Turtle Beach Burst 2 Pro review: proves you don't need a fingertip grip to win ranked matches

The Turtle Beach Burst 2 Pro doesn't look like a $139.99 / £119.99 gaming mouse, but it's got the features, feel, and sensor performance to keep up with more expensive flagships while offering a form factor that plays particularly nicely with a relaxed palm grip.

That's not something you find in the best gaming mouse models every day. Its wider form factor isn't going to satisfy those going for gold in truly competitive esports arenas, but for the casual gamer who just wants a little comfort while zipping through some ranked matches, there's plenty to love here. It's not going to be for everyone, and it's priced just a little high compared to some of the mid-rangers out there right now, but the Burst 2 Pro is well worth stepping outside the Razer / Logitech box for.

Design

The Turtle Beach Burst 2 Pro doesn't stray too far from the rest of its line. This is still a wide mouse with plenty of space for a comfortable palm grip and a soft-touch finish that keeps things smooth and tactile under the hand. A pear-shaped form factor means I can easily maintain control of the top half with just my thumb and pinky, while the base of my hand has good support from the fairly tall dome shape. That does limit finer movements, with the rear end often hitting my palm when I'm trying to fine-tune aim with more of a wiggle action, but it's more comfortable in a relaxed palm hold as a result.

The shape itself is going to serve those who use their forefingers and thumb to move primarily, rather than those who employ their smaller digits for more discrete movements. This is for the palm and claw grippers among us; otherwise, there's just too much strain on the fingertips.

Aesthetically, the Burst 2 Pro is a little dumpier than most of the gaming mice that cross my path. It's certainly smaller than the comparatively hulking Glorious Model O 3 Wireless and looks far more streamlined as a result. A heavier gradient down towards the front and an emphasized widening to the rear mean this is more of a slope to work with, compared to Glorious's slab-like design. It is, however, chunkier than the featherweight Corsair Sabre Pro V2 Ultralight, with less of a slimline feel.

Construction feels alright. Nothing has sent major red flags during my last few weeks of testing, but there's considerable creaking from the sides and the back of the main hump when pressure is applied. However, there's no rattle in the main clicks, and the scroll wheel feels just as tight as the day I opened it.

At 57g, we're still a way off from Corsair's magical 36g whisper of a mouse, but Turtle Beach has done well to keep the figures this low with such a chunky body under the hand. It helps that the underside is essentially carved out from the sensor up, with two open panels dropping a few grams. It's rocking the same kind of feel in-hand as the Razer Deathadder V4 Pro. That's with a nicely balanced weight distribution and no drag from that larger rear section.

Controls

You'll find everything you need here, with two side buttons to accompany those main clicks and a tappable scroll wheel. A DPI shifting button also lives right at the top of the mouse, but it's so far up the device that it's almost impossible to hit during gameplay. Still, I'll take it over the underside placement of the best Razer mice, even if I do have to shimmy up the mouse and grip the sides particularly hard to actuate the stiffer switch.

The scroll wheel feels nicely notched with a good amount of tension to avoid accidental flicks, while still feeling responsive in-game. There's no fancy footwork featured here, no side-to-side action, and a simple notched system to work with. However, it feels comfortable, doesn't squeak, and has good action to it overall. I did struggle when using it for weapon selection, though. These are softer notches than I've been used to, which sometimes meant a little over-extension.

Software

While many brands are moving towards lighter web-based configuration tools, the Turtle Beach Burst 2 Pro still needs the full Swarm treatment. This is Swarm 2, though, and it's miles ahead of the original software.

Everything works just as it should, with a simple keybinding system mapped to a virtual image of the mouse itself and easy macro recording to boot. Deeper customizations take place in a separate screen, with everything from lift-off distance to angle tuning available via individual panels. It's lightweight, doesn't throw a bunch of ads in your face, and never failed or took up too much CPU space during my testing time. It also provides a solid battery indicator, which is more than I can say for other brands.

Connection

The Turtle Beach Burst 2 Pro offers an 8,000Hz wireless and wired polling rate, which feels more like a box-ticking exercise than a feature you'd actually prioritize when picking up a new gaming mouse. Yes, ultra-competitive players may feel a difference, but it's unlikely to be noticed by the rest of us and doesn't feel particularly well placed in the Burst 2 Pro's chunkier form factor.

Thankfully, Turtle Beach hasn't gone all in on tailoring its connections to the Esports elite. You'll still find a versatile Bluetooth connection onboard, with a simple USB-A 2.4GHz receiver for a faster tether. Connection modes are selected via a sliding toggle on the underside, and I found swapping between 2.4GHz and Bluetooth between devices to be pretty simple.

Battery

Turtle Beach expects you to get up to 150 hours of juice out of this rodent, and that's a number I wouldn't second-guess after a few weeks of testing. I've only had to plug in once or twice during this period. In a regular month of work and play, I had to recharge once, and I average around 53 hours of use per week. That does dip with a higher polling rate, but I largely keep to 1,000Hz with 4,000Hz in the back pocket if I need it.

You don't get the hot-swappability of Glorious's newer rodents, but with a heftier battery under the hood, you don't exactly need it. In fact, the only other mouse to hit the same power ceiling as the Burst 2 Pro is the Razer DeathAdder V4 Pro, and that's the best wireless gaming mouse for battery I've tested so far.

Sensor

The Owl-Eye sensor is back, with its 30,000 DPI and 750 IPS tracking speed. That's a pretty standard affair, not quite touching Razer's flagship Focus Pro or Logitech's Hero 2, most recently featured in the G Pro X Superlight 2c, but still offering a sturdy experience. Tracking remains stable and accurate on both fabric and harder surfaces, with no noticeable stuttering during faster moments. Power does seem to be routed away when the mouse is at low battery, though. I noticed more juddering when at lower percentages than I do from other devices.

There's also a strong roster of additional sensor features to dig into. This is often where more premium flagships take the win, with Razer's rodents offering the best selection of sensor features of the bunch. Turtle Beach is getting close, though, with lift-off distances running the full 0.7mm, 1mm, and 2mm gamut, with fine-tunable angle snapping and motion sync.

Switches

This is one of the only gaming mice I've tested that has softer main clicks than side buttons. That's a strange one. I'm normally getting stroppy about side clackers that feel too limp under the hand, but I was surprised when I first put these optical switches to the test.

They're fast and comfortable, but the main clickers feel just a touch too padded to truly feel tactile, while the side buttons have more of a traditional response. It doesn't impact gameplay too much. I was still able to hit all my usual beats, but if you prefer a crisper snap to your clicks, I'd recommend looking into the Logitech G Pro X Superlight line instead.

Should you buy the Turtle Beach Burst 2 Pro?

The Turtle Beach Burst 2 Pro has plenty going for it: a solid battery life, low weight, comfortable shape, and a reliable sensor with a bunch of extras. It's zippy but comfortable, lightweight but particularly easy to control, and offers a few software features you won't find further down the price range.

It's premium, but it isn't as expensive as Logitech and Razer's top dogs. No, it's not as cheap as other mice offering similar feature sets, but if you're after a more relaxed hand position while still maintaining the internal speed of FPS-first pointers, it's an easy recommendation. However, considering the NZXT Lift Elite packs a similar shape with only a few minor sacrifices in the sensor department for just $79.99 / £79.99, it's worth consolidating your own needs first.

If you're after a soft feel with the sensor smarts to keep up with faster gameplay, this is an easy recommendation. However, this isn't a one-size-fits-all rodent.

How I tested the Turtle Beach Burst 2 Pro

I used the Turtle Beach Burst 2 Pro exclusively for four weeks, running the mouse as my day-to-day device for both work and play. In that time, I was primarily playing my way through Doom: The Dark Ages arena runs, while also ticking along in Planet Coaster and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. I also stress-tested the mouse in Apex Legends and CS:2 during more focused testing sessions. For more information on how we test gaming mice, check out the full GamesRadar+ Hardware Policy.

I'm also hunting down all the best Logitech gaming mouse options, while also diving into the best gaming keyboards and best gaming headsets for more setup inspiration.