Pwnage Altier Overview
The overall design of the Altier is what we would consider to be “basic”. While this may seem like a bad thing, it really comes down to personal preference, and in the end, a basic design will fit the hand of more users compared to a more shaped or contoured design. The subtle contouring found on the Altier is relegated to the left and right sides where your thumb and ring or pinky finger grip the mouse. You won’t find any sweeping curves or deep grooves for your fingers here, just a standard palm-grip mouse.
From the top, we see a symmetrical design, aside from the thumb buttons found on the left side of the mouse. Both the left and right mouse buttons are part of a single top piece of white plastic. Each button offers a slightly convex surface, which is a bit different from most gaming mice, which typically have slightly concave surfaces. Speaking of surfaces, the plastic surface of the Altier is smooth, hard plastic. There is no textured surface here or rubberized plastic, so your fingers are free to move around a bit if you would like. In between the left and right buttons is a textured mouse wheel with a slightly ridged scrolling motion. Each side of the mouse wheel has a semi-transparent plastic portion to allow the internal LED lighting to shine through. Just behind the mouse wheel are two buttons, labeled “+” and “-“. These buttons are configured to increase or decrease the the DPI setting between 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 5200, and 12000 DPI.
At the back of the mouse, beneath where your palm rests, is a Pwnage nameplate that is illuminated by the internal RGB LED lighting.
Moving to the left side of the Altier gives a good look at the slightly textured rubber grip. The honeycomb design gives just enough grip without being overly rough or irritating. Just above the slight contour of the thumb grip are two buttons, which default as forward and back buttons. Their size and shape make them easy to reach and press with a simple roll of your thumb.
The right side of the Altier is plain, aside from a full coverage of the honeycomb rubber grip.
At the front of the Altier is a very standard layout, with a braided cable exiting from the center of the mouse via a rubber connection.
Turning the mouse over gives way to a view of a pretty standard mouse underside. Two PTFE feet, one at the front and one at the back, provide a typical layout for smooth motions. Towards the center, but slightly back from where most mice have theirs placed, is the opening for the PixArt PMW3360 optical sensor. This sensor placement being a bit further back compared to most mice may make the mouse feel a bit slower if you are a “twitch” movement user, as it will have slightly less travel distance so close to the axis of movement that is your wrist. Just to the left side of the sensor is a 3-way switch that allows you to manually adjust the polling rate of the mouse between 250, 500, and 1000Hz.
