Package

CM Storm allows you to test the general shape of the mouse through the box, which is nice. CM Storm is also introducing a new mouse bungee at the same time as the Recon. The bungee is called the Scorpion and can be purchased separately.


The bundle does not come with the Scorpion bungee. You get nothing but the mouse.


Cable-wise, the Recon is well equipped. You get a nice soft, thin, light cable that performs really well.

Closer Examination

The design of the mouse is a bit odd at first. It is, compared to most, short and bulky. It is ambidextrous, which is nice for all the lefties out there who frequently get let down by companies opting to do right-hand only versions of their mice. Its five buttons can be used for all sorts of things, and CM Storm's Recon, a mid-end gaming mouse, even includes macro capability.


Compared to the Zowie AM mouse, there are more similarities than differences. They both use the same sensor, and they have the same dimensions; however, the shape of the Recon is radically different. The shape of the Recon is very complex, and it makes how the designers intended you to hold the mouse pretty clear. This forced-grip approach will work well for most people, but those with large hands might want to try it out before buying the mouse to make sure they can get a comfortable grip.


The palm plate of the Recon is rubber coated, which is nice. The sides are made of hard plastic and its buttons are easily felt. You can differentiate between the back and forward button no matter how you hold the mouse, which is great. The mouse-wheel is wider than usual, which I think of as a great little detail. The scroll-wheel click is hard enough and won't activate mistakenly, and the scroll-wheel's tactile rolling-feedback is sufficient for such critical tasks as weapon selection.


The mouse feet are well positioned and give the mouse a balanced feel on the mouse mat.


Compared to the Zowie mouse, the profile outline is relatively similar; however, the mice do feel different because of the finger guides on the Recon.


CM Storm wisely went with the Avago ADNS-3090 sensor for the Recon. The sensor has a rating of 4000 DPI in this implementation, which is more than enough for any high-sensitivity gamer. Roughly half of that DPI is enough for the majority of gamers who use a relatively high sensitivity.

Driver

The CM Storm driver for the Recon is a mess interaction-wise. Like most of the other driver suites, it is designed with loads of graphics, which does not increase performance. You also have to make a new profile for the Recon in order to edit any settings. The default profile does not allow you to adjust anything! This is very inconvenient for, presumably, the majority of users who will only configure and use one profile. Another huge mistake was made with the lift-off distance adjustment (LOD) option. You have to set the lift-off distance to 5 in order to get the lowest possible LOD, but that is highly illogical! Any designer with marginal experience in design for interaction would have done it the other way around. A lower number should correspond to a lower lift-off distance.

The fact that you get the option of having multiple profiles is nice for people who play a lot of different games, but profile selection is only available through the driver suite.


The Scorpion is CM Storm's attempt at reviving the mouse bungee business. Their attempt is not that well executed, and the Scorpion is not as attractive and does not perform as well as other more elaborate designs on the market. The bungee is basically made of four pieces of plastic joined together by a rubber boom-piece on top. The bungee can be disassembled, but that does not change the fact that it is ill-conceived. The rubber "cord-hanger" is basically a linearly elastic spring that keeps the cable off the mat. It would, perhaps, work better if the hanger was softer. One could remove some of the material on the boom until it is soft enough, but that is pretty time consuming for such a small performance improvement.