Compared to its orange and black contrasting packaging, the Strix Claw itself is actually quite an understated looking mouse. It has a black and grey theme with a clear Strix logo at the rear for the yellow/orange LED lighting to shine through when powered on.
The main body is made from plastic with no real soft-touch coating, but the build quality is excellent.
The left hand side of the mouse does not feature anything in the way of grip, but it does have some subtle ergonomics to make it easier to hold the mouse with your thumb. Since this is designed as a claw grip mouse (that supports other styles), major ergonomics are not really required.
Just above where your thumb sits are three buttons, two traditional ones mapped to forward / back at stock and a third button that ASUS terms the “DPI Clutch” or “Sniper” mode. This drops the DPI down to just 400, making it easier to make those highly accurate shots, or for doing other ‘sensitive' work.
Comparatively, the right hand side is rather plain. It features some more ergonomic styling for finger rests, but again no rubber or other material for grip.
At the front end are the usual left/right-click mouse buttons, which due to the design of the mouse (and no doubt the use of high-end Omron switches) lets you press them from almost half way back down the body, so if you really like to hunch your fingers for a claw grip, you are in luck.
The front end also features a ridged scroll wheel and a pair of DPI up/down switches within easy reach. Notably too, the braided cable is angled up slightly, presumably to prevent drag on the mousing surface.
The underside is quite typical of a gaming rodent, featuring a centrally located optical sensor and three teflon pads (the bottom “two” are actually a large single pad if you look closely) located in each of the corners and across the bottom edge.
The braided mouse cable has a custom header making it easier to identify at the back of your PC, among all those other USB devices and is gold plated.
As for the Strix Glide Speed mat, it is very orange, as you can see, with three black claw marks raked through it. The orange is a slightly odd, grey hue, which I can not figure out if I like or not – looking closer to a dirty orange than a vibrant one. It is also somewhat sparkly, but very smooth.
One feature of it that I particularly liked was the stitched edging, which should prevent it from becoming frayed as the mat gets older.
On the underside, you have the usual cross-hatch rubberised layer to prevent the mat sliding around (at least in theory).
i use strix claw 2 days. bought it used for 40€.
i used steelseries sensei before and i was scared because of optical sensor. but strix claw is really good mice for the price. i can recommend it but not pay more than 50€..