It was just yesterday that I published a 10/10 review for Logitech's new X2 Superstrike mouse, which earned our top gaming mouse recommendation for its responsive inductive clicks and unique haptic feedback, layered on top of the same shape and fundamental components as the already-excellent Superlight 2. Today, I woke to see Redditors had already spotted Chinese brand Ausdom has replicated the mouse with a new variant of the G03 V2 Ultra, which costs around £60 – £100 less than the new Logitech flagship.
While the aesthetics are nigh-identical, with the same two-tone design, calibration marks in the button corners and wordmarks along both sides, the actual shape and internals are still quite different.
The always-useful Eloshapes reference shows that the G03 Ultra has a distinctly taller profile, despite similarities elsewhere, and the internals are far more ordinary. There's a PixArt PAW 3950 sensor, rather than Logitech's higher-rated Hero 2 sensor, and traditional mechanical microswitches under the left and right mouse buttons.
I expect it to take some time for other brands to copy the haptic inductive trigger system (HITS) pioneered by Logitech that makes the X2 Superstrike worth buying in the first place. That timeline could be accelerated for companies that aren't as concerned with avoiding the infringement of Logitech patents, as major brands are obliged to, but coming out on the same day would still be a bit of a surprise.
And Logitech does expect other brands to copy its inductive sensor and haptic feedback combo. Representatives of the brand at its Swiss offices told me that they see HITS as a game-changing feature for competitive gamers on the same magnitude as wireless, which was used by just a single Counter-Strike pro in a 2019 tournament and every finalist in the same tournament five years later.
That's a huge claim, but it's certainly backed up by my first-hand impressions – and Logitech's account that they accelerated development of the mouse when pro players using early prototypes started to win tournaments.
It'll be fascinating to see if Logitech's predictions turns out to be true, but for now the message is clear: don't be fooled by a mouse that looks like the new hot ticket item but doesn't come with any of the same tricks. It might still be a great mouse, but that secret sauce is still tightly bottled up.
