Logitech G305 Lightspeed review

The first thing you notice when you see the Logitech G305 gaming mouse is how little it looks like a gaming mouse. These are typically large, black and horned (seriously, many gaming mice have sharp protrusions at the front). The modern gaming mouse looks more like an angry beetle than a curly tailed mouse.

But you wouldn’t describe the G305 like this. It has a more traditional shape and size, and fits comfortably in the hand. It doesn’t have any ergonomic extra features, but it is comfortable enough to use.

Comfort aside, Logitech isn’t as thoughtful about where the position of its extra buttons are, in the way you’d say they are with premium gaming products like the Logitech G502 Lightspeed. The G305 has two side-mounted buttons which are both slim plastic strips and can be difficult to differentiate between.

These buttons, plus the standard controls on the top of the mouse, can be assigned custom commands in the Logitech G Hub app for Windows and Mac. All six buttons can be switched from default commands, and these can be different from app to app, game to game. You can even create your own Macros in the G Hub app that can be applied to one of the available buttons.

In a number of important ways, the G305 is similar to a more expensive Logitech gaming mouse. It uses the same Lightspeed wireless technology with a maximum 1000Hz report rate over wireless and a maximum sensor resolution of 12,000 DPI, and has a dedicated DPI cycle button to shift quickly between up to 5 user set sensitivity settings. It also uses the same G Hub software to customise an impressive number of options.

There are key differences too. The G305 is a wireless only device, so there is no wired USB option or Bluetooth. It also lacks an internal, rechargeable battery, and instead uses a single AA battery. On the plus side, it enjoys four times more battery life than other Logitech gaming mice.

Of course, it is important to keep price in mind too. The Logitech G502 (currently our favourite gaming mouse) can cost three-times as much as the G305, and though it has a lot of the extras that gamers look for in a mouse, the cost is prohibitive for some. The G305 has the basics in place, even if you forgo all of the bells and whistles.

At $99.95 RRP the price is right for a gaming mouse that offers what the G305 offers, and for the features it lacks. In fact, we’d be surprised if you actually paid this much, as the street price tends to hover around the $70 mark.

Most gaming mice under $100 are wired models too, so getting a wireless gaming mouse at this price, and one that uses Logitech’s excellent Lightspeed tech, is great value.