If you aren't thrilled with the anti-ergonomic R100 jobby that your boss tossed your way alongside an IdeaPad, the VolkanoX Phoenix Wireless Mouse is the R540 replacement you're looking for. It isn't all about the spanking the spreadsheets – it'll even suffer the odd gaming craving you throw its way. All that, for a price we wouldn't mind recommending to just about anyone.
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Design
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Features
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Battery
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Value
It may lack the charm of Logitech’s MX Master 4, but we never once regretted the time we spent with the infinitely more economical VolkanoX Phoenix Wireless Mouse. That’s equal parts due to the R540 price and the comfy ergonomics you don’t often find at this price range. In fact, it found us.
VolkanoX, if you haven’t had the pleasure of meeting it, is Volkano’s lineup of superior-but-still-budget products for the South African market, typically pricier than the regular roster but not by much. The Phoenix is certainly that, cosplaying as a considerably more costly offering without compromising on the build or the innards.
Ashes to ashes, day to day
Bells and whistles made of 24-karat gold wouldn’t be much use if the mouse they’re living inside doesn’t conform to the contours of your hand. That wasn’t an issue for the Phoenix, which had no trouble resting under our palm for hours at a time. This is a right-hander, so the lefties keeping up the act at home should look elsewhere.
We hope you’re fond of the slightly-too-drab ‘Graphite’ colourway that VolkanoX forces upon customers, because we certainly couldn’t find anything cheerier to go on. Stick it in the wrong office, and it’ll be at risk of disappearing among the backdrop for good. Otherwise, it does an alright job of hiding any gunk buildup, barring a few fingerprints, and its plastic body — weighing 90g — isn’t averse to a quick wipe-down now and again.
Volkano’s kept things pretty simple where the buttons are concerned. The usual clickers adorn the face, accompanied by a doomscroll-worthy metal scrollwheel. A smaller black button sits under both, to adjust DPI (in increments of 400), while two side buttons serve as the forward/back combo you’d expect above the thumb. A simple ‘X’ offers the only indication that this comes from the VolkanoX headquarters.
This R540 option somehow manages to be cleverer than Apple’s supposedly ‘Magic’ Mouse, by chucking the USB-C charging port on the front of the device, enabling its owner to use it while charging in a pinch. Underneath, it’s pretty simple, with enough room to disguise the wireless dongle, connection switcher, and on/off switch.
Quiet as a…
There’s no shortage of connectivity options. The 2.4GHz USB-A dongle embedded in the Phoenix’s undercarriage proved to be the simplest option for our Windows machine, but newer Mac parents toting USB-C ports might want to make use of the dual Bluetooth connections that can be hot-swapped at the tap of a button.
The overall effect? The VolkanoX Phoenix lived up to our expectations and then some. Much of that adoration came down to our personal fixation with mice that quietly get the job done without disturbing the neighbours next door. It tries its best here, delivering a mostly silent but still tactile ‘click’ that’ll satisfy ASMR listeners.
It’ll even put up a decent fight as a budget gaming mouse in an emergency. The DPI range of 800-1,600 isn’t the best in the game, but it suited our casual gaming needs rather well. It and the responsive sensor will be a boon for the worker who’s looking to sneak in a quick round of Balatro before lunch. Yeah, we said ‘before’. What of it? [Oh, really? – Ed.]
Where the VolkanoX Phoenix really steps up its game is its battery life, with the 500mAh defying our expectations once again. It’s easily worth the R540 asking price alone (the extras are just a bonus at this point), outlasting even most office interns with a claimed six months of juice that we have no trouble believing after three or so months of usage and no warning light to slap us in the face just yet.
VolkanoX Phoenix Wireless Mouse verdict
VolkanoX is obviously on the right track if it can put out something quite as capable as the Phoenix Wireless Mouse before us for R540. Whether it’s hounding a Balatro high score or whipping up a mean formula in Excel, the Phoenix will rise from the ash-grey graphite to meet the challenge head-on. You can put it through the wringer for six months at a time, too, and it’ll be as quiet as the day you first met. That’s a win in our books.
