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MagyarReview Mionix NAOS 5000 Gaming-Mouse
Gamer's Heaven! Gaming on the notebook is a slow but steady process, but a touchpad is only suitable for true gamers in exceptional cases. The Swedish company Mionix offers a high-end mouse for ambitious users, the NAOS 5000.
Notebook hardware is becoming faster and at the same time cheaper, thus making mobile devices affordable even for passionate gamers. The keyboard is for the most part sufficient but the touchpad doesn’t offer enough speed or the right feel for fast-paced games. Mionix is a relatively young company from Sweden, which has been offering periphery devices for gamers since 2007. These accessories are developed together with several of the big names in the gaming scene as they know the specific demands quite well.
Mionix presents the top model with the NAOS 5000, which should impress with perfect ergonomics and finish as well as special software. In combination with the mouse, we also tested the SARGAS 360 mouse pad from Mionix. The NAOS 5000 is currently priced at € 69.90 at Caseking.de and the mid-sized SARGAS 360 mouse pad for € 12,90 plus shipping.
The first impression of the packaging convinced us. Everything seems quite high quality, detailed and yet at the same time simple. The packaging visually depicts the products very clearly and information and data is available in English on the reverse side. The contents delivered with the NAOS 5000 are standard fare. In addition to the mouse, you also get a small case with eight additional weights (each 5 grams) plus a short description. You don’t need any more accessories than that, though a small bag for travelling would have been a good idea.
Hardware
The Mionix NAOS 5000 stands out thanks to its simple exterior. The surfaces are lightly rubberised and provide a pleasant feel. The mouse's case is finished in plastic whereby this appears to be of a high quality. The workmanship of the components can be described as “excellent”; we were particularly impressed with the robust mouse cable. This is covered with a fabric tape which provides good stability.
The design is kept very simple and the only special accents are the illuminated Mionix logo on the top side, a lit mouse wheel and a DPI indicator. Clearly, this Swedish mouse has ergonomics as its top priority. On the right side are two indentations that give a perfect position for the ring- and little-finger. With this form, there is even enough space for large hands and it allows for a relaxed grip. There is the usual protrusion for one's thumb on the left side of the mouse.
Less is sometimes more: the NAOS 5000 offers only four buttons in total. The DPI-settings can be changed from behind the mouse wheel at the top. Connected to these buttons are three status-LEDs on the left hand side of the mouse which show the current line-to-line scanning rate. Behind these LEDs are the typical forward and backwards keys for games or the internet browser.
The mouse weighs in at 160 grams including the USB cable and thus offers a good base weight. Of course, a premium product such as this couldn't do without small weights for fine tuning. Mionix goes with a 2-cell-system which is to the left and right of the laser. With this positioning, one can store the weights evenly or offset depending on preference. A maximum of 20 grams (4 x 5 grams) can be inserted in each cell. So, the weight of the mouse is brought up to 200 grams including cable.
Now onto the technical side of the NAOS 5000: the Swedish top model is a laser mouse that offers a maximum 5040 DPI (dots-per-inch ratio). This ratio can be fine tuned using their own software. But the mouse can only be set in one of three settings which can be customised based on the software-profile. Overall the dot-per-inch ratio is set very high and the mouse is suitable for very fast and precise first-person shooters as well as for slower games a lá Sims 3. An additional advantage of the high scanning rate can be seen in its functionality on glass surfaces. In our test (5 mm strength), there were only a couple of lapses every now and again. By comparison, the three top models from Razer (Imperator, Naga and Mamba) offer even more precision with 5,600 DPI.
In order to achieve a perfect transfer of signals, the USB connector is gold plated. Whether or not using this precious material over normal materials makes any difference is questionable, but it certainly does look chic. If you are looking for a short summary: "Gaming mouse with perfect ergonomics, good workmanship and the latest technology."
Mionix offers the SARGAS mouse pad to go along with the mouse itself. It is available in 3 sizes (260, 360 and 460) where the number represents the width of the mouse pad. In our case, the base measures 36 x 30.5 x 0.03 inches (W x D x H) and is therefore adequately dimensioned. The surface is made of a very shiny black material. Thanks to this surface, hardly any noises pop up and with its fine structure, sensing is very exact. The bottom side is rubberised as usual and is therefore resistant to sliding. The price for the mouse pad from Mionix starts at 8,90 Euro plus shipping (Caseking.de) which is within reason for a high-quality mouse pad.
Software
Mionix offers its own software (only for Windows) for the NAOS 5000 which is, however, not included in the product contents and must therefore be downloaded from the producer's website. The software is installed quickly and the interface is very neat. In addition to the key configuration, the sensor can be adjusted to all conceivable options and saved in the personal macro settings. The colour setting of the LED illumination is a small but nice gadget. On the whole, it is very comprehensive software which thanks to five profiles, can be adjusted to fit any game.
Verdict
The Mionix NAOS 5000 is a high-end gaming mouse that performed convincingly in our review. The material, finish and particularly the ergonomics are very good and few mice in this corner of the market can keep up with the NAOS 5000.
Subjectively, using the mouse is also pleasant and the comprehensive software that can only be gotten via the internet presence of the producer offers the ambitious gamer many options. Of course, such a project couldn't do without the neat little gimmick of LED illumination which can be set in all possible colours. The corresponding SARGAS mouse pad also gets a recommendation from us thanks to its good characteristics and a low starting price.
The price of around 70 Euros for the mouse is relatively high for its position in the premium segment. We consider the price to be appropriate due its good performance, though a small carrying bag wouldn’t hurt.
