Cooler Master Storm Sentinel Advance II Review

CM Storm Sentinel Advance II Review

CoolerMaster has always been best known for their cases and cooling fans, but the company has recently ventured into new waters in the past few years and created the gaming-oriented CM Storm series of products. Today, we take a look at one of the newest additions to the gaming mouse lineup – the CM Storm Sentinel Advance II.

Being that the mouse is the most commonly used PC component, it is fair to say a lot of reviews that you will read on them become very subjective. I mean, what are you exactly looking for that isn’t available on any currently available high-end gaming mouse? Therefore I, like many other savvy shoppers, are looking to see what I’m getting for the price.

First, let’s take a look at the specs:

• Right-hand Ergonomic Design – sorry lefties!
• Avago ADNS-9800 Laser Sensor supports 200-8200 DPS fine-tuning (+/- 200 DPI)
• 1.5mm  Lift-Off Distance – avoids moving cursor when moving the mouse
• Up to 150 IPS / 125Hz – 1000Hz USB rate
• 128kb Sentinel-X memory for profiles and macros
• 5 Profiles w/ 4 DPI Settings each
• 8 Programmable Buttons / 9 Virtual Buttons (via button combinations)
• Custom OLED Logo / Multi Color LED Light System
• 5×4.5g weight fine-tuning system

The CM Storm Sentinel Advance II retails for about 59.99USD and provides a very consistent design with all the CM Storm products.

Inside the box is the mouse, a product warranty sheet, and a small leaflet instructing where to download the latest drivers which are 125MB. If you’re not gaming, you don’t need them and if you ARE gaming, you probably have a fast enough internet connection to not mind the short download.

What thoroughly impressed me was the amount of customization available through the downloadable software. Customize your mouse buttons, LED lights, the StormTX button, and also create scripts and macros as well. Share all your creations through the included Library feature and you have a very versatile gaming mouse.

The construction of the Sentinel II feels really solid and sleek, with a little LCD screen that informs you of the DPI you are currently set at. Above the screen are two buttons that allow you to scroll through the DPI settings you have available. These values (and even the buttons themselves) can be customized in the Sentinel Advance software.

At the very top (above the mouse wheel) is another button that allows you to cycle through your profiles. This is pretty handy for a household of gamers or someone who has way too many settings for different reasons. It doesn’t feel intrusive or was ever accidently triggered during my time with it.

 

Conclusion:

The OLED is really interesting, you can customize it with your own logo which is honestly a pretty unique solution for those who want to make it a personal gaming mouse.  The only other gaming mice, I have seen with a similar function is from Steelseries. The light system is fairly standard, but the great thing is, it’s not too bright, so at night, you rarely see a light pulsating off of it.

At 59.99, the CM Sentinel Advance II is a great value and is a definite recommendation from us.

Pro’s:
• Smooth Game play
• Amazing DPI offerings
• OLED Customization
• Amazing Software included

Con’s:
•  A little big
•  Not lefty friendly