The HyperX Pulsefire Haste 2 Mini is one of the few wireless gaming mice designed for smaller hands that can stand up to some of the best gaming mice out there today. It’s a shrunken version of the excellent Pulsefire Haste 2 and it’s powered by the same impressive tech. The price is smaller too, retailing for £90/$80 – but you can get it much cheaper at the time of writing, including direct from HyperX. It’s as low as $50 in places, effectively making it a budget wireless option as well. It all sounds promising. Could it be my new go-to recommendation for a smaller gaming mouse?
HyperX Pulsefire Haste 2 Mini – Photos
HyperX Pulsefire Haste 2 Mini – Design and Features
The Mini is 16% smaller than the Haste 2, which makes it compact but not tiny – it’s a similar size to most smaller gaming mice such as the Razer Viper Mini. It’s not just for people with small hands: mine are slightly larger than average for a man and I still found it comfortable to hold with my fingers and thumb hugging its cut-in sides.
It has just enough of a right-hand curve to give your index and pinky a platform, the central hump fits the curve of your fingers, and the left and right clicks are concave to keep your fingertips in place. There is a certain satisfaction in handling something this light and compact, your hand enveloping it, whipping it around effortlessly – it was a joy to use.
Its size is more suited to fingertip and claw grips, where it was comfortable for hours at a time. In a palm grip half of my hand dangled off the side and my index and pinky fingertips touching the mouse pad at times. But I did eventually find a way to balance my fingers that felt comfortable, so it’s ultimately usable whichever grip you favor.
Small doesn’t mean flimsy, either. I couldn’t make it bend, creak or give through my testing. Everything feels tight, compact, long-lasting, and at 59g, it’s actually proportionally heavier for its size than the standard Haste 2, giving it a solid density.
I usually favour a smooth mouse coating but I like the textured finish HyperX uses here. It’s grippy without chafing, and resists fingerprints and grime better than almost any mouse I’ve tested. I like the contrast with the shinier recesses and lines on its surface, and the mixture of its small curves and angular mouse buttons is, to my eye, attractive. I especially like how the main buttons angle inwards to meet in a raised middle portion.
The main buttons sound sharp, precise, and satisfying whether you’re single-clicking or spamming. Some people have criticised them for feeling heavy on the actuation force, but I disagree; I liked how crisp and reliable they were. The side mouse buttons are spongier, but they are at least well positioned, and big enough that I was always able to hit the one I intended during tense situations in games. The central DPI button is too stiff, but you rarely use it so it’s not a big deal.
It’s brilliant value for the money.
The scroll wheel felt reliable, firm but free moving with no missed or phantom scrolls. There’s a subtle RGB ring inside that wheel that you customize in HyperX’s Ngenuity software, and. it’s one way it adds a lick of personality that lots of other mice don’t have.
One of the best decisions HyperX made is including both wireless and Bluetooth connection. A mouse this small should be designed to be portable (and it is), but reliable Bluetooth pairing makes it versatile to use for work at a cafe, or anywhere else without worrying about plugging in a dongle. And don’t worry, taking the small wireless dongle is easy too because it slots snugly into the bottom of the mouse – another example of the Mini’s thoughtful design.
HyperX Pulsefire Haste 2 Mini – Performance and Gaming
The Haste 2 Mini uses the same HyperX 26K Sensor as the main Haste 2, and it’s just as good here. It tops out at 26,000 dots per inches (DPI) and 650 inches-per-second (IPS) of tracking – both are more than you’ll ever need. Technically better sensors exist, but unless you’re a pro gamer hunting the top of the line, this will suit you perfectly fine.
It never let me down in a variety of games. I tested it in intense Fortnite firefights, twitchy rounds of Counter-Strike 2 and slower, precise clicks and drags in the tactical game Doorkickers 2. It felt like it tracked my hand movements instantly and precisely. Its lightweight, small body and PTFE feet kept it running smoothly across my mouse pad no matter how far or fast I swept it.
The wireless connection was flawless as it never dropped. And the mouse worked instantly whenever I turned it on or plugged in the dongle, and an extender boosts the signal if you sit far from your USB port. The Bluetooth connectivity was equally as reliable: I wouldn’t use it for heavy gaming because of its relatively higher latency, but it worked as intended for general browsing. The mouse clicks were also faultless during gaming: no misclicks, double clicks, or unregistered clicks, which is all I can ask for.
The Mini’s polling rate reaches 1000Hz, meaning it reports its position to your PC 1000 times a second. That’s the standard for a lot of modern gaming mice and it’ll serve you well even if you’ll see higher-end options reach upwards of 4000Hz or even 8000Hz. My view is it’s only worth paying for a higher polling rate if you have a powerful rig, a high refresh rate monitor, and you’re playing at a decent competitive level. Even then, some people can’t tell the difference beyond 1000Hz – and for those that can, you’ll generally get diminishing returns as you keep increasing. A polling rate of 1000Hz is going to give the performance you need, and it’s certainly fitting at this price.
Looking for a compact keyboard?
Logitech G515 TKL
A slim board and thin keycaps along with great mechanical switches makes the G515 TKL one of Logitech’s best yet, and one of the rare low-profile keyboards that perform on par with its full-sized counterparts.
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HyperX Pulsefire Haste 2 Mini – Software and Battery Life
Battery life is as strong as advertised. HyperX claims it will last 100 hours on a single charge, and while I didn’t fully drain it during my testing I was on target for that time. Even at 10 hours a day you’ll go more than a week between charges
HyperX’s Ngenuity software is where you’ll change the RGB lighting. It’s just a single ring along the scroll wheel, so don’t expect fancy options. I set it to briefly glow a randomised color every time I clicked the mouse, and I liked having that burst of light in my periphery. Customizing is a bit confusing because you can tweak it through both the mouse settings and through “light sync,” which can set lighting on multiple HyperX devices at once. It’s easy to forget which one is currently controlling the RGB, however.
Aside from RGB lighting, Ngenuity does the basics fine; you can set up to five DPI settings, pick between two lift-off distances (the distance you lift your mouse before it stops registering movement), and reassign mouse buttons. But that’s it – it’s even more barebones than the Roccat Kone Pro I’m reviewing, a much older mouse that uses a now defunct piece of software. The mouse itself performs wonderfully, but I would’ve liked more options to fiddle with on the software front.
