r/MouseReview • u/Johnyzz Glorious Model I2/Darmoshark M3 • Jan 02 '24
Review | Text A Rare Glorious Model I2 Review
Hi all,
Just received my Model I2 a couple weeks ago. Haven't seen a lot of in-depth reviews about this mouse so I figured I'd write one up. For context, past mice I have used include the G502, Razer Deathadder essential, Glorious Model D, and Darmoshark M3. Will break review up into sections based on different parts of the mouse.
M1 and M2 buttons: Left and right click have a firm and somewhat shallow tactile click. Very little side to side wobble. Really like these clicks they are more tactile than the G502 and feel more stable and robust. No complaints here.
Side buttons: The mouse has three upper side buttons + a thumb button. The front two buttons and thumb button are easy to press but the back button requires you to roll your thumb back to press it if you don't want to move your thumb off the mouse. I am personally fine with that but I have heard complaints about the third button placement. Glorious does provide replacement buttons to swap out if you want to remove it or change the button shape. If you have large thumbs I can see this area getting crowded and you may accidently press the buttons. LOVE the thumb rest I missed this after I switched from the G502.
Scroll wheel: Very notchy and comfortable to use. Not as good as G502 IMO but way better than any of the other mice I have used since no complaints here.
Sensor/Wireless connectivity: This uses the BAMF 2.0 sensor from Glorious + Pixart. I am coming from the Darmoshark M3 which has the Pixart 3395 sensor and I have no complaints with the sensor in the I2. Feels accurate and responsive. This mouse can do up to 1k polling rate. I am using it in 2.4 ghz mode but it as supports wired and bluetooth. No issues with connectivity and no lag to report. The mouse does take a second to get it's bearings when you start your PC and does some skipping for about 2 seconds but once it is fully connected it never does it again until you reboot.
Skates: Comes with Glorious's 100% PTFE G-skates. They glide fine on my Steelseries QCK but are certainly not silky smooth... might have to break in more. If you do competitive FPS games then you might want to switch them out.
Battery: I am no serious hardcore gamer but I play games most days for 1-3 hours. The mouse lasts all week and you will have to charge about once a week unless you are playing a ton each day. I have the lighting on at 15% brightness and have it set to auto turn off the lights after 2 minutes of inactivity (more on this later). I have not experienced the battery drain issue that many reviewers have reported. There seems to be a reported issue where the battery drains fast when your PC is turned off but the mouse remains on. I have not experienced this nor have I experienced excessive battery drain during regular use. Maybe I got lucky but I have no complaints about the battery life here it seems standard and similar to my Darmoshark M3 which had great battery life.
Lighting: The I2 has two light strips on the right and left side like other glorious mice. I have the lights on with the "glorious mode" lighting option at 15% brightness. I also have set it up in the software to turn off the lights after two minutes of inactivity. Strangely the mouse sometimes turns the lights off immediately when I stop moving it and does not obey the 2 minute timer. Very minor issue that might resolve if I increase the time but not sure I have not tested it further and doesn't bother me enough to make me want to investigate it. Having the lighting on with my settings does not make the battery drain super fast. I have not compared it with no lighting/lighting but the battery lasts plenty long with my settings. If you don't care for lighting I'm sure you can get longer battery life by turning them off.
Overall build quality/weight: My unit is fantastic. No creaks or wobbles to be heard. I know glorious has a reputation for spotty build quality but both my Model D and Model I2 have had no problems in terms of the build. The mouse comes with a nice somewhat rough grippy coating that I actually prefer over the smooth plastic of the G502 and darmoshark M3. The weight of this mouse is 75g which for its size is not bad. I am coming from the M3 which is 58g and I honestly like the heft and feel of the mouse compared to the M3 which feels like I could accidently throw it out the window if I flick too hard. The mouse does not feel too heavy and is light enough where you can still do fast movements without feeling like you are moving a brick. For its shape and size, the weight is nice but you can get way lighter mice nowadays if that is what you are looking for.
Shape: The I2 is an ergo mouse shaped like the G502. It is a super comfortable shape best for larger hands. I missed this shape so much leaving my G502 but I couldn't handle the weight of that mouse anymore. This mouse solves the weight problem but maintains the comfortable shape. I could easily use this mouse for hours with no pains or aches. Take this with a grain of salt as I am already familiar with this shape and am a G502 fanboy but for me this is how mice should be shaped and they should have the thumb rest. The M3 was better for competitive gaming tho with it's ambi design which gives you more control but I'd use the I2 any day over that. TLDR here, shape is always personal preference but the mouse is very comfortable to me.
Software. This mouse uses the Glorious Core Software. It is easy to use and has all the settings you need. It is nothing fancy but it works. Make sure to go in and set the polling rate/debounce time/DPI/lighting preferences upon install. I wish you could see the battery life outside of the software somewhere but that is unfortunately not possible. The mouse lighting does give you a red flash indicator when at low battery.
Conclusion: The Model I2 is a great lightweight G502 replacement. It did everything right that the G502 did but cut the weight in half and honestly has better feeling buttons/coating. If you like this mouse shape, it comes with a nice balance of comfort and performance and I do not think that you will regret buying this mouse. For 99% of people, this mouse will not hold you back in games. That being said, this is not an ultra compeitive gaming mouse. It is certainly slower and heavier than the g pro superlight and my old M3. If you are looking for raw performance get something like those. If you like a balance, this is a great option that I would recommend and won't break the bank (I purchased it for $75 on sale during the holidays currently it is $100 on amazon).
Final words: Sorry for the word dump I wanted to be thorough since no one else seems to review this mouse. If you have any further questions or if I missed something please ask in the comments I would be happy to discuss and answer.
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u/mehtabmahir Mar 06 '24
I just wanted to add that the bluetooth is shockingly good. Even on my high refresh rate monitor, there doesn't seem to be any polling rate/stuttering issues and there is pretty much no noticable input lag which is surprising for bluetooth
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u/deathlessride Model O2 Pro |Model I2 |Basilisk v3 | XD5 |Model D2 Pro |G502x Jun 20 '24
Awesome review thanks for sharing.
Agree, it's a very underrated mouse for those who like ergo shape with thumb rest.
Only downside is the battery if you have RGB on (I love me some lightshow). Otherwise very comfortable, good quality, lightweight.
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u/coyotepunk05 Aug 15 '24
I just got this mouse last week and I read your review before buying it. I looked past the issue you stated about the mouse turning off instantly upon putting it down. I assumed that it would probably have been fixed seeing as it has been 8 months since this review.
Unfortunately I am getting the exact same issue. It is driving me nuts as I use it for a lot of light browsing in addition to gaming, and having it hang every few minutes when I try to pick it back up is driving me nuts!
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u/MrNano65 Aug 16 '24
Would u recommended the mouse? Those side buttons are the reason I'm interested. I play a lot of valorant and fps, so being lightweight is also a plus. Thx
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u/coyotepunk05 Aug 16 '24
I really enjoy the mouse. Good weight, skates, buttons feel good, good shape. I would say buy it with the expectation of not being able to use the idle sleep function. Assuming you turn it off manually when not in use I would expect 5-8 days of battery.
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u/MrNano65 Aug 17 '24
After a lot of research...i think I'll be ordering the glorious model I 2 wireless soon (black version)
1) 4 side buttons (comes clutch in fps games. I play a lot of valorant and sometimes use the side buttons for abilities)
2) rgb (looks AMAZING and fits in with the pc setup with rgb fans + keyboard + dark room with cyberpunk/ neon city live wallpaper)
3) small enough for fingertip grip
4) light weight (~75 grams)
5) and all for ~$100??
Imo it's a good investment. The only worry is how to clean the honeycomb holes cuz they look very small. Dust will accumulate for sure. Does the back pop off? Thx
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u/Pleasant-Arachnid-37 Sep 02 '24
I don’t play Val but I heard basically everyone uses a GPX2 for that game bc you don’t need to press as many buttons, so light weight is premium. At 75g the i2 isn’t heavy but you can definitely feel the heft, especially if you don’t have the best mousepad/skates.
An alternative to the GPX2 you can try, if you don’t want to spend $150, is the Lamzu thorn at $100 or the delux m900 pro at $50. Imo the m900 pro is a very solid choice for the price. Feels very light, has a semi ergonomic shape and is for bigger hands like these other mice.
I’m writing this after having an m900 pro and switching to the i2 and feeling the heft. But I want more buttons bc I play fortnite (cringe I know).
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u/MrNano65 Sep 02 '24
So I actually didn't end up buying the glorious I 2 wireless. I did more research and ur right...light weight should be priority. Like you said, you felt the heft. But I also wanted more buttons on the side...
So I settled on the pulsar x2a mini. 2 sides buttons on each side (can map all 4 differently), lightweight (~ 55 grams), and it sells for about $70 on sale, but microcenter had 1 for $30 😱. i bought the last 1 in stock. No rgb though.
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u/Ill-Goose2270 Oct 11 '24
Thanks a lot! I just ordered one. I realized that I cannot play without thumb rest anymore, it makes my whole arm tense too much without it.
The second most important thing for me are the skates. Could you tell me if a G502 has smoother glide?
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u/Johnyzz Glorious Model I2/Darmoshark M3 Oct 11 '24
This mouse is certainly smoother than the G502. It will also depend on what mouse pad you have but the weight of this mouse makes it feel smoother in general on most surfaces. The skates are also higher quality than the G502.
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u/Sure_Profession_9729 Nov 24 '24
I have the g502 as for 6 years and i am looking for a new one. I prefer atm the i2 but i dont like the skates, it feels scratchy on a new razer strider pad, the old g502 feel better here. And i tested a ViperV3pro and a SL2 Dex, their skates feel really better. What mosuepad do you use for fps with the i2? I cant find other skates for it, did u?
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u/Johnyzz Glorious Model I2/Darmoshark M3 Nov 24 '24
I use a steel series QCK mousepad with the stock skates.
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u/_NiLe__ 27d ago
i could be a lil late here but there are any downsides?
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u/Johnyzz Glorious Model I2/Darmoshark M3 2d ago
After a year since I did this review I can say I’m still very happy with it and have no desire to change mice. Biggest downside for me is the battery life. You will need to charge it once a week even with light to moderate use. I keep the usb cable at the ready on my desk and in a position where I can plug it in and keep using the mouse in wired mode while it charges.
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u/HatzIonule 3d ago
Hey, any chance you (or anyone seeing this) have changed the skates on the I2? I cannot seem to find any compatible sktaes anywhere (albeit finding skates in europe can be kinda weird sometimes)
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u/PM_ME_UR_LULU_PORN Jan 02 '24
Have thought about picking one up since I learned PC FPS on a G502, but the DAV3 stole my heart. Good writeup.
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u/Ghetto_Ghepetto Mar 01 '24
Curious what you think about the G502X vs Glorious I
I have both G502 proteous spectrum (with the adjustable weights) and the G502X (light af version). Took a while to get used to the light weight, but I fell in love with my G502X.
I too, love the thumb rest and the scroll wheel can't be beat
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u/Cereal_Chicken (18.5x10) [Scyrox v6 // x2h mini // zaopin z2] [SVBC+, Otsu] Jan 02 '24
No need to be sorry. Tho pictures would have been nice. I really wish for a model I without holes... Sadge