Roccat Kone Aimo mouse: RGB backlighting at the heart of the experience

Presentation

The Roccat Kone Aimo is available in three colors: black, gray or white. Its launch price is € 79.99.

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Ergonomics

The Kone Aimo marks an evolution in the design of the series. If its size and its general shape are reminiscent of the Kone EMP, the lines are more taut here, with shapes always curved but beveled at their ends. The look is thus more aggressive and rather reminds of the recent Leadr or even the Kova.

Roccat nevertheless preserved the comfort, the palm of the hand being able to be completely posed on the broad convex back of the mouse. With its generous dimensions (130 x 83 x 42 mm, or 8 mm more in width than the already imposing Kone EMP), the Kone Aimo is moreover intended more for medium and large hands than for small ones, which will no doubt have more difficult to handle it.

This overweight associated with a high mass of 133 g (against 116 g for the Kone EMP and 134 g for the Leadr which is however wireless) results in a certain inertia of the movements. Certainly, the Amo is for the beefiest wrists and for those who like big mice in general.

The grip remains correct thanks to the well dug edges of the Kone Aimo, but suffers from the lack of non-slip coating which would have ensured better grip of the fingers. The soft plastic used for the shell is indeed pleasant to the touch, but slippery.

Difficult therefore to advise this mouse to players appreciating low sensitivities, since it quickly becomes tiring to handle this Aimo if it has to be lifted without stopping. Fortunately, we can still count on a good glide, provided by 6 PTFE pads.

As for the buttons, no false notes on our second test model. The first Kone Aimo we received unfortunately suffered from a defective right button, with a little play which made its use unpleasant and penalized its reactivity. It was actually a simple manufacturing defect (button switch too short). Hopefully this is an isolated case. On our second Aimo, therefore, no problem to report: the two main buttons respond perfectly well and are quite responsive and discreet.

Their slightly curved shape ensures better reception of the fingers than on the Kone EMP and these buttons are associated with Omron switches (D2FC-FK) guaranteed for 50 million activations.

On the left edge, we find the two classic buttons (functions "next page" and "previous page" by default in office automation), wider and more accessible than those of Kone EMP and Kone Pure - be careful not to activate by grabbing the mouse.

At the base of this slice is also a third button, easy to operate by pressing down with your thumb and activating the Easy-Shift [+] function. This allows you to use a second function on each mouse button. The position of this button nevertheless prevents using the other two slice buttons in combination and we would have liked to be able to take advantage of a "sniper" function on this button (to use another sensor sensitivity when the button is pressed). Finally, two last buttons are located behind the wheel, allowing you to adjust the sensitivity of the sensor on the fly (default function).

For its part, the "Titan 4D" wheel is pleasant to use. Despite a rather soft scrolling, the notches are fairly well marked. It can also tilt to the right or left to activate two additional switches which are used for horizontal scrolling by default, but can be associated with any other function. Indeed, like all the other mouse buttons, they can be configured via the Roccat Swarm software (see box below).

Let's not forget a few words about the backlight of this Kone Aimo. Strongly highlighted by Roccat, it is indeed very successful and will certainly appeal to lovers of light effects. The 10 LEDs positioned under 4 translucent strips, associated with the LED illuminating the wheel, offer beautiful nuances for fairly fluid and natural effects. The effects in question can be configured in the software, but Aimo technology also allows automated management and synchronization between compatible Aimo devices (Horde Aimo keyboard and Khan Aimo 7.1 headphones, initially). The lighting can thus be discreet while playing and more lively outside the games. Nothing revolutionary, but it is visually successful.

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Precision

No surprise in terms of precision: the Kone Aimo's sensor is the same as that used in the latest Kone EMP and Pure, namely an Owl-Eye manufactured by Pixart - a variation of the PMW3360 which is found in many mice. This optical sensor always seduces us as much by its excellent behavior: very reactive (maximum capture speed of 6.35 m / s and maximum acceleration of 50 g), precise (reproduction of movements according to a 1: 1 optical ratio), sensitive (up to 12,000 dpi) ... hard to find faults with it.

Even surface recognition is quite good for optical technology, allowing the use of Kone Aimo on a wide variety of coatings. However, as is often the case, avoid glass and transparent or reflective surfaces, and we still recommend a good mouse pad to improve gliding, precision and limit wear on skates.

In game, the mouse is quite versatile. Its imposing size, however, makes it suitable for games that do not necessarily require very large and nervous wrist movements.

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Conclusion

Imposing, the Kone Aimo is especially intended for larger hands. They will appreciate its good ergonomics, favoring comfort, and will benefit from a high-flying optical sensor. RGB backlight enthusiasts will appreciate its elegant lighting effects.

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