TUF Gaming M4 Air review: A $50 mouse you won’t regret

I have a dense history with TUF products, as all three of my personal PC builds over the years were powered by TUF motherboards. The reason why is simple: They’re affordable and reliable. While I can’t guarantee the reliability of this mouse, even though this mouse is IPX6 water-resistant, the $50 price tag speaks for itself.

When I first saw the M4 Air, I was surprised by how much it deviates from Asus’ standard TUF branding. The mouse isn’t painted gray or yellow, and that’s for the better. The all-black look feels more modern than I would have expected it to be.

Some of the lightest mice on the market are designed to have a honeycomb exterior to reduce weight while maintaining structural integrity. However, if you’re like me and have trypophobia, this triangular cut-out design is a nice change. Ironically, given its skeletal structure, this mouse is IPX6 water-resistant, protecting the PCB from spills and sweaty palms.

Adjusting to a mouse this light wasn’t as awkward as I thought.

I tested the water resistance by cupping a bit of water in my palm and splashing it onto the mouse; lo and behold, no issues. So, don’t worry, gamers — this mouse comes ready for your inevitable Mountain Dew spills.

Speaking of moist palms, mine stayed dry when using this mouse, which is a first for me. I can attribute this to the lack of rubbery material on the M4’s finish. You’re definitely losing out on grip, but with its weight of just 47 grams, you have some weight to spare for any DIY grip mods.

That weight was a concern for me heading into this review. For about two years, my everyday mouse has been the Logitech G Pro Wireless because of its palm-grip-friendly design and weight of 80 grams. Surprisingly, adjusting to the almost 40-gram weight difference wasn’t as awkward as I thought. The mouse arrives ready to glide right out of the box with its pre-installed PTFE skates and a paracord cable that aids in durability and flexibility.

However, if you don’t have one already, I recommend that you pick up a mouse bungee to prevent the wire from snagging on your desk.

The word “lightweight” is everywhere on this mouse, even in the switches. While I’m unsure what exact switches Asus uses in the M4 Air, the marketing isn’t a lie. They are incredibly light to the touch—and for me, it was a bit much. Don’t get me wrong, the switches work fine, but they feel like cheap switches from a mouse in an office cubicle. Fortunately, these switches are made to last, as they’re rated for 60 million clicks. And hey, switches can be subjective. If you like the light clicks, these may suit you just fine.

If you like the design of the TUF M4 Air but want something with heftier switches, the G-Wolves Hati HT-S ACE is a good place to look. It uses Kailh GM 8.0 switches, which are much heavier, but is also over twice as expensive.

This mouse has four more buttons included: Side buttons, a DPI switch, and the scroll wheel. Side buttons are crucial to me because I try to eliminate any unnecessary movements when computing due to a hand injury I suffered not too long ago, so I need good forward and back buttons. While they were a bit loud, the side buttons are much better than the left and right on this mouse. I didn’t feel any awkward mushiness, and I don’t fear them falling off in the near or distant future.

I don’t utilize this switch that often, but it feels very, very nice to operate, which is the scroll button. Again, the trend for loud clicks continues, but the scroll wheel has some bounce to it — almost like a top-mount mechanical keyboard.

Finally, we arrive at the DPI switch, which is located just under the scroll wheel. Pressing the DPI switch allows you to cycle through four settings that can be adjusted via Armory Crate, Asus’ software.

We don’t usually cover the software that goes with peripherals we review, but it feels like there’s a mandatory driver update every time I boot up the otherwise decent Armory Crate application.

I dug around Armory Crate to see if the updates added any new features to the mouse, but it didn’t, and it had me scratching my head. I find this to be extremely frustrating considering this is just a mouse.

Nonetheless, once up-to-date, Armory Crate gives you access to some customization, such as adjusting your DPI to 16,000 and polling rate to 1,000Hz, thanks to the PAW3335 sensor.

The Asus TUF Gaming M4 Air is a fantastic mouse for the price. The unique triangular cut-outs on the shell reduce weight without copying and pasting the honeycomb design of many other companies. The switches are a bit light for my taste, but the extreme lightness of the mouse itself is a huge benefit.

Are there any alternatives?

At the price of $50, Asus has a lot of competition, most notably the Glorious Model O, which has a firm grip on the gaming mouse community. With that said, the Model O is much heavier at 67 grams, has a DPI of 12,000, and costs about $10 more.

Another alternative is the Cool Master MM710which has the same DPI as the TUF, a matte black shell, a weight of 53 grams, PTFE feet, and only costs $42.

How long will it last?

The warranty included on the TUF Gaming M4 Air is just one year. I will say, in my time using this mouse, I cannot see you running into any issues, and with its water resistance, I can see it lasting longer than others in its class.

Should you buy it?

yes The TUF Gaming M4 Air is a fantastic gaming mouse for the price of just $50.

Editors’ Recommendations