The SteelSeries Rival 3 Wireless gaming mouse is an affordable entry-level mouse. It has a sturdy, sleek design, is fully wireless, and offers two connectivity options (more on that later). However, these seemingly great features are relegated a bit lower on the scoreboard due to a few caveats in its fundamentals.

One of the biggest selling points of this mouse is that it is completely wireless, which contributes to its minuscule weight. In fact, it runs on AAA batteries and does not even require a USB cable to be connected for charging. It can be powered by two AAA batteries or just one. One AAA battery will lighten the weight, but halve the battery life. Using one battery does not affect actual performance, at least not unless the extra 0.6 ounces of weight makes aiming impossible.

Since they do not have to be shipped with rechargeable batteries, manufacturing costs are lower, which lowers the purchase price. I guess the downside is that you have to keep the batteries in stock; SteelSeries' promised one-year battery life depends on which batteries you use. In any case, the choice to eliminate the charging feature altogether does not seem to add much to the product.

There is another hurdle when it comes to tracking battery usage: the SteelSeries 3 Engine only shows a 3-bar battery indicator for each product, although we have no complaints otherwise. Yet, the Duracell Ultra battery, which I put in over a week ago, has not shown any decrease after a week. This is with the sleep timer set to 1.5 minutes, high efficiency mode off, and illumination smart mode on. We were a bit skeptical of the claimed one-year battery life, but we did not test it for a year, so we cannot say for sure.

The software is quite nifty, except for the battery level indicator, which is difficult to use. There is space for custom settings, quick actions for each button (all programmable), and a detailed macro editor. Acceleration and deceleration are visualized as sinusoidal waves, there are angle-snap precision options and battery-saving options; CPI settings are capped at 18,000, with adjustable preset levels to cycle through, and the maximum polling rate is 1,000 Hz.

All these options, plus the accurate TrueMove Air sensor, make for a smooth and responsive gaming experience. I tend to take shots at, say, 900 CPI as if I were a scrub, but for those more skilled than me, this mouse is more than adequate in terms of accuracy. And it can be used according to personal preference.

Sadly, however, the extensive customization options are only available in 2.4G wireless mode; in Bluetooth mode, the software oddly seems to edit the options until you read a little aside by the Bluetooth indicator It makes you think you are. In this mode, the software explains that key bindings, acceleration and deceleration, and angle snapping revert to defaults. Also, battery life via Bluetooth is not shown at all. Additionally, the polling rate is also reduced to 125 Hz. These are sad times for gaming.

However, the Bluetooth connectivity feature itself is a nice backup option if you run out of USB ports on your machine, lose your dongle, or are sitting on the couch and don't want to get up and connect. However, Bluetooth mode only supports standard clicks, so don't expect much functionality.

In any case, it should be able to handle any heavy-handedness, whether it be standard clicks or absolutely waving the mouse around. Despite its relatively light weight, it is sturdy. None of the buttons are flimsy, so you won't accidentally click them, but the side buttons are quite stiff right out of the box. They are difficult to press without excessive force, which is a disadvantage in a fast-paced gaming environment.

The design, however, is much nicer than most lightweight mice. It has a black plastic casing without holes, with a hump in the middle that tapers forward but protrudes backward into what I would call the butt of the mouse. This makes it suitable for use with a claw grip or palm grip. It is a very straight palm grip for small hands, though. I am used to a more curved ergonomic shape, so my small hands were a bit confused when I switched to this. But I'm used to it now, and the hip design works very well for swinging the mouse around at top speed.

As for the RGB aesthetics, there is very limited lighting capability, with only one RGB zone emanating from each side of the scroll wheel. However, it does have some pretty lighting effects, including a "trigger" that emits a different color when clicked. Unfortunately, the colors are not super accurate, but these kinds of limitations are to be expected with such an affordable, lightweight mouse.

While we have a few complaints about this mouse, there are some positives. This is a great gaming mouse for budget-conscious gamers who need something sturdy to fly around in the heat of battle and don't want to worry about wiring or shattering into pieces in a fit of rage. We recommend using a wireless dongle, so make sure you have a spare USB slot. That said, it does most of what you need it to do, and the sub-$50 price isn't bad either.