The SteelSeries Rival 500 is an excellent wired gaming mouse for MMO games. It has a fairly ergonomic, right-handed design, and a ton of additional programmable buttons. Its companion software is available for both Windows and macOS, but unfortunately, the mouse is quite heavy and there's no weight optimization, so fans of lightweight mice will want to look elsewhere.
Our Verdict
The SteelSeries Rival 500 is a very good mouse for office or multimedia use. Its slanted, right-handed design makes it quite comfortable in palm grip for any hand size, and nobody should have issues reaching any of the 17 buttons. All the buttons can be reprogrammed on either Windows or macOS to help you navigate through your desktop or applications quickly, and the mouse feels very well-built.
- Lots of programmable buttons.
- Suitable for any hand size with palm grip.
- Software is fully compatible with Windows or macOS.
- Cable maintains kinks from packaging and is a bit stiff.
The SteelSeries Rival 500 is a decent FPS mouse. While its click latency is fairly low and its sensor performance is excellent, unfortunately, the mouse is quite heavy, which may make it difficult to quickly move around. It's a great mouse for fans of palm grip, as it's suitable for any hand size comfortably, but its shape isn't designed for fingertip grip, and small hands will have a hard time reaching all the buttons with a claw grip.
- Lots of programmable buttons.
- Suitable for any hand size with palm grip.
- Software is fully compatible with Windows or macOS.
- Cable maintains kinks from packaging and is a bit stiff.
The SteelSeries Rival 500 is an excellent MMO mouse. While it doesn't have a typical 12-button side panel like most other dedicated MMO mice, it has a ton of programmable buttons spread all over the mouse. Its slanted, right-handed shape is quite comfortable for extended use, and all hand sizes should be able to reach all the buttons when using palm grip.
- Lots of programmable buttons.
- Suitable for any hand size with palm grip.
- Software is fully compatible with Windows or macOS.
- Cable maintains kinks from packaging and is a bit stiff.
The SteelSeries Rival 500 is quite heavy and isn't recommended for fans of ultra-light gaming.
- Lots of programmable buttons.
- Suitable for any hand size with palm grip.
- Software is fully compatible with Windows or macOS.
- Cable maintains kinks from packaging and is a bit stiff.
The SteelSeries Rival 500 isn't recommended for travel. It's rather bulky and heavy and its wired-only design means you'll have a cumbersome cable to deal with.
- Lots of programmable buttons.
- Suitable for any hand size with palm grip.
- Software is fully compatible with Windows or macOS.
- Cable maintains kinks from packaging and is a bit stiff.
Changelog
- Updated Oct 06, 2020: Converted to Test Bench 1.0.
- Updated Feb 04, 2020: Review published.
- Updated Jan 30, 2020: Early access published.
- Updated Jan 30, 2020: Our testers have started testing this product.
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Popular Mouse Comparisons
The SteelSeries Rival 500 is a slightly slanted mouse designed for FPS gaming, but with a plethora of additional programmable buttons. Its performance is similar to the SteelSeries Rival 600 but it has way more buttons.
See our recommendations for the best gaming mouse, the best wired gaming mouse, and the best mouse overall.
The SteelSeries Rival 500 and the Logitech G502 HERO are excellent MMO gaming mice. The SteelSeries is more comfortable to use, better suited for people with small hands, and has more programmable buttons. On the other hand, the Logitech has a better cable that's more flexible, has lower click latency, and has a more adjustable CPI range.
The SteelSeries Rival 500 is a better wired MMO mouse than the Redragon M908. The SteelSeries has a more comfortable design, is better suited for people with small hands, has a faster click latency, and is fully compatible with macOS. On the other hand, the Redragon has weight optimization options and more programmable buttons.
The SteelSeries Rival 500 is a much better wired MMO mouse than the Havit HV-MS760. The SteelSeries feels better built, is better suited for small hands, has a much lower click latency, a much lower minimum CPI, and more programmable buttons. On the other hand, if you prefer fingertip grip and have large hands, the Havit may be a better option.
The SteelSeries Rival 500 and the ROCCAT Tyon are both decent wired gaming mice. While both mice are good for medium and large hands for claw grip, the SteelSeries is a better option with palm grip if you have small hands, as you'll be able to reach all the buttons more comfortably. The SteelSeries has a much wider adjustable CPI range and a much lower lift-off distance. Both mice have a ton of programmable buttons and a low click latency.
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