As soon as you plug the Naos 5000 in it comes to life, the leds glowing in Mionix's default green colour scheme.




The Naos 5000 has a very nice feel to it with the ergonomic shape and rubber coating being really very comfortable indeed. The added rubber coating on the wheel is also a nice touch and the wheel itself has a very smooth and precise motion without being either too loose or stiff. All the buttons have a satisfyingly smooth 'click' and it is clear that Mionix have invested in the very best components to ensure that the Naos 5000's operation is second to none.

Desktop Usage

The Naos 5000 performs very well as a general desktop mouse. The 'on-the-fly' adjustment of dpi is just as useful here as when gaming. Reading email and web browsing at a relatively low dpi was absolutely fine, but add in the ability to quickly switch up dpi when doing delicate editing in Photoshop and the Naos 5000 quickly showed it's colours! It's comfort and precision just made it a joy to use for any task.

Gaming Performance

I tested the Naos using a couple of games from different genres.

Crysis Warhead allowed for great testing of the on-the-fly dpi adjustment as when sniping it was superb to be able to step up the dpi to get a much more accurate shot, and the general fluidity that the Naos 5000 gave the game was amazing – it was like adding a few fps which in Warhead is no mean feat!

World In Conflict was also an improved experience with the Naos 5000, as again the ability to quickly up the dpi to move around maps faster really gave an extra edge to the gameplay which a cheaper mouse couldn't hope to emulate. I felt no strain at all in prolonged gaming sessions as the glide and comfort of the Naos 5000 put next to no strain on fingers, hand and wrist! Overall, after more than a few hours of intense play it was obvious that in the Naos 5000 Mionix have hit the mark.



Conclusion

Mionix have crafted a superb gaming mouse in the Naos 5000. They have clearly taken what was best from their earlier designs and added both functionality and performance whilst maintaining their fantastic level of quality. The Naos 5000 has a superb feel straight out of the box, but add to that it's customisable weight system and infinitely configurable software options and you truly have a mouse for any and every occasion.

So, we like it. We like it lots in fact – that should be pretty obvious by now! There is however, one little thing we're not quite so keen on... the price! It is a pricey mouse, even for a high performance gaming mouse. But consider this – it is without a doubt amongst the best gaming mice available today and it should last and last given the clear quality of the components used, so if you are after the ultimate in gaming mice the Mionix Naos 5000 is definitely one not to miss!

The Mionix Naos 5000 is a deserving winner of Vortez Hardware's Gold Award!

Pros + Superb ergonomic design + All 7 buttons fully programmable + Infinitely customisable via software + Onboard memory for stored profiles with on-the-fly switching + Weight adjustment system + 5040 dpi Cons - Price

We would like to thank Mionix for this sample. Discuss this review on our forums