The current gaming mouse landscape seems to be dominated by the pursuit of making the lightest gaming mouse that can still perform, and while that’s a very exciting endeavor that we’ve been following keenly we also know that there are people who actually prefer heftier, more full-featured products as far as their gaming mice are concerned.
The Logitech G903 isn’t the newest kid on the block by any means, but we’ve seen this mouse pop up on our pro gear lists here and there so we thought it’d be a good idea to give this one a fair spin as well. It’s a LIGHTSPEED wireless mouse with modular side buttons and a ton of extra features which could make it the ideal weapon of choice for gamers who prefer features and a certain weight over the stripped down and lightweight mice that seem to be making headlines these days.
Read our review to find out if it’s worth it or not.
At a Glance
Logitech G903
Used by 8 players ()The G903 has a nice and comfortable shape and packs all the features you could ever need on a gaming mouse (minus maybe a sniper button) and it has an amazing scroll wheel to boot. This all means that it’s a pretty hefty and large mouse (at 110 grams) but if you can get over that this is one of the better gaming mice out there in its category.
Pros
- Tons of extra buttons and options to configure
- Flawless wireless performance
Cons
- Heavy
- Can feel bulky due to the size and weight
Specs
Sensor | PMW 3366 |
---|---|
Polling Rate | 125 / 250 / 500 / 1000 Hz |
Button Switches | Omron |
Connection | Wireless |
Shape | Ambidextrous |
Length | 13cm |
Height | 3.9cm |
Weight | 110g |
Width | 6.6cm |
First Impressions
From the moment you open up the luxurious looking box (the actual box is in a cardboard sleeve) you’ll be very aware of the fact that this is one of Logitech’s premium products. The G903 sits on this sort of pedestal within the box, making you feel a bit as if you’re the chosen one who just pulled Excalibur out of its stone when you first grab hold of it.
The mouse itself kind of reminds me of Christopher Nolan’s interpretation of the Batmobile. It’s a long and flat matte black mouse with aggressive looking angles and a lot of cutouts. Towards the back of the mouse you’ll find the Logitech G logo (which is the RGB element of this mouse) but aside from that there’s no branding on the product.
On the bottom of the mouse there’s an on/off switch, along with a button to switch between on-board profiles and a little plastic cover which can be removed, allowing you to put the extra 10 gram weight in the mouse should you want that.
The G903 is definitely a larger mouse, and that also means that it’s gonna be carrying around a certain weight. I ended up with 110 grams on my scale (107 if you leave the plastic cover on the bottom off completely) and while that’s definitely a bit hefty these days it’s also not outrageous given the size and features of this product.
Speaking of features: it’s gonna be hard to beat the G903 on that front. It comes with two sets of side buttons (lefties rejoice), an optional extra weight, a tilting scroll wheel (which can also be set to free scroll mode) and two extra buttons on top.
Packaging
While I don’t really care about the packaging of a gaming mouse (I can’t imagine that a lot of people do either) I have to say that this is really nicely done. The G903 comes in a very sturdy and premium looking box and included in the packaging you get this small carrying case for the additional side buttons, the optional weight, and the USB receiver and dongle.
I always like it when companies include something to store small little accessories which could otherwise easily get lost somewhere due to their size, so props to Logitech for this.
Shape, Coating, and Mouse Feet
As I mentioned before the G903 is a pretty large mouse, and it also feels pretty thin and ‘long’ to me. As a disclaimer: I think that my hands are slightly too small for this mouse (they are 18 x 10.2 cm) so do take this observation with a grain of salt. Aside from that it does have, perhaps surprisingly, a pretty safe (ambidextrous) shape if your hands are appropriately sized.
When you’re using the mouse you don’t really feel the cutouts and aggressive looking design choices, so you definitely shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. The actual ‘grip design’ features no odd angles or bumps, with the back of the mouse smoothly flaring out from the pretty thin front and center part, making this one of Logitech’s safer shapes out there if you ask me.
The coating looks like your standard matte coating at first, but I can’t help but feel like part of the coating (especially towards the side part where you find the vertical stripes) has a bit of rubber(ized) material in there. Rubber or not; the G903 is definitely up there as far as coating is concerned. It feels very pleasant to the touch and performs perfectly under all conditions, even after multiple hours of use.
The G903 has modular side buttons, and by default the two left buttons are installed. The buttons are nicely positioned and easy to distinguish, and swapping them out is easy as one two three thanks to the intuitive magnetic attachment system. An issue that can sometimes arise with removable (side) buttons is that they can feel flimsy to use, but once you’ve snapped these buttons in place they feel as if they’ve been there since the mouse rolled off the production line.
On top of the mouse there are three buttons; one is for unleashing the free scroll wheel and the other two are fully programmable buttons that can be configured to do pretty much anything you want in Logitech’s software.
Despite all of these extra features and buttons the G903 never feels cluttered or gimmicky when using it. Everything is nicely designed (the little plate that covers the set of side buttons that you’re not using fits so nicely that you wouldn’t even know you can take it off, for instance) and positioned in a clever way so that you never feel as if you’re operating a spaceship or some ‘slap in all the features that we can find’ abomination.
All in all I have to give Logitech my compliments. Most of these feature-heavy mice don’t sit well with me, partly because I’m not a fan of them in general, but also because of the fact that they often feel too busy and distracting. While I can’t say that the G903 has changed my opinion about these types of mice I do have to say that I didn’t think this mouse was too busy in any way.
Recommended Grip Types
As I mentioned before in this review the G903 has, despite what the looks might indicate, a rather safe shape. I can’t get rid of the idea that it’s unusually long though, but that might be because of the fact that my hands are a bit too small for this mouse.
Aside from the size (which is fine, not every mouse should cater to people with small to medium hands) this is, if you’re asking me, one of Logitech’s better shapes out there at this point in time, at least when it comes to catering to a variety of grip styles. No strong angles or bumps means that you can hold this mouse pretty much any way you want to, as it doesn’t force you to place your fingers in a certain position.
If you’ve got medium to large hands this shape will accommodate most grip varieties that you can think of while keeping your hands comfortable to boot.
Buttons and Scroll Wheel
To me, Logitech’s mouse buttons are among the best ones out there, and the G903 isn’t an exception to that. The main buttons require just about the right amount of force to actuate (for me) and both actuate with a clear and crispy click. Whether you prefer heavier or lighter clicks depends on personal preference (if I’m talking ‘behind the comma margins’ I’d like these clicks to be just a smidgen heavier, for example) but these don’t really lean heavily towards either side of the spectrum so they’re an ideal middle ground.
One of the eyecatchers of the G903 is definitely the scroll wheel. On its own it’s ‘just’ a more than decent scroll wheel, with a healthy mixture of definition and smoothness when scrolling, but press the button right underneath said scroll wheel and you -quite literally- unlock its full potential.
A free scrolling wheel means that there are no steps to the scroll wheel, so if you just give it a good ol’ spin it’ll keep going until it runs out of kinetic energy. Admittedly the most useful application for this will be when you’re browsing or doing work, but this kind of wheel can also be utilized by people who like to bunnyhop around the map in CS:GO, for example. In essence: if you play a game(mode) where you want to spam a certain input as fast as possible this sort of wheel can be used to great effect.
The wheel also tilts, which means that you can tilt the scroll wheel left or right and use that as yet another input method. Tilting the wheel is easy enough to do, and the same goes for clicking it straight down.
The side buttons feel great to use (on both sides) as well. The button(s) towards the front sometimes feel a bit difficult and mushy to press, but I suspect that has more to do with the fact that my hands feel a bit too small for this mouse and that I, as a consequence, I usually have to grab the button at the very end of it.
The two buttons on top of the mouse can be programmed to do anything you want them to do as well, but they’re in the standard DPI button spot (which is logical since that’s what they’re used for by default) so I wouldn’t count on using those in any game with a bit of pace to it, but it’s nice that you have the option for other types of games or productivity.
Build Quality and Cable
When shaking the G903 you can hear the scroll wheel moving a bit. I suppose that’s only natural, since it’s not your average scroll wheel, but it is something to note. This honestly doesn’t get annoying though, since it rarely moves when you’re doing a regular big swipe and even if it does it’s a rather subtle and quiet ‘tick’ sound. Shaking the mouse vertically does reveal a bit more parts that audibly rattle around but no one moves their mouse in that manner so that really is a non-issue to me.
The G903 was one of Logitech’s first mice to use the now widely lauded LIGHTSPEED technology, which is the company’s proprietary lossless wireless tech. These aren’t empty marketing claims either: I’ve tested a large variety of LIGHTSPEED devices by now and I never had my connection drop or noticed any delays or other irregularities. The time of wireless mice being automatically inferior to their wired counterparts is well and truly over, and that’s an exciting idea if you ask me.
There’s a rechargeable battery in the G903 which will give you about 24 hours of ingame battery life with the RGB turned on and around 30 with the lighting turned off. I found this to be quite accurate, so you won’t be running out of juice in all but the longest gaming marathons. In case you do manage to deplete the battery you can still use the mouse with the charging cable attached, by the way.
Sensor and Everyday Performance
The G903 features the flawless 3366 sensor. This particular sensor (or any of its variants, of which Logitech’s HERO is one) is the de facto standard for gaming these days, as it translates all of your movements with pixel perfect precision and no prediction or acceleration.
The mouse connects to your PC via a tiny little USB receiver, but Logitech also includes an extra extension piece so that you can stick the receiver on the end of the charging cable in case your PC is too far away from your mousepad. I’m not an expert on wireless technology but I don’t really notice any difference between the receiver sitting a meter away from me versus having it right next to the pad, but it’s a free extra option so I’m not complaining.
If you’ve got a PowerPlay mousepad on your desk (or wherever you’re going to use this mouse) you won’t ever have to worry about charging the G903 by the way, as the pad will do that for you wirelessly. I’ve always thought that this PowerPlay technology is pretty rad and I applaud the innovation, but sadly there isn’t a PowerPlay pad (yet?) that’s large enough for the sensitivity that I use, so I can’t really comment on this functionality.
The storage on the mouse itself allows you to store up to five different profiles, which is great news for people who are often taking their gear to game away from home. What profile you’ve selected is indicated by a combination of three small LED strips on the center of the mouse which also indicate battery life.
Logitech G903 Review – Conclusion
The G903 isn’t going to be for everyone (and it’s not for me either, in all honesty) but if you’re the type of person who likes a full-featured mouse and you have larger hands then this one should absolutely be on your list. Lefties can also add this one to their (short) list of truly ambidextrous mice, as the side buttons are modular.
In conclusion: the G903 has a nice and comfortable shape and packs all the features you could ever need on a gaming mouse (minus maybe a sniper button) and it has an amazing scroll wheel to boot. This all means that it’s a pretty hefty and large mouse (at 110 grams) but if you can get over that this is one of the better gaming mice out there in its category.
This product was received for free from the manufacturer and given to our reviewer to test and review. Brands and manufacturers have no editorial control over our reviews. For more information, check out our review FAQ.
I DONT RECOMMEND unless you have patience and love sending emails and here is why I have 2 G903’s BUT they both have a double-clicking issue and a 3rd one is on its way. I actually do love this mouse and it performed well but I get annoyed when it starts double clicking when I only click once and having to wait a month for another one just isn’t fun. I don’t think this issue is on every G903 but if my 3rd G903 starts double clicking then I’m not sure what I’m going to do.
The double clicking is a common RMA reason for Logitech mice it seems but having to replace two of them does seem like bad luck. Hopefully the third time’s the charm. I do hope Logitech manages to fix this problem in their new releases though. Even if it’s only affecting a small percentage of the user base I think it’d give people some peace of mind when ordering their new products.
How do u set it up for left handed, so the buttons work right???
You need to download Logitech’s software and configure it there. You can disable and enable certain buttons in their software.
In your opinion do you think that this mouse would be a good choose for Fortnite? And if so is the price difference between the G903 and the G pro wireless worth going with the 903?
It depends on how much you value the extra buttons and features that the G903 offers and how important weight is to you. Fortnite pros generally use lighter mice (the large amount of FinalMouse products when compared to other scenes has an effect on that, but still) but if you don’t care about weight the G903 could be a hit for you.
If you only use two side buttons and/or you prefer a lighter mouse I’d go for the G Pro Wireless though. The G903 is a great mouse but it is fairly hefty due to the size and weight, so it’s definitely not as much of an ‘allrounder’ as the G Pro Wireless.
should i buy the g903 or the g pro wireless
Depends on what you’re looking for in a mouse, your hand size and grip style, and weight preferences. For pure (shooter) gaming I’d say the G Pro Wireless is the better option but that’s just my personal opinion.
thanks bro i will buy the g pro wireless 😉
No problem, good choice!