Turtle Beach Kone II Air mouse review — Smooth is just where it starts

By Cassie Peterson

Posted on September 15, 2024

When Turtle Beach acquired ROCCAT back in 2019, we knew there were some big plans for the already well-renowned peripherals company. However, even though the ROCCAT brand was retired earlier this year, you can rest assured that the legacy and quality of the ROCCAT name continues to live on. Turtle Beach just launched their latest in the Kone lineup of gaming mice with the Kone II Air. With this release, it’s easy to see the leaps forward they have taken to improve the formula of what makes a great mouse.

The mouse comes packed in a sleek purple box, well protected by the foam inserts. Also included in the box are the PhantomFlex braided charging cable, wireless USB-A transmitter, USB-C to USB-A transmitter adapter, and a couple of grip strips. Of course, you’ll also find the quick start guide that tells you all you need to know to get started with your new mouse. With the transmitter, you’ll be treated to that premium 2.4Ghz wireless connection, although low-latency Bluetooth is also an option if your device is capable.

I’m still not entirely sure what the purpose of the adapter is. If it was USB-A female to USB-C male it would make perfect sense seeing as many companies are moving away from using USB-A, but this is USB-A and USB-C female, so unless you have a C to C cable, I don’t see a use for this. Unfortunately, asking TB support didn’t help either as I was told it was for additional device compatibility. I have a USB-A to USB-C (female to male respectively) adapter already. THAT provides additional compatibility, but female to female? Just doesn’t make sense. Someone enlighten me.

The grip strips are a random but also very welcome addition here. The Kone II Air has a very smooth body that isn’t always the easiest to hold onto. Placing these strips on either side of the mouse keeps you from accidentally letting the mouse go when you’re swiping around the desk. And this mouse swipes so smoothly, it feels like it’s literally floating in the air. I barely, if at all, noticed the resistance as I moved it across my mousepad, all thanks to the ceramic mouse feet on the bottom.

As mentioned before, the body is incredibly smooth. There’s a couple of LED strips along the sides that can be programmed via the Swarm II software, which we’ll touch on again in a bit. You can also switch between DPI settings with the simple press of a button by the scroll wheel. There are two side buttons and the Easy-Shift [+] button that lets you program up to 21 functions in a single profile. Lastly, there’s the 4D scroll wheel that also has left and right tilt presses for additional controls and a button that lets you choose between a tactile, clicky scroll or the smooth free spin.The tactile scroll is a bit too clicky for me, but the free spin is also a little too free. I think it would have been better if the tactile scroll was more like the Kone XP Air that I’ve reviewed previously and the free spin being a little more resistant instead.

I do miss having four side buttons, but the side buttons on the Kone II Air are much better placed. With my Kone XP Air, I can barely reach the lower forward button and the upper forward button is impossible for me to use. With the Kone II Air, I can reach the one forward button easily. The sides of the mouse are also very well accommodating for my digits, especially for my pinky, which usually struggles to sit comfortably on some other mice.

Now, how does the mouse perform? About as well as you’d expect coming from Turtle Beach. The Kone II Air keeps up with the legacy of other Kone mice in the past, never missing a click and offering ultimate precision. Hopping into some games of Rainbow Six Siege and the Black Ops 6 Beta, my shots were on point. The only thing that held me back was adjusting to the different button configurations, trying to find out what new keybinds would work best. The mouse uses 100 million click Titan optical switches and a 26k DPI Owl Eye sensor for smooth and precise tracking. You can also feel confident that you’ll stay connected with up to 350 hours of battery life (on Bluetooth, 150 for wireless). Unfortunately, this mouse isn’t compatible with my Kone XP Air’s charge station, which I feel is a missed opportunity.

Earlier I mentioned Swarm II, the new software made for managing your Turtle Beach peripherals. The application has been upgraded and streamlined to make it far more intuitive and easier to use and navigate. You’re not flooded with tons of information on the front screen, which can be overwhelming to see when first launching the app. Instead, they give you the need-to-knows right up front and let you venture into deeper settings in additional menus. The other cool thing about Swarm II is that if you were already using the ROCCAT Swarm app in the past, you’re able to seamlessly migrate your device settings and profiles to Swarm II with the click of a button. All the keybinds and presets I had for my Kone XP Air were carried over to the new software, and I barely had to lift a finger.

I can’t tell if this is my new favorite mouse yet — I’m still trying to figure out how to set my keybinds with the different button configurations, especially for Rainbow Six Siege — however it’s definitely up there at the top of the list. Thankfully the Kone II Air isn’t as pricey as some of its predecessors, sitting at $119.99 USD. It also comes backed by a 1-year manufacturer’s warranty in the event it malfunctions.

Turtle Beach Kone II Air mouse review — Smooth is just where it starts

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