Introduction
My second review on TE. I realise this is a rather old product but the prices are falling for it and it is a tad more VFM that it was earlier.
When I got my most recent urge to splurge (a feeling that seems to hit occassionaly- and hits most people on TE, I would imagine..), I realised that the constant slight tension of the mouse cord being applied on my hand is something I wanted to change.
I started out looking for a wireless gaming mouse. I soon realised that I may be better off with good multi-purpose performance coupled with decent performance in gaming rather than get a gaming mouse as neither am I a professional gamer nor do I spend more than 25% of my PC time gaming.
Some of the options I considered are listed below. I also put in some comments based on what I came across doing research online.
Logitech
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MX1000 (Discontinued product)
MX1100 (Updated version of the MX1100)
MX Revolution
VX Revolution (It's meant to be a 'Notebook' mouse but it's large enougt to be considered a desktop mouse.
G7 (The Logitech Wireless Gamin Mouse entry)
Microsoft
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Arc Mouse (Looks aweome and feels really god in the hand, but known issue with the scroll wheel)
Explorer Mouse (Blue track technology, laggy scroll wheel)
[BREAK=Packaging and Build Quality]
Packaging
The mouse arrived in a box with a transparent panel on the side that is covered by a flap. Everything was securely packaged, and the box included
The Mouse
The USB Receiver
The charging station
Manual
CD with Logitech's SetPoint software.
Build Quality
The build quality is pretty good. The mouse has a solid feel to it. it feels like it's something I could drop on the floor, pick up again and continue using. (Not that I want to test this...)
Initially I noticed that when you hold the mouse in your hand and give it a small shake, the scroll wheel moves around a bit. After some use, I realised this is due the new Hyper-Scroll feature which I will talk about later in the review.
[BREAK=Setup and Features]
Setup and Features
Setup
The setup was a breeze. I plugged in the USB receiver at the rear USB port and turned on the mouse using the button on the bottom. It worked and was good to go. Now, if I wanted to customise the various buttons (and there are about 11 in all!), I had to install the Logitech provided software setPoint.
Features
Here are a list features that Logitech advertises.
Hyper-fast Scrolling: Fly through long documents with the MicroGearâ„¢ Precision scroll wheel.
Quick-Flip: Move effortlessly between applications and documents with a flip of the thumb wheel.
Touch to Search: Enjoy one-click access to your favorite search engineâ€â€instantly search your computer, network, and across the Web.
Natural Position: Enjoy exceptional comfort with an ergonomic grip and deep-sculpted thumb support.
Smart Scrolling: Automatically switch between hyper-fast or precision click-to-click scrolling modes to match the task at hand.
Rechargeable Li-Ion: End battery worries forever. Stay on top of your power supply with a 4-stage battery level indicator.
Software
Now, I usually don't like lots of programs running in the background. So I was reticent to install the software and planned to make do with the basic mappings of the keys. Then I looked at the huge number of ways to customise the mappings and I went ahead and installed SetPoint.
There are some limitations to the software but there is this user created mod called uberOptions that can be installed on top of it and it lets you map about anything to the mouse. I've put the link to uberOptions in the references for this article.
I used the software to map my keys as follows.
Thumb Wheel - Next and Previous Application [Alt + Tab]
Thumb Button - My Computer
Sideways Scroll Buttons - Changing tabs in browser
Search Button - Changing Scroll Mode (I'll explain this in the next page.)
Like I said, there are a huge number of options.
[BREAK=Usage]
Usage
Now we come to the most important, the actul usage of the mouse. I'll elaborate on the features I think make this a very good mouse.
1) Hyper Scroll - This is a upgrade to the scroll wheels on the mice I had used before the revolution. The scroll wheel has a free-spin mode where the wheel rotates for 7-8 seconds with one flick. You can imagine how fast scrolling large web pages, text documents and excel sheets becomes. Long forum pages are not a hassle any more. You can navigate posts as quickly as you want to. Now this could become a problem in gaming (where one would want the old click wheel behaviour of scroll wheel for zoom/changing weapons etc.) The scroll wheel can change it's mode and go back to the behaviour we are used to at the pressing of button.(This is the mapping I used for the search button I mentioned in the previous page.)
2) Thumb Wheel - The thumb wheel is not as much a wheel as a one dimensional analog stick. It has a spring loaded forward and back motion and is very handy after mapping it to changing applications.
3) Search Button - The default mode of te search button is that if you select some text and press the button, it brings up your default browser and
searches using any search engine you can specify in SetPoint.
4) Built-in Battery - This is another feature that is very useful. Most desktop wireless mice run on AA cells and when you factor in batteries cost
(Alkaline or Rechargeable), in the long run, this mouse does not seem as expensive as it sounds. Also, the USB receiver and Charging Dock are de-coupled, so less clutter on desk. I have been using the mouse for two days now after a full charge and the charge is still at 95%. The SetPoint software
shows you the remaining battery life as does an LED meter on the mouse.
5) Ergonomic Construction - The mouse feels really good in your hand. Initially, I was trying to hold it like I would a normal and my hand did hurt a bit. Then I tried different ways of holding it and it felt perfect. I think the hand position can be described as a horizontal handshake position. Most of the the buttons are in accessible places and no more distorting fingers. One small negative here is that the 'back' thumb button is a bit difficult to get to. The 'Forward' and 'Back' buttons could have been moved forward a but.
6) Range and Surfaces - I've tried using the mouse from about 10-15 feet away and have had no problems. I've also used it on my table (I don't use a mouse pad), mattress and carpet and it tracks perfectly on all of these surfaces.
7) Gaming Performance - The first thing I tried was using the mouse for gaming. (In case I had issues, I could return it.). I am hapy to say I have had no issues. I tried it in 'Puzzle Quest: Galactrix' and people who know Puzzle Quest know how important not having lag is. I also played 'Call of Duty:World at War' and have had no lag/issues whatsoever.
[BREAK=Final Thoughts]
Final Thoughts
Considering everything, I think this has been a very good purchase. The mouse comes with a 3 year warranty and I have heard good things of Logitech Service, though I am hoping that I never need to use it. These are my final thoughts on the mouse.
+ Positives
1) Ergonomic. Feels really good in the hand.
2) Hyper-Scroll - This is brilliant. This alone can tilt a decision in the favor of the mouse.
3) Rechargable Battery
4) No lag, Decent range
5) Well placed buttons (for the most part)
- Negatives
1) The 'Back' button is not perfectly placed.
2) Built in battery is not replaceable.
3) Some online forums have mentioned issues with double clicks (Hope I don't get the problem.) - So I would suggest, don't get this mouse without support.
Thanks for reading the review. Please do post about any mistakes you may spot, I'll go ahead and fix them.
