These days, there is absolutely no shortage of quality mice around the $50–$60 mark. The $20–$30 range, on the other hand, only includes a few worthwhile mice here and there. With the Burst Core, ROCCAT brings their Burst Pro to the $30 mark, and what little competition there is gets blown out of the water.

When it comes to the components used, ROCCAT has made no concessions for the Burst Core. The Burst Core uses the exact same scroll wheel encoder from Alps and the exact same switches as the $60 Burst Pro, along with the same shell, resulting in the same build quality and premium feel, which is nothing short of impressive at this price point. This of course includes the optical main button switches with low latency without any risk of double-clicking. I've noticed that these switches seem to have above average variance, which is exemplified by my sample of the Burst Core: The left click is notably stiffer than the right one. This is no inherent flaw or anything, but main button clicks being uneven or stiffer than expected can happen. For the Burst Core, ROCCAT has ditched most of the RGB lighting, which brings the weight down even further, to just 68 g. Despite the lightweight construction, the Burst Core feels impressively solid, without any creaking or flexing. As for the mouse feet, regular black-dyed feet are used, but frankly, I barely noticed a difference compared to the Burst Pro feet. Of course, the usual customization options are also provided within ROCCAT Swarm, which is pleasantly light on resources.

The two most significant downgrades from the Burst Pro concern the sensor and cable. PixArt's PMW3331 performs generally well, with good tracking and latency response. Most people would likely be hard-pressed to notice any difference to the PMW3389 in those departments, save for the lift-off distance (LOD), which is considerably higher. Personally, adjusting to the higher LOD wasn't an issue, but those less lenient in this regard may find the LOD off-putting, especially since there's no way to adjust it. The same goes for the cable: I had no trouble using it, but I'm sure most people will find it too stiff. Objectively speaking, the cable is definitely too stiff for a mouse this light.

Still, one has to put things into perspective. We're talking about a $30 mouse here, not a $60 one, and expecting the $30 Burst Core to match the $60 Burst Pro in all respects would be delusional. Some compromises had to be made, but for the most part, I feel they don't hamper the mouse much. I found myself enjoying the Burst Core almost as much as the Burst Pro in games, which is where it matters. The fact that you can get two Burst Core mice for the price of a single Burst Pro serves to illustrate how good of a deal this mouse is, and it becomes even more evident when looking at the competition. For $29.99, the SteelSeries Rival 3 comes with the same sensor, but higher weight, less quality, and no optical switches; it, in short, can't keep up. The Razer Viper Mini can and comes with a better cable, but costs $10 more. And that's it already—at $29.99, the ROCCAT Burst Core has pretty much no competition, which is why it gets the Editor's Choice and Budget awards from me.