The Kain 120 AIMO (or 122 for the white model) is a new high-end gaming mouse from ROCCAT. It has a cheaper alternative in the Kain 100 (or 102 for the white one) with slightly more affordable internals, as well as the the Kain 200, a more expensive wireless model that won't be available for some time. They share the same right-handed ergonomic shape, and the shell is of medium size, but with a moderately high profile—it will most probably fit palm grippers with hands between approximately 16 and 20 centimeters best, which is just a rough guideline and shouldn't be taken for granted. It's a very safe shape I could claw grip with ease. Both Kain mice are available in black and white, with a new type of matte UV coating that's rather grippy and doesn't collect fingerprints easily.

Just like with most ROCCAT mice, build quality is stellar. There's nothing I could nitpick on. Everything is aligned perfectly, both outside and inside the shell. ROCCAT finally took weight reduction into consideration, and the mouse weighs 92 grams with a few centimeters of cable, which means it's not the lightest mouse you can get, but is well-balanced and feels great in the hands.

Buttons are among the best on the Kain 120, especially considering the main ones, which feature a brand-new, patented click mechanism. They are ridiculously good—very snappy and tactile with a medium tension. There is no unnecessary pre or post travel on them whatsoever, and they use Omron D2FC-F-K switches rated for 50 million clicks. The scroll wheel is equally superb. It's very tactile with well separated notches and a medium resistance—there is zero unnecessary play inside even a single notch, and the scroll wheel's surface is made out of some heavily textured rubber, which makes it feel fantastic. The middle mouse button is a tad too stiff for my taste, but I'm sure it won't be a problem for most users. Side buttons are great; they are light and spammable and have no unwanted travel, and the same can be said for the CPI button as well, though it feels a tad mushy.

Sensor performance is as good as you would expect it to be from a high-end optical tracking unit. The PMW3381 Owl-Eye sensor has a maximum resolution of 16,000 CPI and the usual 125, 250, 500 and 1000 Hz polling rates. Maximum tracking speed is very high, and there is no unwanted acceleration, filtering, or any kind of performance reduction—some smoothing on and above 1,900 CPI is present, though, so if you are a competitive gamer, you had best stay under that value.

Mouse feet on the Kain 120 are good even if I have definitely seen better. They are smooth and even, with moderately low friction. They have nicely rounded contact edges, and there are unfortunately no replacement sets in the box, which is a pity since these will wear out eventually. As for the cable, it's among the better ones, too. It's relatively light and flexible with a low amount of drag resistance.

The ROCCAT Swarm software is intuitive, offers a lot of customization, and is resource-friendly too—pretty much everything you'd like to see from such a program, and its new, completely overhauled version is coming out when the mouse is released to the public as well! RGB lighting is a huge selling point with most newer ROCCAT mice, hence the AIMO tag in their name. Naturally, the Kain 120 also offers the company's signature AI backlighting; the lights are very bright on the brightest setting, the colors look very vivid, and the transitions are buttery smooth.

ROCCAT claims that the Kain line is the result of two years of rigorous research and testing, which is definitely a lot for a gaming mouse. I've got to say it was definitely worth the time and effort they've put into this product as it really is fantastic, and looking at it objectively, there is no big negative I could highlight. Such quality has its price, of course. At $69.99, there are many competitors, but the Kain 120 is still exceptionally good in its price range. I would very much recommend the Kain 120 AIMO to those, from casuals to eSports professionals, who find the shape and specifications suitable for their needs. It's truly an amazing mouse with well-implemented features, and I hope to see more mice from the company with a similar approach!