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Laptop Mice
Mai-Kero
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
So, I need a mouse for my laptop that is shipping soon. Should I go with a bluetooth one, or regular wireless, and what brand? I'm guessing logitech. I have no idea at all what I should be looking for, though, so any tips would be appreciated.
Mai-Kero on
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I don't see any advantages to using wireless/blue tooth mice for laptops, but that's just me.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826104208&Tpk=Logitech%2bv150
As far as bluetooth mice are concerned, I've heard good things about the apple mighty mouse, but I don't know how well that would work with a PC.
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=1894607
I remember it being cheaper, but that's probably just my discount talking.
So my ruler says: 4 inches from front to back, 2 inches across at it's widest point, call it 1.5" at the tallest point.
The way I hold my mice, my fingertips rest at the middle (horizontal) of the buttons, near (slightly above, where the wire protruding from the mouse is defined as the top) the top of the scroll wheel. Fingers curl up, and the back of the mouse hits about the middle of my palm. Thumb on the side, with the tip about level with the lowest point of the buttons. Ring finger and pinky on the other side. The top-most knuckle (nearest the tip) is roughly level with the lowest point of the buttons.
I've never looked at how I (or anybody else) holds a mouse before. I imagine I looked rather amusing grabbing my mouse, studying the grip, then typing.
I'm also writing a technical report right now. Can you tell?
I went wireless because I hate the idea of wires and I didn't want to have to roll up the wires when I put the mouse back in the laptop bag and stuff, and then the wires take up space and get tangled, and the wireless mouse was like 25 CAD, so what the hell.
If yes, buy a bluetooth mouse. If you carry your laptop around a lot it's very nice not to have to coil up a wire for a mouse all the time.
2: Most laptop mice are 1/3-1/2 the size of a regular mouse. Some are larger, but the theme is to get them as small as possible. Try out a few in a store before you buy one online and find it cramps your hand.
I have probably average hands and the bluetooth (regular size) mouse that came with my company laptop is too small. I can have my fingers on the front of the mouse and still touch the pad with my wrist. It's quite uncomfortable and I'm getting a new mouse soon. I keep it only because it's wireless and has extra buttons.
3: If you decide on a wireless (non-Bluetooth) that is designed for laptops (smaller size) see what options they have for carrying the dongle around. Some will allow you to store the dongle inside the mouse so you don't lose/break it. Logitech (i think) has a new mouse coming out with a dongle that is TINY. Basically it's meant to put in a USB port and leave there, because it doesn't stick out at all except for a little to grip to pull it back out.
You don't want to get a wireless mouse then loose the dongle for it because you had no way of keeping it close to the mouse/laptop. (nice feature of bluetooth, no dongle)
EDIT:
Here's the new logitech dongle: Nano Receiver
Pick your poison.
There are others out there, like mine is from Dell, but probably just a rebrand. I haven't seen it anywhere else though.
If you have small hands, then fine, go ahead and buy a laptop mouse.
The size difference shouldn't really have any impact on the weight of the laptop bag you'll be carrying.
If it's because they have shorter wires so that they don't make a mess in your bags, that is a valid reason. I hate when wires get all tangled and I have to untangle them.
Is it because they take less power? I'm assuming if it's on a desk so you can use a mouse, it's near a power outlet. I'm also assuming laptop mice use about as much power as regular mice.
I would much prefer a comfortable mouse to a smaller mouse, so I recommend a well-priced regular mouse. Anything gaming-grade you can get at a rebate on. Logitech MX 518, G5 and above, the new version of the microsoft intellimouse explorer 3.0 which is black... anything above regular consumer mouse you can find a decent rebate on.
That said, if I had to get a new mouse, I'd probably check out Bluetooth. Having the USB dongle sticking out of the backside of the laptop does scare me from time to time.
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Logitech makes a nice compact one you can get for around $40, but it only has 3 buttons (including the scrolly-wheel). This was a deal breaker for me, because I need the forward/backward buttons on the mouse.
I ended up with a Microsoft Wireless Laser Mouse 8000. The laser is in the middle so I'm used to how the mouse moves; it has a nice plug-in slim recharge pad to recharge the mouse batteries, but it uses standard AA batteries so if you run out of juice in an airport you can just pop in a regular AA. The battery is supposed to last 3 weeks between charges. I charge it a couple times a week, it seems to fully charge in 90min or so from empty, guessing from when I first got it. This mouse costs around $75 solo, but I got it with the wireless desktop bundle.
As much as I dislike MS as a software company, I've always liked their keyboards and mice.