Gaming mouse review: Keychron Lemokey G2 8K Wireless, high performance, light in weight

Available in the UK and USA, the G2 is a wireless gaming mouse by Lemokey, the customised gaming peripheral arm of Keychron, a brand many readers will know well. I've checked out Keychron keyboards recently, models such as the top-tier Q6 Max, and the bargain priced B6 Pro.

I never got the chance to check out the G1, but the G2 seems to put itself firmly in-between competing 8K gaming mice out there whilst coming in at a decent sum under £100/$100. The other benefit is that it uses Keychron Launcher, the web-based software that has been a staple part of Keychron keyboards for a long time now.

I rate the launcher highly and have rarely had a problem with it, so it is great to see a robust piece of software being used on an affordable gaming mouse that's not only built well, but performs well, too.

As it's a high performance gaming mouse with a flagship PixArt sensor, I will be comparing the G2 directly against my personal mouse, the similarly sized Pulsar Feinmann F01. Both mice are priced wildly differently, so it was interesting to compared several factors between them to see if one bests the other where it matters most, or if it just comes down to individual preferences.

Let's check out the specs...

Fit and finish

Made of all ABS, it certainly doesn't feel anywhere near as nice as the F01, but then again it's priced much lower, so no complaints there. To me it feels more like a previous generation Endgame/Zowie mouse, before they started to use the more grippy textured finish.

It's a fine finish but how long that lasts only time will tell. With the Endgame mice I always found that the side buttons would go shiny first, and I suspect the exact same to apply here with the G2, since the size and shape of them is similar, as is the material quality.

Speaking of side buttons, my personal preference is flat and large buttons, the long and pointed ones like those on the G2 shown above and GAMIAC PX71 at the bottom always felt a bit awkward to me for naturally resting a thumb on, whereas the large surface area of the ones found on the Feinmann and others like it feel more ergonomic and comfortable for long usage sessions.

Under my 19cm hand, the G2 feels comfortable and stable for both claw and palm grip styles, though my usual style is a hybrid approach. I like to pinch a mouse with a thumb and ring finger, then articulate forward or backward movement with them to adapt to different play-styles. Both mice have a sloping back hump that works brilliantly for this and i had no problem getting comfortable with the G2 here.

The underside of the G2 hides a cool feature I wish more more mice makers adopted, can you spot what it is in the photo below?

That little flap at the bottom to store the USB dongle, it's convenient, especially for gamers who travel with their mice or laptop gamers.

The skates applied are PTFE and cover three zones on the underside, sadly I forgot to take a photo of them before swapping them out to my preferred skates, the Wallhack Pro UWMP yellow dots. I found no problem with glide resistance on the stock skates, though find dots glide nicer overall and these yellow dots slide around like butter.

Lemokey states 52g for the weight, give or take 3g, so my scales measure up perfectly here. It's not as lightweight as the Feinmann which currently is 45g, but it's still considered super-light and honestly, under the hand, this weight difference on dot skates is hard to tell apart.

Gripping the G2 hard on both sides shows no obvious issues with flexing, so the internal construction is also up to scratch and exactly what i would expect in this price range.

The differences start to be noticed when you are using the G2 as a combination mouse, both in gaming and desktop use.

The wheel is thinner than the one on the Feinmann and other gaming mice with fat wheels. I much prefer a nice wide wheel, the diameter is also much larger as can be seen with the overhead photo above.

The button tops also have a distinct difference in feel when actuating the switches. there is more of a hollow feel to the G2's tops, as well as slightly more travel post-click. the Huano switches feel and sound excellent, though, but I think the ABS contact surface on the outside could have been slightly more distinct in feel.

Here is a demo of how the main switches sound, you can also hear the switch tops clap if you pay attention:

Likewise the side buttons have extra play after the switches actuate, something the Feinmann and others in the higher price category don't tend to have.

Features & software

Aside from the usual features that all gaming mice support these days, such as Motion Sync, lift off distance and Macro, the big feature with the G2 is that is uses Keychron Launcher, the web-browser based software. All changes are stored directly onto the on-board memory, here is what the sections within it look like:

I found no bugs with the implementation here, and unlike other Keychron wireless devices I have used with Launcher in the past, the G2 connects and can be customised in it over both wired and wireless.

Just be aware that the firmware update option when connected via wireless will only check the dongle's firmware. To check the G2's firmware, a USB cable will need to be connected.

Performance

Whether on the desktop in Windows or in games, the cursor and motion performance is excellent, though this is to be expected from all modern gaming mice, regardless of price. The higher priced mice tend to have better use of high quality materials, and implementation of software and physical features.

I'm currently pacing through nine games, all mixed genre, and in each of them I had no troubles quickly getting comfortable with the G2. If you're used to an Endgame XM2we sized mouse, then this will be just as familiar to you. The convenience of the DPI button at the top of the mouse instead of underside makes instant switching simpler, although the button can be remapped to do something else for those who don't care about DPI toggling.

Here is a demo of the G2 playing Doom: The Dark Ages:

The sensor tracking performance at 8K was perfect, aside from the few moments my physical movement on the mousepad slowed down causing some drops in the Razer mouse tracking measurement graph below:

A consistent 7900-8000Hz polling was observed, though keep in mind that using such high polling rates will impact CPU performance whilst gaming. How much this affects framerates will boil down to the CPU you have. On my i7 12700KF there was no change whilst gaming, but during the measurement above I did observe 13% CPU package utilisation.

In practice, though, I saw no performance difference playing at 8K versus 2K or even 1K. Battery life will drastically be impacted at 8K polling rates for obvious reasons, and whilst many prefer 4K, there is a growing trend to just stick to 2K which feels the safe middle ground of great battery performance, whilst still being suitably responsive on paper for even the most fast-paced of gaming sessions.

Conclusion

The Lemokey G2 has proven to be a rather excellent mouse, not just for gaming, but general use, too. Though being excellent doesn't give it any special status, as there are equally excellent mice out there that cost the same, less and even more.

A buying decision will come down to individual needs, do you value the use of a browser-based software tool like Keychron Launcher? If so, then this is right up your street. Do you want something lightweight but also supports the gaming features and feel in the hand as more expensive mice? Maybe the G2 will satisfy.

It's not totally perfect, nothing ever is, the thumb buttons could have been a bit wider, and the switch caps have more travel after clicking than what I am comfortable with, but otherwise this is a great mouse with features that rival the competition. The sensors on gaming mice these days isn't a key selling factor any more either, since even entry level gaming mice are capable of precision tracking and speed that was only possible on the top-tier models of the past, like many things in tech now, the point of diminishing returns has been reached, and brands have to work harder at giving us consumers a unique selling point to attract interest.

I believe the G2 has at least one USP (Keychron Launcher), it also helps that it's a very comfortable mouse to use for all-day sessions.