Glorious Model O- Review with New Ascended Cord

Glorious made huge waves last year when they launched the original Model O, an ultralight, ambi, RGB gaming mouse. The O- was the follow up to that original model and offers a smaller form factor that will work better for some gamers. The unit I’m reviewing also has the updated ascended cord which thinner and more flexible than the original. I’ll be getting into my review of the glossy version below

Dimensions (L x W x H) 120mm x 63mm x 36mm
Weight 58g

Packaging and Presentation

The Model O- comes in a nice looking glossy embossed box. Unlike older revisions of the mouse, the box has been updated to accommodate the new cable and ensure that it does not get any kinks while it’s boxed up. There are some little extras in the box like stickers but otherwise the unboxing experience is pretty standard.

Design and Shape

The design of the mouse is ambi but the side buttons will only be of use to right handed users. The Model O- is noticeably smaller than the original Model O, coming in shorter, narrower and lower than the original’s measurements which are 128 x 66 x 37.5mm. The shape will be familiar to anyone who’s used a Zowie FK2, which is what the Model O is mainly based on. The glossy version I got feels really smooth to the touch and is easy to grip provided your hands aren’t sweaty or wet. My first impression of the design was that it’s a pretty safe shape from fingertip grip though users can easily adapt a palm grip or claw to this design.

Of course the main thing you’ll notice with the Model O- is just how lightweight it is. At just 58 grams, it’s one of the most lightweight mice on the market. The honeycombs are on the top and bottom of the mouse but not on the sides, which to me is a plus. It allows you to comfortably grip the mouse without any of the holes digging into your grip. The cord itself is also among the best on the market. It is extremely light and flexible and is better than most stock paracord equivalents from competing brands. The RGB on this mouse is is one of the best lighting implementations I’ve seen and it looks really awesome paired with the white glossy shell. If you care about RGB, this definitely adds value to this mouse. All that put together makes this a compelling package for anyone looking for a modern lightweight mouse.

Build Quality

The Glorious Model O- uses Omron switches rated for 20 million clicks and those give the mouse a great snappy feel. M1 and M2 have little pre or post travel and feel satisfying and tactile to click. There is a bit of side play but it is still within a tolerable range in my opinion. I also liked the comfort grooves that are really subtle but offer you a comfortable place to rest your fingers while you’re not clicking in. The scroll wheel has a nice rubberized texture. The scroll wheel uses a brown core F-Switch encode which translate to a very tactile , light scrolling. The notches are very well separated which means you won’t often miss scroll. The middle button clicks in with a moderate amount of force and feels quite good when you actuate. There’s also a standard DPI switch button which luckily is very small so you won’t likely hit it by accident. The one thing I didn’t love about the mouse was the side buttons. They feel a bit mushy and are too small for my preferences. While they do provide a decent tactile response and are easily to press in, they aren’t among the best side buttons I’ve tried but they’re also far from the worst.

The mouse feet on this mouse are Glorious version of a Hyperglide or what they call G-Skates. They are made from pure white PTFE and feel pretty good out of the box. They were a bit scratchy at first but after a day of use they broke in and now feel really quick and responsive. They also are a decent thickness which means they shouldn’t wear down too easily. The Glorious Model O- uses the Pixart 3360 sensor which is the de-facto standard these days. No concerns about the sensor it tracks beautifully for both flicks and holding tight angles. I didn’t try out the optional software but the mouse was really efficient right out the box and should be plug and play ready for most gamers.

Performance

The Glorious Model O- should be a great performer in game for anyone with smaller hands. It can also work for those with medium sized hands who prefer to fingertip their mice. The mouse feels great in-game and I found myself hitting some quick flicks and reaction shots with ease. The lightweight really comes across in certain situations and I played quite well with it in general. That being said there was a bit of an adjustment period to get used to this mouse and the skates had to be worn in a bit for me to perform at my best.

Conclusions

The Glorious team has made the Model O/O- the de-facto standard for an entry level lightweight mouse. For the retail price of just $49-59 USD, the Glorious Model O- offers tremendous value and a design that should check most of the boxes. The main weakness of the older Model O- was the thicker shoelace style cable, but you won’t have to worry about that anymore with the adoption of the new ascended cable. Outside of a few nitpicks, this mouse looks great, performs well and has one of the best RGB implementations of any mouse on the market. That being said this mouse can’t be recommended for everyone as the lack of a hump and an extremely low profile design means that some users just won’t adapt to this shape well. That being said, if you know you like ambi mice and want something lightweight that won’t break the bank, the Glorious Model O- is an excellent choice.

Pros