The new Pulsefire Dart is the first gaming mouse without a cord from HyperX, that is also equipped with fancy integrated Qi wireless charging. How does it compare with other wired HyperX mice we reviewed previously, like the Pulsefire Surge and Pulsefire FPS Pro?
Unboxing
The Pulsefire Dart shares the same packaging design as other recent HyperX products with the signature red and white color scheme. A series of features are listed on the cardboard box, such as the Qi-compatible wireless charging and RGB lighting.
You can find out more details about the mouse, like the weight, sensor and switches. The Pulsefire Dart will work on computers with Microsoft Windows 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 installed.
Aside from the HyperX Thank You letter and support card, you will get a quick start guide, a USB Type-A to Type-C cable, a USB wireless receiver and a USB adapter.
HyperX Pulsefire Dart Wireless Gaming Mouse
The Pulsefire Dart is a relatively large mouse, with dimensions of 125 mm x 74 mm x 44 mm (L x W x H). It has a ergonomic design with buttons only on the left side, which is intended for right hand use.
The mouse’s body is made from matte plastic, colored in black. Both the “HyperX” logo and part of the scroll wheel are translucent to allow RGB lighting to pass through. Two small and one big rubber feet are spread across the bottom, that I find no problem gliding the mouse on the mouse pad. The power on/off switch is positioned next to the optical sensor.
The Qi wireless charging pad sits at the bottom half of the mouse. There is no indicator of where the pad is located, except on the plastic wrap you first unboxed it.
Although the Pulsefire Dart is a wireless mouse, a USB Type-C port is located at the front for charging or using as a wired mouse temporarily. Including the top DPI switch, middle button (scroll wheel) and side buttons, there are a total of six buttons. All of them are programmable in the NGENUITY (Beta) software.
On both sides of the Pulsefire Dart are the textured rubber surfaces to provide better grip, which users should be able to control the mouse with ease.
The 2.4 GHz USB wireless receiver is tiny, way smaller than a normal USB flash drive. The USB adapter is for you to plug in the receiver if your computer is too far from the desk.
Review
Sensor
The Pulsefire Dart is equipped with the same Pixart PMW3389 optical sensor, like the Pulsefire FPS Pro (its review here). It allows the mouse to have up to 16,000 DPI, 450 IPS and 50 G of acceleration. It is one of the most advanced mouse sensor in the market, which is often seen in high-performance gaming mouse. Despite being a wireless mouse, the Pulsefire Dart can set its polling rate from 125 Hz (8 ms) to 1000 Hz (1 ms).
MouseTester v1.5.3 is used to check how well does the PMW3389 sensor perform. The Pulsefire Dart actually has extremely low CPI/DPI discrepancy. We saw the most difference in measured and tested value at 500 DPI, at around 2%. At other DPI levels, the discrepancies hovered around 0.2% to 1.41%.
The polling rate was fluctuating a bit when the mouse is in the wireless mode, though it did not cause any noticeable latency or jittering during use.
I generally set the Pulsefire Dart at around 1300 DPI. The tracking of the sensor is great without any unwanted acceleration. Playing in FPS games, such as Rainbow Six Siege, is enjoyable with the mouse, which I can snap onto enemies accurately.
User Experience
The Pulsefire Dart is an asymmetrical mouse for right-handed users. It may be more suitable for palm, claw or hybrid grips than fingertip grip, due to the taller height. It is slightly heavier than a wired mouse with the internal lithium-ion battery, weighing in at around 110 grams (114 grams on our own scale).
The primary buttons are equipped with genuine Omron switches, rated for at least 50 million clicks. They are tactile and responsive as expected. The scroll wheel is smooth, but I personally want it to have a more distinct step. Overall, the mouse is solidly built, without any component rattling noise inside, while shaking it.
From my experience, the Pulsefire Dart performed exceptionally in wireless mode. The reception and range of the USB receiver, which is installed on the back I/O of the computer, are perfect with no perceivable skippings and lags.
Battery and Wireless Charging
Compared to the offerings from Logitech and Razer, the Pulsefire Dart does not use proprietary wireless charging solutions. Instead, the now well-established Qi standard is implemented to the mouse. The advantage is that you can effortlessly purchase any compatible wireless charger already in the market. I am able to charge the mouse on the Verbatim Qi wireless charger for my Note 10+ without any problems. However, HyperX did introduce its own ChargePlay Base charger (its review here).
According to HyperX, the Pulsefire Dart has a estimated battery life of about 50 hours or 90 hours (with and without RGB lighting). It took us about a week or so to drain the mouse’s battery, with six to eight hours of usage per day. It is in line with the advertised claim, which should be able to push further by turning off the RGB LEDs.
Software
Same as other recently released HyperX products, the Pulsefire Dart can be controlled via the new NGENUITY (Beta) software. The updated user interface is much cleaner and modern than the old software, which is easier to navigate through different parts.
Entering the mouse configuration screen, you will be greeted with three main sections: Lights, Buttons and Sensor. The battery level, brightness of the RGB LEDs, polling rate and presets/profiles can be accessed on the top left corner at all times. You can also re-assign all six buttons to particular functions, including opening certain application and file. DPI can be adjusted from 200 DPI to 16,000 DPI with a 50 DPI interval. Five total DPI settings can be stored at once. The altered profiles will be saved to the onboard memory of the mouse.
Also, the NGENUITY software can only be installed from the Microsoft Store. I hope HyperX can release a standalone version for it, omitting the need to use the sometimes very buggy Microsoft Store.
RGB Lighting
The NGENUITY software offers a variety of customization for the RGB lighting of the Pulsefire Dart. There are two configurable configurable lighting zones, one in the scroll wheel and one in the HyperX logo. It includes about five presets, like cycle and breathing. For each effect, you can control the colors, speed and opacity.
Overall, the RGB lighting is bright and sharp, with smooth transitions.
Conclusion
As the first wireless mouse from HyperX, the Pulsefire Dart meets a lot of criteria to be a high-performance and premium gaming mouse. The mouse is well-built with durable components, such as the 50 million clicks-rated Omron switches. The PMW3389 sensor does a great job in tracking with accuracy. Wireless reception and range are excellent without observable latency and stutter.
The NGENUITY (Beta) software provides a wide selection of customization, in both RGB lighting effects and button assignments. It is a nice touch to allow the software remind user when the mouse’s battery is lower than a certain percentage.
The Pulsefire Dart is priced at $99.99 USD (MSRP) with a 2-year warranty. Compared with the Corsair Dark Core SE with Qi wireless charging, it is about $10 USD more expensive. However, Logitech’s cheapest PowerPlay-compatible mouse (G703) costs the same, excluding the $119.99 USD (MSRP) wireless charging system. Not to mention the Pulsefire Dart has the longest battery life among the three mice (50 hrs vs 24 hrs vs 35 hrs). Combined with the abundant choices of Qi-certified wireless charger, I would recommend you to consider the Pulsefire Dart, if you are shopping for a no-compromise wireless gaming mouse.
You can purchase the mouse from your local/online resellers or the links below from Amazon or Newegg.
- Amazon US: HyperX Pulsefire Dart Wireless Gaming Mouse
- Newegg US: HyperX Pulsefire Dart Wireless Gaming Mouse
Thanks HyperX for providing us the mouse for review. (Review Sample)
Feel free to leave comments below, if you have any opinion about this website. Share the website around if you enjoy reading it. Subscribe to our Newsletter or follow our Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Support this website simply by shopping in Amazon and Newegg. It will give us small kickbacks, if you use the above affiliate links to make any purchases, which will help us grow.