The QPAD 5K L.E is a fine example of a gaming mouse. It is extremely well designed for those of use with mid-large hands, especially those who prefer to control the mouse movement with the palm grip rather than claw grip type. Because of this it is comfortable initially, a comfort which will last for hours due to the ergonomically sound finger rests and thumb moulding. The buttons are ideally positioned for rapid operation and thanks to the AVAGO 9800, it isn't only the buttons which are rapid.

The ridiculously high DPI of the QPAD 5K L.E has raised the bar yet again for other manufacturers to follow. Without wanting to get carried away with the specifications though I would pose the question: Is it really needed?Do we really need such high sensitivity? I for one certainly found that anything above 3000 DPI was pretty much uncontrollable and thus the higher the DPI went, the less accurate I became to the point where I couldn't even run in a straight line. Now, I'm not a pro-gamer, far from it but I played competitively for years on Clanbase etc and I have yet to come across anyone who likes massively high DPI. Sure it's great for those comedy moments during warm-up when some joker pirouettes at ridiculously high speed but other than that, a high DPI such as the 5K L.E's 8200 simply has little use unless you have the reactions of a cat on amphetamines!

So why implement such a high performing laser then? Quite honestly I do not know for sure but I suspect it is because we always want the best available. After all, why do people buy Ferrari's when the national speed limit is 70Mph? Why overclock a CPU to 6GHz using liquid nitrogen when a 2GHz clockspeed will perform most tasks perfectly well? Why do many followers of fashion pay extortionate prices for designer clothing? Simply put, it is human nature to yearn for the very best be it the fastest, strongest, longest, or whatever-est. We want the ultimate and with the 5K L.E pro gaming mouse, QPAD have come pretty darn close as it would be near as dammit one of the best mice available today were it not for a few little niggles.

The software could be better designed. After sampling ROCCAT's software implementation, the QPAD's feels lacklustre. It does everything it should but many of the options available could be found in windows mouse settings so are therefore not really needed and it feels padded out because of it. It doesn't do anything particularly badly, it just doesn't do anything that outshines the competition. Physically, the feel of the mouse is great but I can also imagine the mouse slipping underneath a sweaty or greasy palm. Also, the plastic buttons do not give a great deal of confidence either due to having a glossy effect rather than textured feel. The mouse wheel is also poorly illuminated, perhaps due to the rubber which also cheapens the look of the mouse when at close to £70, it is anything but cheap.



So overall then, the QPAD 5K L.E is a great piece of kit but a piece of kit with some minor issues. Technologically and ergonomically it is near perfect. The design truly is fantastic and were I to stop there this would be a worthy Gold winner. However, the software could be better, the lighting is basic and the button material choice cheapens the feel of the product. For a £70 mouse, I would want more for my money. If these points do not concern you then go out and buy it as I can assure you, you will not be disappointed, it's a great mouse and one of the fastest most advanced available and for this reason alone it is deserving of our silver award.