Over the years, ROCCAT has established a reputation for producing mice with impeccable build quality and incredibly solid internals. The Kone Pro is no exception in this regard. Despite weighing just 64 g, not resorting to external holes, and being a medium-size mouse, the Kone Pro is impressively well built. On my copy, I wasn't able to actuate the side buttons by applying lateral pressure at all, the shell doesn't flex, and there is virtually no creaking. Much like on previous ROCCAT releases, the scroll wheel is very good, and provides tactile scrolling with clearly discernible steps. The side buttons are positioned well, not as large as on the Burst Pro and Burst Core, and their response is snappy and firm.

Much like on the Burst Pro and Core, the main buttons are outfitted with optical switches. On paper, optical switches have several benefits over mechanical switches: They don't ever develop double-clicking due to wear and tear, and if done correctly, their latency is typically below most mechanical switch implementations. This is also the case on the Kone Pro, as click latency is exceptionally low, virtually on par with Razer's implementation. But when it comes to click feel, the Kone Pro is a bit lacking. Whereas my copy of the Burst Pro was excellent in terms of button uniformity, I've already noticed above average variance between the left and right main button on the Burst Core, and this continues with the Kone Pro. Whereas the right button is very tactile and satisfying to press on my unit, the left button feels muted, dull, and severely lacking in tactility. Of course, this doesn't mean every unit will exhibit this issue in the first place or to this degree, but based on my experience with ROCCAT optical switches, it is at least fair to say that a non-negligible number of units may suffer from above average variance between the left and right buttons. On a $60 mouse, I'm still somewhat lenient in this regard, but on an $80 mouse such as the Kone Pro, I'd expect button uniformity to be near-perfect no matter what. Those sensitive to button inconsistency may essentially be forced to go on a gamble, which is no doubt undesirable. At the same time, I don't want to emphasize this more than necessary—those less sensitive may not even notice anything. At the end of the day, whether one is bothered by this is very much subjective.

The Kone Pro utilizes the PAW3370, PixArt's latest flagship sensor for both wired and wireless applications. Primarily built for wireless use, the 3370 isn't entirely trivial to implement, and in the past, some manufacturers have struggled to make it perform as well as intended in wired mice. Thankfully, ROCCAT has managed to deliver a flawless implementation: CPI deviation is kept to a minimum, motion delay is excellent across the board, and polling stability without fault. Coupled with the highly flexible cable, which is basically the same as on the Burst Pro, and the pure PTFE mouse feet, which are the same as on the Burst Pro, the Kone Pro fares very well when it comes to performance. It is also worth mentioning that a set of replacement mouse feet is included with the Kone Pro.

Though the RGB lighting is restricted to the front of the Kone Pro, it is done tastefully and allows for a variety of lighting effects without looking tacky. Customization is done through trusty old ROCCAT Swarm, which has all the necessary options at an appreciably low RAM footprint. However, unlike during previous encounters with Swarm, I've noticed it hogging the CPU quite a bit even when idling, and what's worse, games suffered from hitching, FPS drops, and lower FPS in general. Considering this hasn't happened before, this may just be a bug or exclusive to my system, but it's worth mentioning at least, and something to keep in mind.

All in all, there isn't much wrong with the ROCCAT Kone Pro. Especially those seeking a middle ground between the large Kone EMP and small Kone Pure Ultra should be pleased to finally be given a medium-size option, and even though a trademark trait such as the thumb groove is still present, it is no longer as aggressive and therefore likely more agreeable to a lot of people. On the other hand, on an $80 mouse, I simply expect tighter tolerances when it comes to the main buttons. As a consequence, I've settled on our Recommended award.

When looking at the competition, the Kone Pro indeed is somewhat pricey. For $89.99, the ASUS ROG Gladius III comes with push-fit switch sockets that allow for both optical and mechanical switches, exceptionally low click latency, flawless performance, and an appreciably low weight, but one has to deal with Armoury Crate in order to get the latest firmware, which is absolutely vital. The $59.99 Corsair Sabre RGB Pro too does without holes, yet only weighs 72 g at a large size, has 8000 Hz polling, great performance, and low click latency, but a somewhat stiff cable, along with iCUE, which is almost as horrid as Armoury Crate. The Mountain Makalu 67 only weighs 64 g, but does have holes, along with great sensor performance, excellent buttons, low click latency, and a highly flexible cable, with the resource-heavy software being the only con, for $59.99. Finally, the Pulsar Xlite is even lighter at 48 g, though one has to deal with holes and the omission of a dedicated CPI button, and comes with great performance, low click latency, and a flexible cable, for $59.99.