Performance

All of this configurability has a fault, though: it’s not particularly easy to figure out. The help file is generic to SetPoint and doesn’t adequately explain all of the program’s features, while the software doesn’t automatically install a profile for Battlefield 2142, which I found particularly surprising – after all, this mouse is supposed to be the special edition made specifically for Battlefield 2142. Eventually, with the help of an online message board, I figured out what I needed to do to get the button profile I wanted for any program I chose, but a little coordination between Logitech and Electronic Arts to make a default Battlefield 2142 profile with instructions on how to add your modifications would have been great addition and would have saved me some time.



Once I got past the learning curve, everything was smooth sailing. In Battlefield 2142, the trick is to figure out what button profile you want to use before you start playing then program SetPoint to map a particular keyboard key to a button so that the program reacts as if you’d just press a keyboard key. For example, if you want to set the button on the side to bring up the main rifle, tell SetPoint to map the number 3 (the keyboard key you’d press to select the rifle) to the side button; click it and Battlefield 2142 puts the rifle in your hands.

Properly armed, I brought my new tool of destruction to bear against my foes in the multiplayer version of Battlefield 2142 with admirable results. No more reaching for the right button to select a grenade or switch to the medical pack in the assault kit; everything is right at my right hand’s fingertips, leaving my left hand to concentrate on moving my character around.



The G5’s profile is the perfect height and shape; I had no problem with slippery palms, strained wrists or fatigued fingers after several hours of play and the mouse glides across my desk like a knife through butter. The arrangement of buttons is a little unorthodox compared to the five button Intellimouse clones I’ve used over the past few years, but I had no problems adopting the G5 both to games and every-day Windows applications like Firefox. I played around with the mouse’s weight cartridge and eventually opted to use the mouse without additional weight, but I appreciate the level of customization this feature adds to the mouse.