clicking little white dust particles in photo editing, every click is registered, every movement accounted for, and not once did the Scimitar RGB Elite give us any reason to want to remove it from the desktop.
Final Thoughts
A few companies have ventured into designs like this, Razer being likely the one most well-known for it, but the market proved the need for such a device. It has allowed the likes of Corsair to ponder that originator, rework the finer details, wrap it up in something distinctly Corsair looking, and sell it to those with the imagination to use it to its full extent! While designed to be for MMO and MOBA gamers, we are neither of those and still found uses and opportunities to take advantage of what the Scimitar RGB Elite brings to the table.
We also love the fact that when using so much of the mouse's left side for the 12-button Key Slide pad, the actuation force of the buttons is strong so that you can lift the mouse without pressing multiples of them. The only real downside to a product such as this is that it is so involved, that it would require a complete rebuild for the left-handed users out there. For now, if you cannot mouse with your right hand, you are out of luck.
Without iCUE, none of the twelve buttons function out of the box. You will need to go in iCUE even to set a page back and page forward button, which, to be honest, is not a deal-breaker, as everything on top of the mouse functions as it should. Along with a plethora of button programmability, remapping, and Macro capabilities, iCUE delivers in other ways. We love linking all of our Corsair hardware to one illumination mode, we adore mousepad calibration, and we are just scratching the surface of what is available for the Scimitar RGB Elite.
Even though we tend to stick to the KISS principle when it comes to our peripheral choices, Corsair has delivered a mouse that not only offers this sort of functionality but by incorporating the Key Slide technology into the deal, no longer are some of the buttons out of reach for some. With a bit of tinkering, both with the mouse, and in software, you can easily and quickly get to that "just right for me" state.
If you are a longtime reader of our peripheral reviews, you will know we have loved many mice in the $80 price range, but hands down, this Scimitar RGB Elite beats those mice on almost every level! Of course, we realize that not every mouse is a perfect fit for every hand out there, but if you are going to try something new, why not start with one of the most functional products on the market?
While not the first to come up with packing the mouse's left side with buttons, we do feel Corsair does it best, and all while not detracting from other aspects of what makes a solid choice in gaming mice. At just $73.74 through Amazon, you are looking at one of the best bang-for-the-buck mice in existence!
Chad's Peripherals Test System Specifications
- Motherboard: ASUS Prime X299 Deluxe - Buy from Amazon
- CPU: Intel Core i9 7920X - Buy from Amazon
- Cooler: Corsair H150i Pro - Buy from Amazon
- Memory: G.Skill TridentZ RGB 3600MHz 32GB - Buy from Amazon
- Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti Hybrid SLI - Buy from Amazon
- Storage: Samsung 960 EVO 250GB - Buy from Amazon
- Case: Cooler Master Cosmos C700P - Buy from Amazon
- Power Supply: Thermaltake Toughpower DPS G 1050W - Buy from Amazon
- OS: Microsoft Windows 10 Professional 64-bit - Buy from Amazon
Performance |
96% |
Quality |
98% |
Features |
100% |
Value |
97% |
Overall |
98% |
Attention to details, massive amounts of functionality only limited by your imagination, Key Slide technology, all of it backed by iCUE is a recipe for success. Even if not an MMO or MOBA gamer, we still highly recommend the Scimitar RGB Elite.
What's in Chad's PC?
- CPU: Intel Core i7 13700K
- MOTHERBOARD: ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero Eva
- RAM: TEAM DDR5-7200 32GB
- GPU: ASUS GeForce RTX 3090 Eva
- SSD: addlink m.2 2TB
- OS: Windows 11 Pro
- COOLER: Fractal Lumen S36
- PSU: be quiet! Dark Power Pro 1500W
- KEYBOARD: ASUS ROG Strix Scope TKL Electro Punk
- MOUSE: ASUS ROG Strix Impact Electro Punk
- MONITOR: ASUS ROG Swift OLED PG42UQ
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