Logitech G305 X SUPERLIGHT Review: The Egg Learns New Tricks

The Logitech G305 Lightspeed is the mouse that refused to die. Launched in 2018 for $50, the chunky plastic egg became the best-selling budget wireless mouse ever made — 38,000+ Amazon ratings, a permanent home on "best budget mouse" lists (including ours), and a second life as the gaming community's favorite modding platform, with enthusiasts 3D-printing shells and swapping AA batteries for lighter AAAs just to shave grams. Eight years is three lifetimes in mouse years.

So when Logitech finally replaced it in June 2026 with the G305 X SUPERLIGHT ($79.99 MSRP, part of the new G3 Series alongside the G316 X 98 keyboard), the question was never going to be "is it better?" — of course it is. The question was whether it's enough better to justify a $30 price hike in a market where Chinese ultralight brands now sell flagship specs for half the money.

Having digested the full press coverage, owner feedback, and the spec sheet, our answer is: mostly, yes — if the shape already fits your hand, and as long as you know about the skates.

Specifications

Spec	G305 X SUPERLIGHT	Original G305 Lightspeed
Weight	59g (61g measured by some outlets)	99g
Sensor	HERO 44K	HERO 12K
Max DPI	44,000	12,000
Max tracking speed	678 IPS	400 IPS
Polling rate	1,000Hz (8,000Hz with optional PRO Wireless Receiver)	1,000Hz
Connectivity	LIGHTSPEED 2.4GHz, Bluetooth, USB-C wired	LIGHTSPEED 2.4GHz only
Battery	Rechargeable, 130+ hours at 1kHz	1x AA, ~250 hours
Fast charge	2 min = ~3.5 hours use	n/a
Buttons	6 programmable	6 programmable
Switches	Omron mechanical (double the rated endurance)	Omron mechanical
RGB	Strip behind scroll wheel	None
MSRP	$79.99 / £69.99 / €79.99	$49.99

Design and Build: Same Egg, 40% Less Egg

Logitech didn't touch the silhouette, and that's the correct call. The symmetrical egg shape is the single most-loved thing about the G305 — sensor positions, scroll wheel, and rear hump carry over essentially unchanged, with only the side buttons nudged a few millimeters forward. If you're one of the millions whose hand already knows this shape, the X feels like coming home; if you're new to it, it's a compact, ambidextrous (side buttons left-only) shell that Digital Foundry accurately describes as a rarity among modern gaming mice.

The weight loss is the headline. Dropping from 99g to 59g — a 40% reduction achieved through thinner side walls, miniaturized PCBs, and the switch from AA power to a light rechargeable cell — moves the G305 X from "heavyweight" to genuine ultralight territory. In hand, the difference is not subtle. The original G305 always felt like a solid, dependable tool you pushed around the pad; the X feels like something that flicks. PCGamesN called the weight reduction "a game-changer," and we agree with the reviewers who note this is the single biggest quality-of-life upgrade over the predecessor.

The design nods to the modding community are genuinely thoughtful. The four screws on the underside are plain Phillips heads, fully visible — no peeling skates to reach them — and the battery inside is held by clips rather than glue, so it's realistically user-replaceable in a way almost no modern mouse is. Digital Foundry's teardown-adjacent review frames the X as Logitech "incorporating some of the most popular hacks" modders did to the original, and it shows. One warning from PCGamesN's experience: actually prying the shell open once the screws are out "isn't for the faint-hearted" — the front edge jammed up hard. The screws are easy; the clip tolerances are not.

Build quality itself is solid. Mediaberry pressed the shell under force and found no creak or flex, without any honeycombing to get there. The finish is a slightly rough, grippy texture that works for fast repositioning. The tiny RGB strip behind the scroll wheel (which shines through a translucent patch, matching the G316 X keyboard's aesthetic) is the only flourish, and every reviewer reached roughly the same verdict: it's invisible under your hand during use, so it's neither a pro nor a con. A dongle cubby on the bottom stores the LIGHTSPEED receiver — still one of the best travel-friendly details in the business.

The one recurring ergonomic caveat: this is a small mouse. Palm grippers and players with large hands have bounced off the G305 shape for eight years, and nothing about the X changes that. Mediaberry's palm-grip reviewer had to force a claw grip and found it "a larger jump down" than other compact mice; Basic Tutorials flagged the same. If you fingertip or claw grip, or you have small-to-medium hands, it's excellent. If you palm grip with big hands, the G Pro X Superlight 2 remains Logitech's answer for you.

Performance: A Flagship Sensor in a Budget Body

The HERO 44K is the biggest internal leap. The jump from 12,000 DPI / 400 IPS to 44,000 DPI / 678 IPS takes the G305 X from "outdated but dependable" to current flagship-grade tracking, and every outlet that tested it came away impressed: PCGamesN reported flawless tracking through the fastest, most intricate movements; Mediaberry found zero jitter or dropouts across every surface tried (though note: glass desks are not supported). Realistically, nobody needs 44,000 DPI — but sensor headroom at this price means the tracking is simply never the bottleneck, which you couldn't say about the 2018 original in 2026.

Polling rate is the nuanced story. Out of the box you get 1,000Hz — over both the 2.4GHz dongle and USB-C wired (wired is actually capped at 1kHz). The mouse supports 8,000Hz, but only if you buy Logitech's PRO Wireless Receiver separately. Our take aligns with the press consensus: this is a sensible split. As PC Gamer put it, 8K is a niche rate most players will never benefit from, and unbundling it keeps the mouse cheaper for everyone else. If you're an esports player who wants 8K, factor the receiver into the price; everyone else should ignore the spec entirely and run 1kHz — especially since high polling rates tank the battery.

Connectivity is now tri-mode: LIGHTSPEED 2.4GHz (the bundled dongle), Bluetooth (genuinely new for the line, handy for tablets and laptops), and USB-C wired. Bluetooth throttles polling considerably — true of every mouse, but G HUB at least flags it when you pair. All three modes switch via a button on the underside.

The clicks deserve specific praise. The Omron mechanical switches are rated for double the endurance of the original's, they're tightly tuned with no wobble or rattle, and the actuation sits on the lighter side — PCGamesN found them crisp and quieter than Razer's, PC Gamer called them "satisfying to click" if loud. The scroll wheel is the mixed bag: the encoder was upgraded from TTC Silver to Kailh GE 5.0, but PCGamesN found the detents "not very defined" — the one hardware regression reviewers flagged.

The skates. We need to talk about the skates.

Every single hands-on review we read flagged the PTFE skates, and it's the closest thing this mouse has to a real flaw. The shape is unusually pointy, and the practical consequences depend on your surface: PC Gamer called them "stiff and scratchy"; Digital Foundry found they "dig into cloth mats" but worked well on a low-friction glass pad; Mediaberry measured noticeable drag and a fine-grit-sandpaper scraping noise on a hard desk, though found fabric pads mostly fine; PCGamesN landed mildest at "not the largest or slippiest... fine."

The consensus repair is cheap: a set of aftermarket dot skates (a few dollars) transforms the glide, and Digital Foundry explicitly concluded that with new skates "you're onto a winner." But it's a strange thing to ship on an otherwise meticulously engineered refresh — the original G305's round little skates were fine. Budget for the swap on a hard pad; test on cloth before you buy anything.

Battery and Charging: The Other Big Win

The move from AA power to a 130-hour rechargeable cell is the upgrade that matters most day-to-day. PCGamesN's testing lived up to Logitech's claim at 1kHz polling — a solid week between charges in real use — and the fast-charge math is genuinely useful: two minutes on USB-C buys ~3.5 hours of play. Top it up while queueing for a match and cable anxiety effectively disappears.

Purists will note the original G305's AA had a certain immortality — carry a spare and it literally cannot die — and 250 rated hours beat 130. Both are true. But the X shaves 40 grams by ditching the AA, and the replaceable-by-clips battery means you're not locked into the cell forever. It's the right trade, and the modder-friendly serviceability softens the loss.

Software: G HUB, Warts and All

Configuration runs through Logitech's G HUB: DPI stages, button remaps, RGB sync across the G3 Series, and the odd deep-cut feature like "bhop mode" (prevents accidental jumps in CS2). Digital Foundry found G HUB reliable and well laid out; the critiques are about the install-it-yourself desktop-app paradigm rather than the functionality.

Two sharp edges from testing are worth knowing. First, early units shipped before G HUB recognized them — the Reddit teardown community found Logitech's OnboardMemoryManager worked in the meantime — so update G HUB before concluding anything is broken. Second, Mediaberry found the side buttons don't register at all in Safari with no G HUB fix, and there's no way to reverse scroll direction. Mac users should also note the overall experience is more limited. Minor, but real.

How It Stacks Up

Against its own predecessor, the X wins on weight, sensor, battery flexibility, connectivity, and repairability — the original keeps fighting on price, since the G305 Lightspeed routinely sells for $30 or less and remains our benchmark budget wireless pick. Read our Logitech G305 Lightspeed review for that side of the ledger.

Against the wider 2026 market is where it gets contentious. PC Gamer scored it 70/100 largely on this axis: MCHOSE's G3 V2 clones the egg shape with smoother skates at half the price, and the budget-ultralight field (VXE R1 Pro, MCHOSE L7 Ultra) offers flagship performance for less money. The counterargument: Logitech's reliability track record, G HUB ecosystem, Bluetooth, the dongle cubby, and genuinely repairable construction are things the value brands don't consistently deliver. You're paying a brand-and-completeness premium of roughly $30. Whether that's worth it is a values question, not a spec question.

One market note: the G305 X launched June 30, 2026 at $79.99, but demand has pushed the Amazon street price to $99.99 at the time of writing — above MSRP. Digital Foundry's framing is the right one: at $80 this is a fair deal, and around $50 it becomes an automatic recommendation. Wait for the price to settle back toward MSRP before pulling the trigger unless you need it now.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

• 40% weight reduction (99g → 59g) transforms the classic shape for fast play
• Flagship-grade HERO 44K sensor (44,000 DPI, 678 IPS) at a mid-range price
• 130+ hour battery with 2-minute/3.5-hour fast charging — a full week of real use
• Tri-mode connectivity: LIGHTSPEED 2.4GHz, Bluetooth (new), USB-C wired
• Genuinely repairable: visible Phillips screws, clip-in user-replaceable battery
• Dongle storage cubby, tight click tuning, solid creak-free shell
• Sensible 8K-polling strategy (optional receiver) that keeps the base price down

Cons:

• PTFE skates are scratchy on cloth and drag on hard pads — the #1 complaint, fixable with cheap aftermarket dots
• $20–30 pricier than the G305 ever was, and street prices currently sit above MSRP
• Small shell: palm grippers and large hands need not apply
• Scroll wheel detents lack definition; encoder upgrade doesn't fully land
• 8,000Hz polling requires a separately sold PRO Wireless Receiver; wired mode caps at 1kHz
• No glass-surface tracking; side buttons don't register in Safari; no scroll-direction toggle

Verdict

8.1/10 — Great, with one asterisk. The G305 X SUPERLIGHT is a masterclass in how to modernize a classic: Logitech kept the shape everyone loves, fixed the weight, the sensor, the battery, and the connectivity, and made the thing repairable in an industry that's forgotten how. Against its own history it's a near-total victory. Against 2026's value brands it's merely competitive, not dominant — the skates need swapping, the price sits awkwardly between the true budget tier and the flagships, and the small shape remains polarizing. If the egg already fits your hand, this is the best version of it that has ever existed, full stop. If you're shape-agnostic and chasing pure value-per-gram, the Chinese ultralights still undercut it. Buy it at (or below) MSRP with a $5 set of dot skates in the same order, and you'll never think about your mouse again — which is the highest compliment a mouse can earn.

Press consensus: PCGamesN 8/10 ("by far the best G305 yet"), Basic Tutorials 87/100 (Silver Award), Mediaberry 7.5/10, PC Gamer 70/100. Amazon: 4.2/5 across early owner ratings.