Thermaltake mice, two worlds apart

Regular MyGaming readers may know that I think Thermaltake peripherals are gaudy, sometimes pointless, and nearly always eye catching. They may also know that I have a fair amount of respect for their gaming mice; the original Thermaltake Black mouse was one of the most comfortable I’ve ever used.

So imagine my surprise when I came across what might just be the most beautiful mouse in the world, while busy laughing at the most stupid mouse “feature” in the world.

A few years back I got my hands on a Thermaltake Challenger Pro keyboard, mainly because the built in fan to cool your fingers while you game was both laughable and intriguing. It turned out to be as useful a power outage while gaming, but the company at least got an E for effort.

I thought the Challenger series would be the last I would see with built in fans, but Thermaltake was adamant that they had struck gold, and so have now stuck the same fan on… a mouse.

Thermaltake Black element cyclone

Really? Who are you catering for – the Gamers with Hyperhidrosis Organisation? Not once have I ever gamed in such poor conditions for so long, that my hand started slipping off my mouse thanks to the litres of sweat it was producing.

The mouse is part of the Black range, so it will probably be very comfortable, but is it really the “embodiment of TT eSports’ passion and dedication for technical superiority”?

Now while I was busy laughing at the absurdity of a fan on a mouse, something on the Thermaltake website caught my eye. I saw the “Level 10” branding alongside another Thermaltake mouse and had to find out what that was all about, half expecting a Rick Roll.

Well I’ll be noobtubed, one of the most beautiful gaming peripherals I’ve ever seen, and it’s made by the same company who thought putting a fan on a gaming mouse was a good idea.

Thermaltake Level 10 mouse

Now that’s not entirely true; like the Level 10 cases before it, the Level 10 mouse was a co-designed by Thermaltake and BMW group subsidiary DesignWorks USA, and I love it.

It has subtle lighting that shines through the top mouse grill in a way that’s classy rather than gaudy. It has a passive ventilation system that’s far more intuitive than a bit of Prestik and a cheap fan.

It has an adjustable height and tilt system to fit perfectly to your hands. Finally, it has a range of programmable side mouse buttons that allow for ambidextrous use.

All of the above sounds lovely, and together with the 8,200DPI sensor, programmable gaming profiles, and solid aluminium base, it will make for a feature-rich gaming experience.

I don’t care though. It could be a ball mouse from the early 90s underneath and I’d still buy it, if only to look at it and turn heads at the next LAN.

Thermaltake, how can you stick a fan on a gaming mouse and sell it with a straight face, then design this?