INTRODUCTION
Being amongst the very first people on the planet to put a hardware component, peripheral or gadget to the test is something i always considered to be special and that's mainly the reason behind the many worldwide first reviews I’ve performed in the past. Of course this has nothing to do with me feeling special and such but rather with the fact that being amongst the first to actually see and use a finished product allows you to discover bugs which in turn can be fixed by the manufacturer without reaching the end user, or at least not many end users and that gives me plenty of satisfaction. Today we will be the first to take a look at the brand new Hellion gaming mouse designed and manufactured by a new kid (manufacturer) on the block called Leetgion.
Leetgion is composed of two words Leet + Legion. The word leet is an internet phrase derived from the word “Elite.” Often used as describing an individual or feet of superior skill or prowess. Legion, refers to a large military force or group. Our self-given description of the word Leetgion is: A group of elite individuals fighting alongside each other, conquering all that stands before them. Leetgion began in early 2010, originating from Thermalright, a company with over a decade of experience in top end, world class thermal solutions for PC enthusiasts. With our long involvement with PC enthusiasts and often PC gamers, we had a vision of expanding our product line for the PC gaming community, to deliver our expertise in quality and design. Gamers and PC enthusiasts know exactly know what they want, and don’t except compromises. Many will even choose to modify their equipment, overclock their PC systems just to get the exact performance they want. They praise the top custom modders, and never back down from challenges. That’s also the mentality here at Leetgion we deliver only the best no compromises. Our goal is simple, to provide the best in both quality and innovation. We’ll go the lengths of using nothing but the best components and technology to match our quality standards. We are not afraid of thinking outside of the box, and putting a spin to the standard. Leetgion understands that in the end it is the user that wins games, what we want is to let our peripherals be an extension of the user, to combine technology and human control.
Be Leet, Game Hard is Leetgions modo and as mentioned in their about they originate from our good old friends over at Thermalright. Certainly entering the gaming peripherals market is a long way from manufacturing some of the world’s top CPU Coolers but knowing Thermalright this shouldn't be a problem, at least not in the long run and the Hellion is proof for that since it not only performs great and has a number of impressive features (5000DPI laser sensor, Cherry-MX Blue mechanical switch, Japanese switches by Omron, dedicated attack button, profile switch wheel, 16.8 million color illumination) but its design also looks a lot like Legion from Mass Effect 2/3 (Leetgion/Legion coincidence?) and at least for an Mass Effect fan such as myself that automatically means extra bonus points. However the Hellion was not designed with shooters (1st/3rd person) in mind but RTS games and more specifically StarCraft II.
SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES
PACKAGING AND CONTENTS
The Hellion arrived inside a very small black box with the company logo at the front.
A small triangular opening is present at the rear of the box from which you can see the dedicated attack button.
Several tables with the unit’s technical specifications, system requirements and package contents can be seen at the bottom of the box.
Half of the surface found on each side is made by clear plastic.
Leetgion has used a very impressive box since after you remove the surrounding cover the box opens wide revealing the Hellion gaming mouse.
The bundle includes the Hellion gaming mouse, a user’s manual and 4 extra mouse feet.
THE HELLION
Ok the design of the Hellion is simply amazing and if that doesn't remind some of you of the Geth i don't really know what would.
The dedicated attack button featuring the Cherry MX blue switch is a nice touch as is the aluminum thumb rest area right in front of it.
The company logo is placed at the rear end right above the adjustable LED illumination area.
Surprisingly enough the Hellion doesn't have its DPI selection buttons (or button) at the top like most units out there but right next to the two primary buttons.
Instead of DPI buttons at the top we find the product name right on one of the unit’s illumination LEDs.
At the right side of the Hellion we also see a small area (pinky rest) covered with aluminum.
The scroll wheel works well but it would be nice if it came with a slightly harder rubber coating.
A long braided cable and a golden plated USB plug are always welcome.
One of the things that really stand out once you turn the Hellion over are the 4 large rubber feet.
Leetgion chose the Avago9500 5000DPI professional grade laser sensor to be the heart of the Hellion gaming mouse.
What really steals the show however is the profile selection wheel that allows you to choose on-the-fly between a total of 5 preconfigured profiles which as you can tell by their names are configured for use with StarCraft II (according to race).
The illumination of the Hellion may not be the best ever but it's certainly very good.
CONFIGURATOR SOFTWARE
There's no software CD bundled with the Hellion so prior to using it head onto the official website and download them (lower left corner).
The default preselected profile does not allow you to make any changes via the configurator software so you will either have to switch to another profile from within the program or from the profile wheel.
Once you do that you can now adjust every aspect of the Hellion such as the DPI resolution, X/Y axis speed, polling rate, scroll, pointer and double click speed. The configurator software also allows you to create Macros and set the desired illumination either from a small color pallet or from the entire 16.8m range of colors.
Unfortunately although the default profiles have the entire illumination set at a specific color you can only adjust the color of the rear LED.
CONCLUSION
The very first thing that surprised me with the Hellion was and still is its sci-fi influenced design which to me as mentioned many times in this review looks a lot like Legion/Geth from the Mass Effect series. The second thing that impressed me was the dedicated attack button mainly because of the Cherry MX blue switch used which according to specs (up to 50 million clicks) should be like new for plenty years to come. Of course the remaining buttons with the Japanese made D2F-F Omron switches are also top of the line but we've seen them before with high end gaming units. The profile wheel is also a very convenient add-on since it allows you to switch to the desired profile (up to 5 stored ones) with extreme ease (unlike most units that come with a single button). However not all is perfect with the Hellion and so because its body is not heavy enough and doesn't feature an adjustable weight system it took me quite a few hours to get used to it since it was ridiculously fast. The second (and smaller) drawback is the dedicated attack button which due to its somewhat large size can be clicked accidentally something which i did plenty of time until i got used of that as well. Overall the Hellion is a great gaming mouse with amazing features but if you are already using a good and somewhat heavy gaming mouse it will certainly take some time to get used to this one. Once you do however there is no going back.
The Hellion Gaming Mouse by Leetgion is a brand new product and so chances are that you will not be able to find it almost anywhere right now however the recommended price tag is set at around USD90 (so you can expect it for less in some areas). Many of you will almost certainly look at the 5000DPI laser sensor of the Hellion and question its price tag since it's indeed not the fastest sensor around however it is one of the most accurate ones i have ever used and sometimes that's far more important than speed, not that 5000DPI are not plenty for everyone. Bottom line the Hellion may not be a perfect gaming mouse (which one is?) but it comes with an excellent build quality, several features and a killer design and that's why it walks away with our Golden Award.
PROS
- Build Quality (Cherry MX Blue/Omron Switches)
- Design
- Dedicated Attack Button
- 5000DPI Laser Sensor (Very Accurate)
- Profile Wheel Selector
- Two DPI Selection Switches
- Braided Cable/Golden USB Connector
- Color illumination Control (Partial)
- User Friendly Configurator Software
CONS
- Price (For Some)
- Needs Getting Used To (Lightweight/Attack Button)