Logitech G502 X Lightspeed Review: No lights, same price
Logitech's G502 X Lightspeed has been around for awhile — the mouse was introduced in 2022 alongside the fancier Logitech G502 X Plus (and the wired G502 X), but since it’s receiving a firmware update that upgrades its Hero 25K sensor to a Hero 44K sensor, this seemed like a good time to take a look at it. The G502X Lightspeed is available in black and white colorways and currently retails for $159.99, which is the…
Tom's Hardware Verdict
This is a great gaming mouse in terms of performance, but it's currently the same price as the prettier G502 X Plus.
Reasons to buy
- + Excellent battery life
- + Buttons are well-placed
- + Sensor upgrade
Reasons to avoid
- - Large (and feels large)
- - Expensive
- - Scroll wheel is too stiff
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Logitech's G502 X Lightspeed has been around for awhile — the mouse was introduced in 2022 alongside the fancier Logitech G502 X Plus (and the wired G502 X), but since it’s receiving a firmware update that upgrades its Hero 25K sensor to a Hero 44K sensor, this seemed like a good time to take a look at it. The G502X Lightspeed is available in black and white colorways and currently retails for $159.99, which is the same price as the G502 X Plus — however, it can (and should) normally be found for less than this.
Design and Comfort of the G502 X Lightspeed
The Logitech G502 X Lightspeed is a right-handed gaming mouse with an ergonomically contoured shape. It's the same size and shape as the G502 X Plus, with large primary mouse buttons, textured rubber side panels for grip, and a smooth matte chassis with glossy accents. It comes in black and white colorways (our review unit was black) and has no lighting aside from a small indicator light at the front of the mouse to indicate connection and battery life.
Like the G502 X Plus, the G502 X Lightspeed is definitely on the larger side. It measures 5.17 inches (131.4mm) long by 3.12 inches (79.2mm) wide, and is 1.62 inches (41.1mm) high at its tallest point. It's larger than the Razer Basilisk V3 Pro and V4 Pro (5.11 x 2.96 x 1.67 inches / 130 x 75.4 x 42.5mm) — not by a lot, but it definitely feels like a much larger mouse. It weighs about 3.6 ounces (102g), which makes it lighter than the Basilisk V3 Pro, but slightly heavier than the Basilisk V4 Pro.
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The G502 X Lightspeed has 11 programmable buttons, and 13 programmable controls if you include scroll up/down. There are the left and right primary mouse buttons, as well as two side buttons along the left edge of the left mouse button. On the left side of the mouse there are the two standard thumb buttons, plus a "sniper" button that's magnetically attached and can be flipped so that it's not in your way. The sniper button can also be "deleted," and Logitech includes a delete cover in the box that makes the button unpressable (and also has the same soft, rubbery texture as the rest of the thumb rest).
The scroll wheel is a 4-way tilt wheel, so it has three programmable "buttons" (left click, right click, and center click), as well as scroll up/down. Above the scroll wheel are two buttons: One is a mechanical scroll wheel switch that switches between notched, tactile scroll and free scroll — that’s not programmable, as it's a physical switch — and the other is a profile cycle button that can be remapped.
On the bottom of the mouse you'll find UHMWPE mouse feet — at the top and bottom, around the sensor, and under the thumb rest. There's a power switch, as well as a magnetically-attached dummy puck that can be swapped out for the charging puck included in the Logitech PowerPlay 2. Under the puck is a slot for storing the mouse's wireless dongle.
In the box, the G502 X Lightspeed comes with a 6-foot (1.8m) USB-C-to-USB-A cable, a USB-A dongle, a USB-C converter, and a sniper button delete cover.
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Specs
Performance of the G502 X Lightspeed
The Logitech G502 X Lightspeed ships with Logitech's Hero 25K optical sensor, which has a max resolution of 25,600 DPI and a maximum speed of 400 IPS, and can handle up to 40 G's of force. However, both the G502X Lightspeed and the G502 X Plus are receiving a firmware update that will upgrade the Hero 25K optical sensor to a Hero 44K optical sensor, with a maximum resolution of 44,000 DPI and a maximum speed of up to 678 IPS. It's not clear when this upgrade will roll out, however, and I wasn't able to upgrade my review unit in G Hub as of this writing.
Upgrades aside, the G502 X Lightspeed's sensor is very good. It tracks on just about every surface you might possibly use while gaming, and is speedy, sensitive, and very accurate. The mouse supports a polling rate of up to 1,000 Hz, which is still pretty standard for most gamers — however, if you're someone who's convinced that the extra 0.125 milliseconds of lag is the reason for your losses, this is not a mouse with an 8,000 Hz or even a 4,000 Hz polling rate.
The G502 X Lightspeed features Logitech's Lightforce hybrid optical-mechanical switches in its primary mouse buttons, which combine the feel of mechanical switches with the speed and reliability of optical ones. The G502 X Lightspeed's switches do have a nice, tactile click with a crisp sound that's definitely on the louder side. The side buttons also feel and sound good — not quite as tactile as the primary buttons, but with a very crisp click sound.
The mouse features a dual-mode tilt wheel with a mechanical switch that lets you move between a notched, tactile scroll and a smooth, speedy free-scroll. Logitech's implementation of this is different from Razer's — Logitech's is mechanical, while Razer's is software-based. This means the modes are more distinct, but I'm not really sure if that's a good thing. While I liked the free-scroll mode of the G502 X Lightspeed better than I liked the free-scroll mode on Razer's mice (such as the Basilisk V4 Pro and the Naga V3 Pro), the tactile scroll was stiff, clunky, and very loud — with a lot of rattling. The scroll wheel only has two modes, so there's no middle ground — and while I'm fine to use free-scroll for most things, there are definitely games where I need a notched scroll wheel.
Features and Software of the G502 X Lightspeed
The G502 X Lightspeed is configurable via Logitech's universal peripheral software, G Hub. You can use G Hub to change the mouse's DPI settings (DPI steps and DPI shift speed — the DPI switch that occurs when you hit the DPI shift button) and remap keys. You can also use G Hub to update the mouse's firmware, so this is presumably where the Hero 44K sensor upgrade will come through.
Wireless Experience & Battery Life of the G502 X Lightspeed
The G502 X Lightspeed connects to your PC via 2.4GHz wireless; it can also utilize a wired connection, though the included USB-C cable is rubber and won't get you that smooth, drag-free wired mouse movement you can get with flexible paracord-covered mouse cables. The mouse does not include Bluetooth.
Logitech rates the G502 X Lightspeed at 140 hours of battery life, which is about 10 hours longer than the G502 X Plus (with no lighting). This is pretty impressive, even if there are similar wireless mice that last longer (the recently-launched Razer Basilisk V4 Pro gets up to 200 hours, for example). This should give you at least two weeks before you need to recharge, even with intense use. The G502X Lightspeed is also compatible with the PowerPlay 2, Logitech's wireless charging mousepad (sold separately).
Bottom Line
The G502 X Lightspeed is a solid gaming mouse for most gamers — its contoured, ergonomic shape is comfortable, though it does feel bigger than similarly shaped mice, such as the Razer Basilisk V4 Pro. It has enough extra well-placed buttons for the average gamer (though, not enough for the average MMO player), and its 140-hour battery life is higher than average. Plus, assuming it actually gets this firmware update, it will have a competitive sensor — though it's not going to be quite as good as the actual Hero 2 sensor. But this mouse is currently priced at $159.99, which is the same price as the fancier Logitech G502 X Plus — and it's definitely supposed to be the more budget version of the two. Unless you find it at a great sale price, I'd pick up the G502 X Plus or even Razer's Basilisk V3 Pro 35K at a similar price.
Sarah Jacobsson Purewal is a senior editor at Tom's Hardware covering peripherals, software, and custom builds. You can find more of her work in PCWorld, Macworld, TechHive, CNET, Gizmodo, Tom's Guide, PC Gamer, Men's Health, Men's Fitness, SHAPE, Cosmopolitan, and just about everywhere else.