Logitech G705 Review: Cute, clicky, contoured

Logitech G recently launched its Aurora Collection of “gender-inclusive” gaming peripherals, which are designed for gamers who care less about performance and competition and more about comfort and style. The collection includes a wireless headset (the G735), wireless and wired keyboards (the G715/G713), and a wireless mouse — the G705.

The Logitech G705 is a small, contoured dual-wireless gaming mouse with six programmable buttons and pretty, Aurora Collection-inspired RGB lighting. It’s a solid, reliable performer thanks to clicky, tactile switches and Logitech’s low-latency “Lightspeed” wireless connectivity. The G705 is a good gaming mouse — it may even be one of the best gaming mice, especially for users with smaller hands. But for users with larger hands (or even medium-sized hands), the G705 may not do enough to warrant its somewhat pricey $100 tag.

Design and Comfort of the Logitech G705

The Logitech G705 comes in the Aurora Collection’s base colorway of “white mist,” and has an all-white body with lavender accent buttons and a lavender scroll wheel. The mouse has a diffused RGB light strip (with three zones) around the back curve, which is tuned out-of-the-box with the Aurora Collection’s signature lighting: a pastel pink-blue combo — which is, admittedly...very pretty.

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The mouse has no customizable parts, so the only custom accessory that goes with the mouse is the Aurora Collection Mouse Pad ($30) — a large, 18 x 15.75-inch cloth mouse pad that comes in the Aurora Collection’s signature colors of white mist, green flash, or pink dawn.

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The G705 is a small, ergonomically-contoured wireless mouse with six programmable buttons: Left/right click, scroll wheel, DPI switch, and two thumb buttons. The bottom of the mouse features a power switch as well as an input button for switching between 2.4- GHz wireless and Bluetooth connections.

The mouse’s buttons are all relatively easy to reach, and have tactile, clicky switches. The scroll wheel is notched and is just a tiny bit stiffer than I prefer, but overall it’s pretty comfortable to use.

As part of Logitech G’s “inclusive” line, the G705 is designed to include...users with smaller hands. The mouse measures approximately 4.17 inches (105.8mm) long by 2.68 inches (68.1mm) wide, and is 1.55 inches (39.4mm) tall. By comparison, the Razer DeathAdder V3 Pro measures 5 inches (128mm) long by 2.67 inches (68mm) wide by 1.73 inches (44mm) tall. The G705 also weighs 3oz (85g), versus the DeathAdder V3 Pro’s 2.25oz (64g). The G705 is really just inclusive of users with shorter hands/fingers, but it’s not otherwise particularly compact (or lightweight).

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Unfortunately, this category does not include me — I don’t have particularly short/small hands (and I have pretty long fingers); the G705 definitely felt too small for me. It was still relatively usable (more usable than a too-large mouse, probably), but it’s not a mouse I found myself reaching for outside of testing.

The mouse comes with a 2.4-GHz wireless USB-A dongle, a six-foot USB-C to USB-A charging cable, and a USB-C to USB-A adapterconverter. The mouse doesn’t have any built-in dongle storage, but the mouse and accessories are designed to fit inside this kitschy heart-shaped carrying case (alongside the G735 headset) — sold separately, of course, for $40.

Specs

Performance of the Logitech G705

The Logitech G705 looks more like a portable productivity mouse than a gaming mouse, but it is a gaming mouse — under the hood. The G705 sports Logitech’s Lightsync sensor (not the Hero 25K sensor, which is featured in many of Logitech’s gaming mice — including the recently-launched G501 X Plus), and has a sensitivity of 100 - 8,200DPI and a 1,000 Hz wireless polling rate.

The G705 performed well in a variety of games — I tested it in just about everything, from CS:GO to Rise of the Tomb Raider to Overwatch to Subnautica: Below Zero. The mouse moved smoothly and quickly over most surfaces thanks to its gliding feet (two, but they’re large); its buttons were tactile, responsive, and easy to click; and I experienced no issues with lag or latency over the “Lightspeed” 2.4-GHz wireless connection. With only six programmable buttons, the G705 isn’t the best mouse for MMOs or MOBAs — though it does have a second layer of programmability via Logitech’s G-Shift feature.

The G705 may be a solid performer, but it doesn’t really stand out otherwise. Its smaller size makes it a little more flexible, grip-wise — while it’s still probably best-suited for a palm grip, the ridge that holds the side buttons makes it easy to hold in a claw or fingertip grip. Also, while the G705 is smaller and lighter in general, it’s not that light — it weighs 80g; ultra-lightweight gaming mice generally weigh less than 80g.

Features and Software of the Logitech G705

The G705 works fine out of the box; it’s preloaded with the Aurora Collection’s signature lighting and comes with three preset DPI speeds (800, 1600, 3200) that you can scroll through with the DPI switch. You’ll need to download Logitech’s G HUB software for further customization — programming buttons, changing (or turning off) the RGB lighting, and adjusting or adding DPI speeds.

The G705 has four sections in G HUB: Device settings, sensitivity, assignments, and lightsync. In device settings you’ll find a general overview of the mouse’s properties, including current firmware (and firmware update, if available), remaining battery life, and the on-board memory mode toggle.

In sensitivity, you can adjust the mouse’s DPI presets (up to 5) and polling rate; in assignments you can assign everything from commands to macros to audio samples and voice effects to the G705’s six programmable buttons. Lightsync lets you set custom colors and animations for the mouse’s three RGB zones (and can also sync these preferences across other devices in G HUB).

The G705 is a gaming mouse, and is equipped with Logitech G gaming features such as G-Shift, which automatically shifts your mouse settings as you switch between programs (can also be shifted manually). It also features DPI Shift Speed, which lets you quickly toggle to another DPI speed (when holding down the DPI switch) — useful for toggling to a lower DPI speed for precise aiming in first-person shooters.

Battery Life of the Logitech G705

The Logitech G705 gets approximately 40 hours of battery life (with its lighting turned on), which is enough to get you through about a week’s worth of moderate-to-heavy gaming — maybe. However, most of its competitors — remember, this is a $100 premium mouse before any Logitech G promo codes — can make it to at least the 60-hour mark, if not much further (e.g. the 90-hour Razer DeathAdder V3 Pro).

If you turn the G705’s lighting off, its battery life jumps to a much more acceptable 145 hours — but are you really buying the G705 to turn its lighting off? The Aurora Line’s lighting is one of its biggest strengths; if you’re not here for the aesthetics, there are plenty of comparable gaming mice to choose from. Plus, there are mice that can look pretty and chug along.: Tthe Roccat Kone XP Air has five RGB lighting zones and still hits 100 hours on a single charge.

Bottom Line

The Logitech G705 is a good gaming mouse: it’s comfortable, with clicky, tactile buttons and large gliding feet, and it performs well in a variety of games. It’s cute — not mind-blowingly attractive, but cute — with diffused RGB lighting to match the rest of Logitech’s Aurora Collection.

The G705 is fine, but it’s just...fine. It’s a good option for people with smaller hands, though it’s not the only small wireless gaming mouse on the market (check out Razer’s Orochi V2 Wireless). Unfortunately, unless you love the G705’s aesthetics, there’s not much else in this mouse that makes it worth a second look.