RM: Of mice and men

Hey DB, in light of your comments on the Mighty Mouse (and my own realization that I already do take my left finger off the button when right-clicking), I'd be interested in knowing what mouse you yourself recommend.

I've never been one of those RAZR PINGSLADE 560000 mousers, but the notion of a mouse with a beefed up scrollwheel and a couple extra well-designed buttons for expose/dashboard (is that even possible without built-in support from Apple?) is kind of neat.

To answer your last question, yes it's possible to use the buttons on other mice without built-in support, although Apple actually does have built-in support providing you just want to use the buttons for Expose or Dashboard.

As far as the first question...

Questions like this always make me a bit uncomfortable, because it's the type of thing where the situation and context is going to make a big difference, and without knowing them I'm setting myself up for giving a lousy recommendation.

Microsoft's Intellimouse Explorer is a good example... I loved them when they came out, but have encountered a lot of people who didn't care for them, most often because they had smaller hands and it's a larger mouse. If you have big paws as I do, a larger mouse is a godsend. So, while I have a few favorites, and can tell you what I use, do keep in mind that this is a case where there's little substitute for actually stopping at a store somewhere and moving a few models around to see what feels right...

What I use

All of the below are optical, have at least five-buttons, and are wired. They also use very good scanning tech, so there's no jitter when you move the cursor around fast and such, and all are a little less than $35.

  • mx500Logitech MX500 is an old favorite, and will probably be hard to pick up soon. These things are reliable as hell, and feel good.

    Not too heavy, not too light, and has a sort of "squat" shape which the palm of my hand likes to rest on.

    I just dig it.

  • mx510Logitech MX510 is what I use on my primary computer, because I was so happy with the MX500 and it was on sale at the time. Zero complaints, it's solid across the board.

    I have the blue version, which isn't garish in real life, although it would be nice if it was a nice shiny black. I was a little worried I wouldn't care for the surface on the sides designed to give you a decent grip even if your hands are a little... moist... but it's grown on me.

  • intellimouseMicrosoft's IntelliMouse Explorer with Tilt-Wheel is one of my favs, and I keep it in my Powerbook bag so I always have something decent to mouse with.

    I always loved the original Explorer and was interested in the tilt wheel deal. It's done right by me, but some people really don't like how it scrolls, saying it feels "mushy". There's something to it, I'm just kind of indifferent about it. They've always been a little on the large side, too.

    Probably the most worrisome aspect of this model is that people have claimed the left button can go bad over its life, but it hasn't happened on mine so far. The old ones did have a problem where there wasn't proper clearance for the mouse cable and over time it would wear through it, so it's not out of the realm of possibility.

Out of all of them, the safest bet is probably one of the Logitech's. I have my eye on their MX1000 line, which uses some crazy laser thing to improve scanning rates, but am told it doesn't play well with the Mac. For what it's worth, when I'm not using a mouse that has tilt-wheel, I find I miss it, but it's nowhere near how aggravating it is to use a mouse without a scroll wheel.

Of mousepads

The question was about mice, but mousepads are so heavily overlooked in the whole mousing experience, both in surfaces and surface area. Slicker surfaces give you faster movement, while a slightly coarser surface can give you more precision. When it comes to surface area, there is nothing more annoying than trying to mouse about on a big screen and hitting the edge of the mousepad.

Surface area is generally my big peeve, as so many pads are so incredibly small -- you can pay $40 for some mousepad with a some crazy gel-pad ergonomic wrist-wrest that barely lets you move the mouse around. Out of all of them, I've fallen in love with the sUrface 1030, by Func Industries.

The mousepad itself consists of a grooved rubber shell which the mousepad surface sits down into. The surface is double-sided, with one side being much smoother than the other, so you can flip it over depending on whether what you're doing demands speed or accuracy. Comes with a mouse clip to keep your cord out out of the way, but I really just care about the surface, the surface area, and its low profile.

They're a little under $20, and the one I use is 10" x 8", and 1/8" thick, but they make another series which is a little more expensive that goes up to 17" wide. They don't kid around. While they're primarily designed for gamers they kick ass for more normal tasks -- I couldn't recommend them highly enough.

yummy alcohol posted button Posted by drunkenbatman
    September 03, 2005, at 06:42 AM


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