INTRODUCTION

   Just like with every gaming peripheral in the market today prior to getting a brand new gaming mouse you need to know exactly what PC titles you will use it with (at least primarily). We have mentioned this numerous time in the past so if you're into fast passed games like FPS (first person shooters) a medium-sized mouse with a total of 7-8 buttons tops should do the trick but if you're into MMO games then you may be better off with a model that has many extra buttons. Still buttons is not the only thing that defines a gaming mouse and so the sensor (laser/optical) is really what it all comes down to. In a market however filled with many different sensor models which gaming mouse should you choose? SteelSeries is confident that the answer is their brand new dual-sensor RIVAL 600 which has been on our test bench for roughly a month now.

   SteelSeries has fueled the gaming industry by creating innovative new products, designed specifically for eSports and passionate gamers everywhere. Here at SteelSeries, we are obsessed with “firsts”. Dating back to 2001, our company was formed to meet the surface needs of hardcore gamers by introducing the first glass mousepad, the Icemat. Since that original innovation, we created the first mechanical gaming keyboard, the first suspended headband for gaming headsets, the first World of Warcraft mouse and endless other innovations. SteelSeries is dedicated to building products that push professional gaming further than anyone dreamed. Those innovations make gaming more competitive and more fun for gamers everywhere.

   Unlike other gaming mice the RIVAL 600 by SteelSeries is equipped with two sensors the primary TrueMove3 zero hardware acceleration optical sensor (as expected it was built exclusively with Pixart) that features a resolution of 12.000CPI (counts per inch) with 350+ IPS (inches per second) tracking speed and 50G acceleration and a secondary depth perception sensor which always according to the manufacturer provides the world’s lowest and most accurate lift-off distance. The pros of the RIVAL 600 however don't end there since it also features a total of 7 programmable buttons, reinforced mechanical switches for its primary buttons (up to 60 million clicks), detachable cord, 32-bit ARM processor, 8 zone RGB lighting system with 4 effects and an very innovative gravity/weight system (up to 32g extra with up to 256 available weight and balance configurations). So is the SteelSeries RIVAL 600 the top of the line gaming mouse you've been waiting for?

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

A large product picture is placed at the front of the box along with its main product features.

The specifications table is printed on the left side of the box.

Details about the three main product features are placed at the rear of the box in 5 languages.

A few words by SteelSeries with the "good luck, have fun" acronym at the end await you once you remove the exterior box.

The RIVAL 600 is placed inside a formed piece of plastic while the rest of the bundle is placed inside a cardboard box.

SteelSeries ships the RIVAL 600 with a detachable rubber cord, rubber weight case and the product information guide.

THE RIVAL 600

The body of the RIVAL 600 is mostly rubber coated, weighs 96g (without the weights and cable) and measures 131mm in length, 69mm in width and 43mm in height.

In terms of overall size this is a medium-sized model much like the Revenger S by COUGAR.

Three programmable thumb buttons are placed on the left side of the mouse right over a silicon grip.

The rear end is also rubberized and has the company logo on it (it's also one of the 8 RGB zones).

Two silicon grips are placed on the right side (this is a right handed mouse after all).

The CPI toggle button is as usual placed at the top of the mouse right over the primary buttons (which are also rubber coated).

As you can all see the clickable scroll wheel is rubber coated and also one of the 8 RGB lighting zones.

Typically the micro USB cable port is located right beneath the scroll wheel.

Moving at the bottom of the base we see three Teflon feet and the two sensors.

Remember the rubber weight case? In here SteelSeries has placed a total of eight 4g weights for you to use with the RIVAL 600.

To access the weight system you just need to remove the two side covers as seen above (just pulling them will do the trick).

There are 4 small openings on each side in which you can mount each of the eight 4g weights as seen above.

The two meter long detachable cable has a regular (not gold plated) micro USB port on one end and a regular USB port on the other.

ENGINE 3 SOFTWARE

To download the latest version of the Engine 3 control software you will need to visit the official SteelSeries support/downloads page as seen above.

Once you download and install the software it will automatically check for new firmware updates and if there are any it will notify you.

The update procedure takes less than a minute to complete and then you are just required to unplug the mouse and then plug it back in.

The SteelSeries Engine 3 is one of the most thorough and yet easy to use software control panels in the market. From here you can program any of the 7 available buttons, set the sensitivity (CPI) levels and lift-off distance, adjust sensor acceleration and deceleration, enable/disable angle snapping, set the polling rate, create macros and of course adjust the RGB illumination for all 8 zones.

Here we've placed some of the available out of the box colors one can use with the RIVAL 600.

CONCLUSION

   After testing the RIVAL 600 for almost a full month with our usual game selection (World of Tanks, World of Warships, Star Citizen, Dreadnought, Elite Dangerous and Warframe) we really think SteelSeries might have just released the best gaming mouse aimed towards people who like playing fast passed games. The TrueMove3 optical sensor is crazy fast and accurate, the depth perception sensor really works (if you care about lift-off distance this should interest you) and the weight system is one of the best (if not the best) we’ve ever used. The same applies to grip due to both the nicely shaped enclosure and the rubber areas all over it but when it comes to the RGB lighting system although 8 individual zones is not something we see every day still I think we’ve seen better (more impressive) looking ones. Of course not having tested every single gaming mouse in the market makes it somewhat hard for us to say that the RIVAL 600 is the best gaming mouse of its kind but judging from what we’ve seen to date there’s a very good chance that it’s just that (in our book it’s just a tad better than even the RIVAL 700).

   Retailing for just USD78.69 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and 74.99Euros inside the EU (Amazon.de) the RIVAL 600 Dual Sensor Gaming Mouse by SteelSeries is actually not as expensive as we thought it would be. True it may not be what many people will consider affordable but if you take into account its target audience (serious gamers and even esports professionals) it’s actually well priced. Overall the RIVAL 600 may not be the perfect gaming mouse (not ambidextrous) but it comes really close to that which is why it’s definitely worth our Platinum Award.

PROS

- Build Quality (Primary Buttons / 60 Million Clicks)
- Design
- Excellent Grip
- Extremely Fast And Accurate (TrueMove3 & Depth Sensors)
- RGB Lighting (8 Zones / 4 Effects)
- Innovative Weight System
- Detachable Cable
- Engine 3 Software

CONS

- Price (For Some)
- Right Handed Only