CursorFX

CursorFX changes the look and feel of your mouse cursor by replacing it with a custom one and smoothing its movement, and it can also add special effects and animations, and more sounds. This software comes with a demo version sporting a dozen cursors but lacking most special effect customizations, as well as with a fairly sophisticated cursor creator that's free to use.

Pros

Built-in cursor gallery: CursorFX comes preloaded with 13 animated cursors that you will never mistake for the ordinary one. These range from the subtle ones with just a few or no animations to others that look like lasers, water droplets, or spinning gears.

Cursor customization: Although all special effects are only available in the premium version, you can still customize the cursor's shadow. The options available are the shadow's position, sharpness, and darkness.

Package creator: If no built-in cursor set suits you, the app provides you with all the tools you need to create your own set. Using the theme editor, you can choose images, insert sounds, as well as add animations and trails to your custom package.

Cons

Movement issues: When we tested the custom cursors, we noticed a slight change in behavior when compared to our default cursor -- the custom cursors take slightly more time at the beginning and at the end of your mouse movement.

Majority of options disabled: In the trial version of the software, you're only allowed to pick a cursor and set a handful of options. All other tabs in the main window are inaccessible, showing you only the potential of what you could do.

Bottom Line

If you've grown tired of your mouse cursor and are looking for something unconventional, give CursorFX a go, especially since, thanks to the high quality of the built-in cursors, you may not want to customize them at all. The software has got you covered if you're on the other extreme as well, allowing you to create your own cursors.