NZXT Lift review

Our Verdict

88%

There’s almost nothing not to like about this excellent gaming mouse debut from NZXT.

We were impressed by NZXT’s debut keyboard, the NZXT Function, so can the NZXT Lift – the company’s first mouse – also make a positive first impression? Well, on paper, there’s not much that makes this mouse stand apart from its peers. Its feature set is basic and its shape is fairly unremarkable. However, in use it delivers all you would expect from a modern, simple and performance-orientated gaming mouse.

The most successful aspect of the Lift is its symmetrical shape. It has a gently sloped back that comfortably supports the palm for palm-grip use but stays out the way enough for claw and fingertip grips too.

The sides move from an outward slope at the rear to a slightly inward slope at the front, providing an ideal middle section just under the thumb buttons and at the balance point of the mouse, where there’s a slight lip under which your fingers and thumb can hook and grip the mouse.

So many mice have sides that slope the wrong way, so your fingers slide up them, or somehow the balance is just a bit off. Here, though, whichever grip style we tried, it just worked. Mileage will vary depending on your hand size and shape, but this is about as universally appealing a shape as you can get.

The impressively low weight helps a great deal with this mouse’s overall handleability too. Despite not sporting the many holes and other weight-saving gimmicks of some mice, it weighs just 67g, making it effortless to fling around your mat. On its underside, the Lift has two large Teflon glide pads with a further smaller ring of Teflon round the sensor, providing smooth gliding and excellent stability.

However, the button arrangement is very simple, with sadly no extra side buttons for left-handed users, and just a single extra button on the top that defaults to switching the DPI setting. We found the latter too small to hit with the lower portion of your middle finger, but it’s fairly easy to hit accurately with the tip of your index or middle finger.

All the buttons feel very snappy and precise, with no mushiness or play. The scroll wheel also has well-defined notches, so it’s easy to hit the scroll wheel button without moving the wheel. Its rubber grip also provides plenty of purchase.

As for the sensor, its headline figures aren’t record-breaking but it’s still excellent and provides indistinguishable performance from the most extreme sensors, provided you have a good mouse mat. Sprouting from the front of the mouse is its fixed braided cable, which has an ample 2m length, and is light and flexible enough to offer almost no spring back, despite it feeling a bit more robust than some of the very lightest cables. It’s a shame the cable isn’t removable though.

All of this generally excellent performance is backed up by a smart, minimalist design. Available in base colours of black or white (with black buttons for both) you can also configure the mouse to have blue, cyan, purple, red and yellow buttons and front/undersection if you buy it direct from NZXT. Aside from these optional flashes of colour, the only adornments are two strips of RGB lighting that run down the front two thirds of the sides of the mouse, providing an attractive underglow.

NZXT Lift price

The NZXT Lift is very competitively priced, making it easy to recommend, given its feature list and performance.

Price:  Expect to pay $50 USD / £40 GBP

NZXT Lift pros and cons

Pros

• Versatile, comfortable shape
• Lightweight
• Great button layout
• Excellent performance

Cons

• Fixed cable
• Minimal button selection
• Not truly ambidextrous

NZXT Lift specs

The NZXT Lift specs list is:

NZXT Lift review conclusion

A fantastic shape, low weight, simple but functional button layout, excellent sensor performance and smart styling add up to making a truly excellent all-round gaming mouse. For its $40 asking price, it’s an absolute steal and easily earns this mouse a place on our best gaming mouse list.