Experience Infinite Play: The Glorious Model O3 Wireless Gaming Mouse Review

Glorious has just dropped one of the most intriguing gaming mice of the year! Instead of solely chasing raw performance and extreme lightness, they’ve prioritized a mouse that *never* dies. The Glorious Model O3 Wireless introduces the “InfinitePlay” hot-swappable battery system, promising truly uninterrupted gameplay without ever needing a cable.

With a dedicated charging dock and vibrant RGB lighting, this Glorious mouse feels like a premium offering that justifies its price tag, moving beyond the usual “peak performance” justification. Could it redefine what we expect from a top-tier gaming mouse? Let’s dive in and see.

Technical Specifications

Key Features

The Model O3 Wireless boasts an impressive feature set. While it doesn’t overload on extra buttons like some rivals, it thoughtfully includes a dedicated DPI button on top. What truly stands out is the striking RGB lighting that subtly glows from between the black exterior plates. In an era where RGB is almost standard, seeing such prominent, well-integrated lighting on a flagship gaming mouse feels genuinely fresh.

(Image: A close-up view of the Glorious Model O3 Wireless mouse, highlighting its distinctive RGB lighting.)

Flipping the mouse over reveals a single power/mode button and a playful clear plastic window showcasing the innovative swappable battery system – a nice, if purely aesthetic, touch.

At the front, a USB-C port allows for wired play and charging. The real magic happens at the back, where the InfinitePlay swappable batteries slide in with a satisfying click. A quick inward push releases them for effortless swapping.

(Image: The Glorious Model O3 Wireless mouse with its swappable battery compartment visible.)

The genius of this system lies in the “Guardian battery” – a small internal cell that kicks in when a main battery is removed, providing up to ten hours of power. This ensures truly uninterrupted wireless gaming; you can swap batteries mid-game without any downtime or needing to connect a cable.

Supporting this continuous cycle is the included charging dock. It can charge one battery at a time (two are provided) and houses the USB-A wireless dongle, which connects to your PC via the included USB-A to USB-C cable (note: the dock itself is not a dongle).

(Image: The Glorious Model O3 Wireless charging dock with a battery inserted.)

The dock’s top features indicators for mouse battery level, charger battery level, polling rate, and DPI. A button on the dock can be tapped to change DPI, long-pressed for polling rate adjustments, or customized for other functions through Glorious’ software, offering convenient control without adding clutter to the mouse itself.

Software Experience

The Glorious Core software provides comprehensive control over the Model O3 Wireless. While it offers a solid array of customization options, it notably misses an auto-profile assignment feature that some competitors include. This isn’t a deal-breaker for everyone, but it is a convenient tool to automatically switch settings based on the game you’re playing.

Within the Performance section, users can fine-tune up to six distinct DPI levels, select preferred wired and wireless polling rates (up to an impressive 8kHz wirelessly, 1kHz wired), and enable ‘Motion Sync’ for synchronized sensor and polling rates. Further adjustments include lift-off distance, debounce time for the switches, and idle standby duration.

The Lighting section is where you can unleash the mouse’s prominent RGB. It offers a wide variety of animations, brightness controls, and speed adjustments. Dimming or disabling the lighting can significantly extend battery life. Given its symmetrical design, the mouse is accessible to left-handed users who can easily reconfigure left and right click buttons, though side buttons might need to be disabled.

The Key Binding tab allows for extensive customization of all six mouse buttons, letting you assign different mouse operations, keyboard shortcuts, macros, or multimedia functions.

Finally, the ‘My Dock’ section is dedicated to the single button on the charging dock, which can also be programmed with various macros or standard mouse functions, enhancing its utility beyond simple charging.

It’s worth noting that during pre-launch testing, some software features, particularly related to lighting, were not fully functional. While these are expected to be addressed quickly, potential buyers might consider waiting for confirmation of these fixes before purchasing, as we anticipate an update to this review once confirmed.

Design and Ergonomics

The Glorious Model O3 Wireless represents a significant shift from both previous Model O designs and current industry trends. While it’s relatively light, it doesn’t quite reach “ultralight” status, weighing in at 66g with a battery (61g without). Compared to some larger, ergonomic, yet ultralight mice that can hit 55g, the Model O3’s weight is somewhat unremarkable.

(Image: The Glorious Model O3 Wireless mouse from a side angle.)

Visually, the mouse is quite distinctive. Its translucent inner section, encased by black plastic plates, makes a bold statement. If you love prominent RGB lighting, the central strip will undoubtedly appeal. However, if you prefer a more subtle aesthetic, it might not be your top choice. Personal preference will be key here.

Crucially, the segmented plate design doesn’t negatively impact comfort or grip. The gaps, particularly between the main buttons and the mouse edges, allow for a comfortable resting spot for a ring or little finger. For palm or claw grips, your hand sits behind the RGB section, while fingertip grippers won’t extend far enough back to encounter the side gaps.

(Image: The top view of the Glorious Model O3 Wireless mouse, showing the separation of its plates.)

Overall, the Model O3 retains the classic symmetrical shape found in previous Glorious Model O mice, which typically provides excellent ergonomics. However, moving away from the perforated “hole-filled” design, combined with the chosen surface finish, feels like a downgrade in terms of grip.

One of the key advantages of hole-filled mice is that the holes help your palm or fingers grip a surface, so with no holes here, that help is gone. Plus, Glorious doesn’t appear to have added any sort of grip-aiding coating to the black plastic. There are no thick rubber side pads or soft-touch coating, and in fact, the surface of the plastic is slightly textured. In warmer, sweatier situations, this works reasonably well, but in colder, drier environments, it isn’t the grippiest. Smoother plastic finishes on other mice, in contrast, sometimes provide a more reliable grip.

(Image: The Glorious Model O3 Wireless mouse on a mouse pad.)

This isn’t to say the mouse is uncomfortable; it simply doesn’t excel in pure lightweight or grippable performance when compared to top-tier alternatives or even older Model O iterations.

What’s more, as someone who does prefer a lighter mouse, I found myself favoring its use without a battery. Not only is it lighter, but the balance also felt marginally improved, requiring slightly less effort to prevent it from feeling like it wanted to tilt backward in my hand. While not poorly balanced, the difference is perceptible.

Gaming Performance

The Model O3 Wireless incorporates Glorious’s newest sensor, delivering a robust maximum DPI of 30,000. While some recent mice push higher, 30,000 DPI is more than sufficient for any conceivable gaming scenario. Complementing this, the sensor boasts an impressive 750 inches per second (IPS) maximum movement speed and a 50G acceleration rating, ensuring it accurately tracks even the most rapid and extreme human movements.

(Image: A close-up of the Glorious Model O3 Wireless’s underside, showing the sensor and PTFE feet.)

Supporting this high-performance sensor is an adjustable polling rate of up to 8kHz. While utilizing this maximum rate will naturally consume more battery, it provides the ultimate responsiveness for competitive gaming, especially when paired with high frame rates and ultra-high refresh rate monitors.

Beneath the left and right click buttons, Glorious has integrated its latest optical switches, rated for an astounding 130 million clicks. These switches are notable for feeling and sounding remarkably “normal,” a pleasant surprise given that many optical switches often present a subtly different, sometimes hollower, feel compared to traditional metal-contact switches.

(Image: A detailed view of the Glorious Model O3 Wireless’s main click buttons.)

Indeed, the mouse’s overall performance is largely impeccable, aside from the aforementioned concerns regarding the outer surface grip. Its PTFE feet, in particular, ensure an exceptionally smooth glide across any mouse pad.

However, one significant drawback is the scroll wheel. Despite its knurled rubber surface, it feels somewhat slippery. The scroll detents are also indistinct and a bit stiff, resulting in a slower overall scroll speed. This lack of precision and tactile feedback didn’t inspire confidence during intense gameplay. For users who rely on the scroll wheel for critical actions like weapon switching, this particular aspect of the mouse might be a considerable letdown.

Unending Power: Battery Life Breakdown

True to its bold promise, the Glorious Model O3 offers effectively endless battery life. Swapping batteries mid-game involves a few quick, effortless steps: remove the depleted battery, grab a charged spare from the dock, insert it into the mouse, and then place the drained battery in the charger. Each step takes mere seconds and can even be performed without direct visual focus.

Crucially, this process creates no downtime. If you remove a battery but haven’t yet inserted the charged one, the mouse continues to function seamlessly thanks to its internal Guardian battery, allowing you to keep playing without interruption.

(Image: The Glorious Model O3 Wireless’s underside, highlighting the sensor and battery area.)

The only minor concern with this continuous play system is the slight shift in the mouse’s weight and balance when switching between having a main battery inserted and relying on the Guardian battery. While most casual players likely won’t notice or be affected significantly, competitive gamers who demand absolute consistency might prefer to use a fully charged secondary mouse rather than risk altering their primary gaming tool mid-match.

Quantitatively, the InfinitePlay system delivers up to 71 hours of total playtime when combining one swappable battery with the Guardian battery, assuming a 1kHz polling rate. Swapping in the second battery extends this significantly, providing another 57 hours of use – more than enough time to recharge the first. This effectively ensures perpetual wireless operation. However, engaging the maximum 8kHz polling rate drastically reduces endurance, offering only 14.8 hours with one swappable battery and the Guardian, and a total of 27 hours across both batteries.

In practical terms, a single battery at 1kHz polling rate can last three to four days with extensive daily use (work and gaming), with the Guardian battery providing a generous ten hours for changeovers. At 8kHz, daily battery swaps become necessary if you’re putting in eight hours of work and several hours of gaming each evening. For casual nightly gaming, expect two to four days between swaps at 8kHz, or a comfortable couple of weeks at 1kHz.

Pricing and Value

Priced at $159.99, the Glorious Model O3 Wireless is positioned at the higher end of the gaming mouse market. However, it quickly establishes itself as a reasonable value proposition when considering the extensive array of included extras. Unlike many high-end competitors, it comes complete with a dedicated charging dock, two removable batteries, and integrated RGB lighting, offering a richer feature set for its cost.

Consider These Alternatives

If the Glorious Model O3 Wireless doesn’t quite fit your needs, here are some excellent alternatives:

• Logitech G Pro X Superlight 2: For those who prefer a similar symmetrical design and an even lighter mouse, the Logitech G Pro X Superlight 2 is a fantastic choice. Weighing just 62g, it also offers a form of continuous power through compatibility with Logitech’s PowerPlay mouse pad, which can wirelessly charge the mouse, eliminating the need for battery swaps entirely.
• Razer Viper V3 Pro: Razer’s offering for a lightweight, symmetrical gaming mouse boasts top-tier specifications and an impressively low weight of just 55g. While it comes at a slightly lower price than the Model O3, it offers fewer features and lacks a system for continuous play if its battery depletes.

Our Final Verdict

The Glorious Model O3 Wireless undeniably lives up to its core promise of endless gaming, thanks to its brilliantly executed hot-swappable battery system. The ease and speed with which batteries can be exchanged, even mid-game and almost without looking, truly establish it as a no-downtime solution for continuous play.

(Image: The Glorious Model O3 Wireless in use on a mouse pad, showing its overall form.)

However, this innovative system comes with a trade-off: a slightly higher weight than many of its competitors. While still light, it doesn’t quite match the ultralight designs of some alternatives. More notably, the subtle shift in the mouse’s balance and weight when transitioning between a main battery and the Guardian battery could be a minor distraction for highly competitive gamers who prioritize absolute consistency in their peripherals.

Furthermore, the inherent necessity of such a rapid-swap system is debatable. While running the mouse at a max 8kHz polling rate does drain the battery faster, demanding frequent swaps, this speed is typically only essential for competitive sessions. For everyday use, including work and casual gaming, a more sensible 1kHz polling rate yields over 50 hours per battery, making a weekly charge a minor inconvenience rather than a significant hurdle.

Drawing a parallel to wireless gaming headsets with swappable batteries, such as the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless, the feature feels more impactful there. Headsets often have shorter battery lives (around 20 hours), making quick swaps more critical. Additionally, wireless headsets offer freedom to move away from the desk, where being tethered by a charging cable would be restrictive. Wireless mice, however, are used at a desk regardless, making a simple cable connection for charging far less disruptive.

The “elephant in the room” for those seeking a truly charge-free experience is Logitech PowerPlay. While a more significant initial investment (requiring a specialized wireless charging mouse pad), once set up, it eliminates the need for charging entirely.

Considering these points, alongside a scroll wheel that feels somewhat unrefined and an outer casing that lacks optimal grip, the Model O3 Wireless’s appeal largely hinges on its headline battery-swapping feature. If this uninterrupted play is your absolute priority, the mouse delivers it brilliantly and offers good value given its comprehensive package. However, for a more balanced overall experience, alternatives often provide lighter designs, superior scroll wheels, and better surface finishes, with battery life that’s already more than adequate for most users.