Sporting an ever-so-slightly trimmed-down shape compared to the original Sidewinder gaming mouse, along with a stripped down featureset, the Sidewinder X5 delivers great performance at a very reasonable price.

Sensor is super-accurate; Top-and-bottom thumb buttons kick ass; Love the three button sensitivity adjustment

Still too honkin' big; No reason to install the software, unless you want to make sensitivity adjustments.

Figuring out what makes a good gaming mouse is always difficult. The mouse is definitely one of the most varied input devices around for computers. You find all sorts of different types of mice on the market for both gaming and regular usage.

On the fly dpi switching with settings up to 2000dpi; Laser tracking sensor; Large ergonomic design; 5 customizable buttons including two side buttons; Crisp feeling mouse buttons

Annoying LEDs on the back of the mouse; Shortcut key that cannot be customized; Dpi setting buttons uncomfortable to reach

The hot new Sidewinder Microsoft gaming gear has hit. You'll see a review of the freaky X6 keyboard next week, but as it is Mouse Review Week (at least where I am), I'm just going to be covering the enormous X5 gaming mouse. It's big .

SLIDESHOW (6) Slideshow | All Shots The Batmobile is back. And no, we're not talking about The Dark Night. We're talking about the newest addition to the Microsoft SideWinder family: the X5.

Comfy; programmable buttons; fast and accurate sensor; on-the-fly dpi buttons

Still the same bulky shape as the older model; really only three buttons to program; side buttons still prone to accidental clicks

Microsoft has been making gaming gear for a while now and they have been getting pretty good at it. Microsoft's first serious gaming mouse was the SideWinder , which came after a collaboration with Razer to produce the Habu .

Back in the day, shopping for gaming peripherals meant sifting through a ton of Microsoft's SideWinder products to find what you needed. Everything from SideWinder controllers, to joysticks, to force-feedback steering wheels lined hardware stores; to say that they dominated the market would be spot...

Microsoft's new SideWinder X5 Mouse is a stripped-down version of last year's SideWinder Gaming Mouse . Where the original model was a packed-to-the-gills gaming powerhouse, the X5 feels flimsy and expensive for the AU$99.95 Microsoft wants you to spend.

Improved sculpt; Moisture-resistant coating

Competing Logitech mouse offers more mouse for the buck; Lacks heft

The perfect complement to the X6, or just another mousing also-ran?

The previous Sidewinder had the who's who of gaming mouse features. It had optional weights, an LCD readout to display DPI changes, interchangeable feet... the list goes on. The X5 uses the same basic design – though it is much comfier now – and strips out a lot of those shiny extras.

After a hiatus from producing joysticks, gamepads and other gaming peripherals, Microsoft relaunched its famed SideWinder brand of gaming hardware last year with the release of the SideWinder gaming mouse.