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Premium Mice Vs. Budget Mice: How Much Better Are They?

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The humble mouse can be a hugely important part of your setup – depending on what you do on your PC. For gamers, the mouse is the single most important peripheral you can buy. However, if you’re not into gaming and use your PC for email, browsing, and entertainment purposes, it might not be at the top of your priorities list. 

That being said, the budgetary difference between premium mice and budget mice is pretty huge in today’s market. You can pick up a low-end mouse for as little as $10 right now, however, on the other end of the spectrum, premium mice go for well over $100. 

For that reason, we’re going to compare two mice from the opposite ends of the spectrum to see how much they truly differ. 

So, let’s waste no further time and dive straight into it!

Whilst we could have picked any number of mice to use for the budget-oriented option, we decided to go for the Thermaltake TT Esports Challenge gaming mouse. We decided on this little beaut for a couple of reasons – one being the stupidly low price point it comes equipped with. You can actually grab the mouse and keyboard combo for as little as $20 – making the mouse, at most, a $10 investment. Not too shabby. 

Another reason why we opted for this particular mouse was down to the marketing. Thermaltake class this mouse as “gaming-grade”, equipped with what they class as a gaming-grade optical sensor with up to 2400DPI. 

The mouse itself is fairly lightweight – bang in line with current trends – and hosts a nice amount of RGB. The side grips seem effective (albeit a little flimsy) and it offers a couple of buttons for key bindings and other useful in-game stuff.

As for the premium mouse, well, we opted for one of the most popular high-end gaming mice we could find – the Logitech G Pro wireless. We’re pretty big fans of the Logitech G Pro wireless here at WePC, mainly because it offers up pretty much everything you could want from a modern-day gaming peripheral. 

I won’t go into too much detail at this stage regarding the ins and outs of the G Pro – we’ll be running a comparison of that shortly – but for the most part, this mouse hits shelves for around $130, meaning you could literally buy the TT Esports challenge 13 times for the same price.

The first area we’re going to focus on is aesthetics. Whilst looks don’t have any impact on the performance of the mouse, it’ll still be interesting to see what difference you get with two mice that are roughly $100 apart. 

TT Challenger: Starting with the budget pick, the TT esports challenger doesn’t look as terrible as the price tag might suggest. It offers up a certain ‘gamey’ aesthetic that is fairly popular in today’s market. The TT Challenger also offers up three RGB lighting zones (one at the base and two on the sides) which really set this mouse off nicely. The side grips have a grill-like design that looks pretty cool, and the edges of the Challenger are all fairly angular too. Overall, the aesthetics aren’t all that bad. If you want a mouse that looks like something you’d game with, you can’t really knock this too much.

Logitech G Pro: The Logitech G Pro is much more basic when compared to the TT Esports Challenger. It offers very little in terms of aesthetic features, coming to the table with a smooth, rounded shape that is simple yet elegant. The G Pro comes with one RGB light zone, soft curves, and subtle buttons which don’t protrude out a great deal. Ultimately, you can describe this mouse as the polar opposite of a gaming mouse – for looks at least. However, that doesn’t necessarily make it a bad design.

Result: Aesthetics is all down to personal preference. So, to say one is better than the other would be a viewpoint based on my own taste. That said, the result of this round is a draw.

Build quality is an area in a mouse’s construction that needs to be taken extremely seriously – especially if you don’t want to be purchasing a mouse every 3-4 months. From a build quality standpoint, I expect to see a large difference between these two particular mice – let’s see. 

TT Challenger: Thermaltake’s Esports Challenger is a $10 mouse, so it would be an understatement to say I didn’t expect much from the build quality. The first test I normally run with a budget mouse is to find out how rigid the design is. I usually do this by applying decent pressure to the shell of the mouse to see if there’s any creaking or bending. As expected, there was a little – but not as much as I thought there might be. The buttons felt a little flimsy, especially the side buttons that freely moved up and down, and the side grips didn’t fill me with any real confidence either. When I shook the mouse aggressively, there was a lot going on inside. This was the first downfall for the Challenger and one that, to be honest, was no surprise. 

Logitech G Pro: The Logitech, in comparison, feels absolutely rock solid. I’ve come to know Logitech well over the years and they never really disappoint too much in the build quality department. The G Pro, however, is one of their flagship gaming mice, meaning you know they’ve spent the time making sure it was as well-built as can be. There was zero movement when pressure was applied and no sound when the mouse was rattled. The buttons feel tactile and sturdy – including the side buttons. Considering this is an 80-gram mouse, you’d probably assume Logitech may have skipped a few corners in terms of build quality. However, after using this mouse for some time, I can conclude it still feels as rock-solid as the day we purchased it.

Result: Pretty much a no brainer this one, the Logitech G Pro is by far the superior mouse when it comes to construction and build quality. That said, the TT does show a good account of itself in this department – especially at the price point. However, the result for this round goes to the G Pro.

Features are hugely important when it comes to a gaming mouse, mainly because they can alter the level of in-game performance you can achieve. That said, it’ll be interesting to see how many additional features the Logitech G Pro offers over the $100 less TT Challenger. 

TT Challenger: Starting with the TT Esports Challenger, features are, let’s say, on the limited side. Thermaltake’s offering doesn’t come with a whole bunch of features if truth be told, however, the ones it does offer are helpful in a gaming scenario. 

The Challenger comes equipped with the A702 optical sensor, providing 2400DPI, 30 IPS, and 10G of acceleration. Whilst these figures don’t sound overly impressive, they’re more than enough for most gamers’ needs – including top-level gaming. If you look at professional esports players, you’ll rarely see them use over 1200DPI.

Sensor aside, the Challenger offers six bindable buttons, an ergonomically designed shape, and a lightweight feel that’s good for FPS. This particular mouse does not offer any software, so customization is almost nil. However, for $10, you can’t argue a great deal.

Logitech G Pro: The Logitech G Pro is arguably one of the best mice they offer, so it’s no surprise to learn it comes with a huge list of features that are geared to all usage scenarios. For a start, the sensor – Logitech’s HERO optical – is considered one of the best in the world. It provides pinpoint accuracy, pixel-accurate tracking, and zero acceleration or filtering.

The design of the G Pro is ambidextrous and lightweight, making it perfect for gamers or general users alike. The G Pro is also fully wireless and can be paired with a charging mat for unlimited battery life. The wireless technology offers lightspeed connectivity, providing users with the perfect connection to their gaming universe. Furthermore, with its onboard memory, you’ll be able to save your perfect setup to the mouse, allowing you the freedom to take the G Pro wherever you want.

Result: As you’ve probably guessed, this round goes to the G Pro again. However, many still consider some of the features the G Pro comes with as non-essential. That being said, it’s still another win for the G Pro.

Lastly, we have gaming. Whilst not everyone reading this will be looking for a mouse to game with, gaming is (for me) the number one way to test a mouse’s pedigree. Luckily, the two mice we’re testing today have been designed for gamers specifically, so it’ll be interesting to see how they compare.

TT Challenger: First up we have the TT Challenger – the first thing I noticed when I started using this mouse for gaming was how it felt in my hand. To be honest, it didn’t feel horrific – I mean, If you were new to gaming, it would probably feel quite nice. I loaded up the minimum DPI settings (800DPI) and fired up my favorite game – CS:GO.

The tracking on the TT challenger actually felt pretty good at first. Once I’d sorted my sensitivity out I was able to lock onto enemies pretty well. Headshots were a little tricky at first, mainly because I wasn’t used to the weight, but once I became accustomed to the mouse it felt quite nice. One thing I did notice, however, was the lift-off distance was quite high. With this being the case, when I lift the mouse up to move, it was still picking up my mouse movements – annoyingly. I also experienced a little jitter and some annoying spinouts that caused me to die a few times.

The buttons weren’t the best things in the world, my thumb kept hitting the side buttons when in intense battle scenarios. Overall, however, it wasn’t actually that bad.

Logitech G Pro: I then loaded up the G Pro and fired up the same game with the same settings. The difference at first wasn’t massively noticeable. I mean, it was there, obviously, but it wasn’t mind-boggling.

The G Pro was definitely smoother and tracking felt extremely clean. The feet were also much nicer on the mouse pad – providing very little unwanted abrasion. The wireless technology worked seamlessly and at no point did I feel it was hindering my gameplay. The shape of the mouse was a great fit for my hand – medium/large – and gave me the confidence to take on pretty much every 1-on-1 battle – something I couldn’t boast when using the Thermaltake. I experienced zero jitter or acceleration and at no point did the mouse spinout. The buttons felt very crisp and snappy – much more appealing that the characteristics of the Challenger. The weight distribution felt extremely good and, paired with the shape, you could tell this had been designed for the highest level of gaming performance.

Result: It’ll come as no surprise to say the Logitech took this round as well. It was smoother, more accurate, and provided better aim when it mattered most. It also came with features that allowed me to elevate my gaming performance which the TT couldn’t offer.

For me, I take peripheral purchases very seriously. I’ve been playing competitive esports titles for over 15 years now, so getting the absolute best performance is something I look for regularly. So, in my eyes, there’s only one winner here, and it’s the Logitech G Pro Wireless.

That said, for individuals that are less competitively charged and enjoy more casual gaming with their friends, the TT Challenger would probably be absolutely fine for their specific needs.

I suppose it all comes down to what you actually need and prioritize in a peripheral. If you’re looking for a new mouse that is going to spend most of its time on Microsoft Office or Google Chrome, the TT Esports Challenger is going to serve you extremely well – especially if you like the aesthetics.

That said, for gamers who are looking to take their play to the next level, there is literally no compromise when it comes to your mouse. For FPS players, it’s the number one most important peripheral you can purchase. And for that reason, I think the Logitech G Pro is massively better than the Thermaltake Challenger and warrants every penny of that $100 price increase.

So, there you have it, our quick comparison between our budget mouse vs premium mouse. We hope it helped you make a more informed decision on whether to spend that little bit extra on your next peripheral. If you have any questions regarding the mice we’ve used, feel free to drop us a comment in the section below. Better still, why not head on over to our Community Hub where you can discuss everything gaming and peripheral related.

Monitor & PC Product Specialist AT WEPC

Charlie Noon

Summary

Charlie has been with WePC for nearly 5 years now, becoming a senior tech writer in 2021. He started off writing monitor and TV reviews, but quickly moved into a more affiliate-based role. After finishing College, Charlie pursued his joy of PC gaming by building several PCs for his favourite game, Counter-Strike. To this day, Charlie continues to enjoy gaming and PC building inside and outside of the office.

Experience

Charlie started his career with BGFG after a long 5-year stint traveling Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. While he could have pursued a further career in the building trade, he decided to delve into the world of PC gaming and journalism. Being a keen gamer and PC builder, it was easy to transition between the two industries. After showcasing a real joy for both writing and PC building, he was moved into a more senior position, which he continues to hold to this day.

Education

Charlie completed his A levels at Culcheth College. After, he took a 5-year break to travel and work overseas.