ASUS ROG Gladius gaming mouse review

1. Introduction2. Unboxing3. ASUS ROG Gladius gaming mouse4. Testing5. Final Thoughts6. View All Pages

Most people are aware of mechanical keyboards these days, with their multiple switch options allowing a level of customisation that many other peripherals cannot match. But what if they could? That is one of the features that the ASUS ROG Gladius takes very seriously, giving you the chance to change its mouse feet, cable and even its left and right click switches. 

This is a no-nonsense mouse that is not trying to sell you a high DPI, but accuracy, comfort and hardware options. At least that is what the marketing material says.

Specifications

• Sensor: Optical, Avago ADNS-S3988
• Weight: 116g
• Sensitivity: 6400DPI
• Compatible switches: Omron D2F Series switches: D2F, D2F-F, D2F-01, D2F-01F or -Omron D2FC Series switches: D2FC-3M, D2FC-F-7N, D2FC-F-7N(10M), D2FC-F-7N(20M)

Features

• Ergonomically-designed for all right-handed grip types – ideal for FPS games.
• Exclusive socket design for easy switch upgrades; includes 2 additional Japanese-made Omron switches.
• Separate left and right buttons; with 2 specially-engineered, programmable ‘slide-to-press’ buttons.
• Detachable cable and ROG travel pouch for storage and transport.
• Built-in flash memory to save your favorite profile.
• Exclusive ROG Armoury interface where you can program buttons, performance settings, lighting effects, and surface calibration.

 

The packaging for the Gladius is of a pretty high quality. It is clearly designed to grab your eye on a shelf somewhere, even though most of you will end up buying this on a website if you decide this is the mouse for you.

It even flips open at the front so you can get a good view of it, as well as giving you a little blurb about Rome and how the Empire marched to war with its soldiers outfitted with “Gladius” swords. I am sure you have spotted the metaphor ASUS was going for with this.

Along with the mouse itself, you get the usual quick start manual, which is in more languages than I can count and a pair of Republic of Gamer (ROG) stickers.

But that is not all kids. There is also a fresh set of teflon mouse feet, should yours happen to run out and even a replacement pair of OMRON switches. This is not something you get with your average mouse, but it means that you can either switch out the ones you have at stock in-case you do not like them, or replace them should they wear out. 

 
The Gladius is a pretty refined looking rodent. It has but two colours, a black for the sides, with a slightly contrasting bullet grey shell covering the main body. It is an interestingly shaped mouse, with mild ergonomics and is designed to be right handed only.

It has a strong feel to it and clearly has great build quality, with a hard, but smooth plastic used for the main body. The only real styling to break up the grey and black is the slightly red, clear section at the back in the shape of the Republic of Gamers logo.

On the left hand side are the usual pair of buttons, that are stock mapped to forward and back in your browser respectively. The thumb grip is rubberised, with an interesting groove pattern that ASUS calls “Mayan.”

The front of the Gladius features the usual left/right click buttons, separated slightly from the main body of the mouse, along with a central scroll wheel and DPI selector, with two options.

The very front has a small hole where the main input cable goes. The fact that it can be detached makes travel safer and easier as you can bag it up. However it also means that ASUS is able to offer options for its cabling and it in-fact comes with two: braided and rubber (see later).

As you would expect with a right handed mouse, the Gladius' right hand side is shaped a little different than the left hand side, with a more supportive ridge for your ring and pinky fingers, as well as lacking any sort of side buttons. It does however feature the same “Mayan,” rubber pattern for grip.

The underside of this mouse features a centralised optical sensor (Avago ADNS-S3988) and four separate teflon pads, one located in each corner. There is also a small slider that unlocks the main cable should you wish to change or remove it.

Here are the two cable options as we discussed earlier. There is a braided one and another with a standard rubber coating. Both feature gold plated connectors, though that won't do much beyond improving durability.

When it comes to testing mice here at KitGuru, we put them through their paces in a variety of general usage and gaming scenarios, including photo editing and other work related tasks. We feel this gives you the best idea of what a peripheral is like beyond the numbers, but would always recommend that if you can, test one out yourself before buying.

That disclaimer aside, what is the ROG Gladius like to use? In short, it is excellent.

This is a gaming mouse that is above all reliable, but so much more besides. In FPS, strategy games, puzzlers, whatever genre you want to name, this mouse performed well in it. It is supremely accurate and wonderfully smooth. Much of that can be put down to the use of the Avago ADNS-S3988 sensor, which is the same one that featured in the much lauded over Razer Death Adder.

Part of the reason it is so strong a gaming mouse too, is because of the subtle ergonomics of the Gladius. I am most often a fan of ambidextrous mice as they tend to fit better in my hand (for my finger grip style), but the Gladius nestled perfectly in my hand and has never felt uncomfortable or awkward. Often times if you have a mouse with finger rests, it can take a while to get used to it – but with this ASUS mouse there was almost no adjustment period at all.

 
There are some profile and DPI options, but other mice give you a lot more to play with

Throughout testing I went through several multi-hour gaming sessions (poor me, right?) and never did I find myself in an uncomfortable situation. The same goes for those long hours I put in at the KitGuru grind stone, tapping away, editing photos and researching the latest and greatest news stories.

Overall the ASUS Gladius gives you a real feeling of refined class and a streamlined experience, without buttons and lights and extras to mess with. And the software is the same, with a very clean look that makes it incredibly easy to navigate and understand. It does lack a few of the options of more fully featured mice, even ones in the same price bracket, but most of the time with the overly kitted out gaming peripherals, you only end up using them once or twice before you find your preferred setting.

 
There is a surface material scanning feature that should make your mouse more in-tune with the mat you have chosen. 

That said, the ROG Gladius is not without back-end features. You can adjust its DPI for the two separate steps (which for most people is more than enough) and its acceleration and deceleration if you like that sort of thing. You can also adjust the polling rate all the way up to 2,000Hz, though personally I do not notice much difference and prefer to keep it at 1,000.

There are some adjustments you can make with lighting, but ultimately there is only one colour option. If you do not like a mouse that glows in the dark though, you can simply turn if all off if you wish.

Setting up Macros is very easy and there are plenty of options for fine tuning

While the back-end software for this mouse does not allow for the highest levels of customisation, the Gladius itself offers something that almost no other mice do: it lets you change the left/right click switches. This is not something the average gamer is likely to find themselves doing, but if you absolutely must have a perfectly fine tuned gaming mouse, or if you just want to extend the life of yours after many years of battling, then this is a neat option.

Doing so is actually very easy and you can even do it right out of the box if you want – since ASUS bundles a pair of Japanese Omron switches with the mouse itself. Considering it is stock-fitted with Chinese switches, that might be something you want to do – Marty McFly taught me long ago that Japan makes the best everything.

However be warned, doing so will trash your teflon pads, because to open the mouse up you need to get at four screws which just happen to be under the teflon pads. It seems a shame ASUS could not put these screws somewhere else, though I do appreciate that gamers are less likely to be replacing the switches after a week than a reviewer is.

 

Once you have the shell of the mouse off, it is actually a very simple matter to replace the switches. You pop out the originals and pop in the new ones.

After replacing everything, you are stuck with a set of lumpy teflon pads. Fortunately then, ASUS also bundled a fresh set for you to attach. Make sure you line them up correctly though as you will only have one shot to do it right.

This is a pretty unique feature and essentially extends the life of the ROG Gladius way beyond that of your average gaming mouse.

The ASUS ROG Gladius is the kind of mouse that makes me not want to review a mouse again for a while – as I really like this one and want to keep using it. It is easily one of the most comfortable and effective gaming mice I have ever used and fits my hand wonderfully. I have tested it with other grip types too (claw and palm) and found it equally comfortable – even if it does feel a bit less familiar.

I also really like the way you can customise this mouse feet and switches. That is a really interesting way to make it stand out among the competition, which, at its price bracket (£65) there is a lot of. It means you can fine tune the mouse to your tastes, as well as give it a life that is far beyond the many million clicks it is capable of right out of the box.

I do feel like ASUS could have found a better way to access the internals of the mouse, without ruining a set of Teflon feet, but by the time you come to replace yours you are likely to appreciate a fresh set of feet anyway. Also, you do get another set bundled with the mouse itself, so there is no problem with making the switch earlier in its life if you want to.

You can even customise your choice of mouse cable. Some people are not such fans of the braided ones, since they can drag a little on cloth pads. With this mouse, you have an option right out of the gate. It seems like it and a few of the other bundled extras might be the reason for the above average price tag, but it is something to consider when buying: you get options with the hardware.

Where you do not get quite so many options is the software, which while giving you all of the basics, shows a slight weakpoint of the ROG Gladius. It does not feature fancy lighting effects or colour options, there are no customisable weights or even that many remappable buttons. If that is what you are after however, there are plenty of other mice that offer it. The only problem is they are likely to be cheaper than this mouse too.

Most of the time though, I do not miss most of these ‘features.' They are nice to have for sure, just as some of the hardware customisation options are with the ROG Gladius – but none of them are a deal breaker.

When it comes down to it, the ASUS ROG Gladius is a very fine gaming mouse, specifically designed to cater to FPS gamers and those that do not want a lot of profile options or buttons that get in the way of a smooth gaming experience. Personally I find it works well with most genres, but MMO players will likely bemoan the lack of buttons. It is very smooth however and fast, with enough DPI and other back-end options that you can customise it a little if you so choose.

The real selling points of the Gladius however are its build quality and hardware customisation – two aspects that are hard to find in other mice, even at its lofty price tag. Personally I would have liked to have seen it about £10 cheaper and that may happen over time, but even as it is, this is an excellent gaming mouse that I would be happy to recommend to almost anyone.

The ASUS  ROG Gladius is available on Overclockers for £65.

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Pros

• High end Avago ADNS-S3988 sensor is smooth and accurate.
• Replaceable teflon feet and Omron switches (with bundled alternatives).
• Two cable options in box.
• Some back end lighting and sensor options with easy to use software.
• High build quality.

Cons

• Back end software is a bit stunted compared to others.
• Missing features like weight customisation, RGB lighting and other back-end profile and DPI options.
• Price is a bit higher than we would like.

KitGuru Says: Despite a few issues with software customisation, the ASUS ROG Gladius is a pure gaming mouse with some fantastic hardware options.

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