I use the standard Apple mouse. I was thinking of buying another mouse. I was leaning toward Logitech, didn't consider Kensington. Awesome advice and input.
I used to use a Microsoft Intellieye Optical Explorer Mouse, but the tracking was so bad, and the ergonomics were not good (i sometimes caught my hand between the underside edge and the desk) that i wasn't really using it - more like *attempting* to use it.
So then i got a first gen Apple Optical Pro Mouse, and the tracking was not great with that either, but having used other Optical Pro mice, i suspect mine just had an issue with its hardware, as the LED used to flicker bright and dim without any pattern (i.e. not just low brightness when not in use).
Then i went back to my purple "hockey puck" iMac mouse. The accuracy on that thing is amazing when you use it as intended - i.e. using finger & thumb to 'pinch' the coloured side areas, and the index finger to click. This was OK for a while, but using OS X i wanted a multi-button mouse.
Currently, I'm using a Logitech MX 700, which is really nice ergonomically, and has a slick industrial design. However, the drivers are not perfect, and not totally Mac-like (their button which is added to System Preferences launches another app to actually modify settings). A major annoyance is that every-time i restart, i have to adjust the tracking, by going to Apple's Mouse & Keyboard control panel, and clicking on the tracking speed widget. This seems to re-set the MX 700 to track more accurately and at a not-so-extreme speed.
These niggles aside - (and they are enough of an annoyance to make me carefully consider buying another Logitech in future) - the scroll wheel is great and has a good response if you fiddle with the speed settings..
Also, the "Cruise Control" buttons are good if you set them for Page Up and Page Down, and i've set the scroll wheel click for an Exposé command which is nifty. The back and forward buttons are good, if mapped to Safari's Back and Forward commands, which are the same as those in iTunes.
All in all, a mouse with Pros and Cons. The left and right silver 'fingers' which are the main click buttons meld into the body of the mouse with no discernible separation, giving a fairly Apple-esque feeling to the mouse.
Does anyone use Apple's own wireless mouse and keyboard? They certainly look nice, but how do they perform?
I use the Apple BT mouse with my Powerbook while traveling and it performs flawlessly. It's a bit heavy compared to the wired models, but some will prefer that feel. Connections are perfect, battery life is great, and design is elegant.
I've not yet moved away from Apple mice on any of my 5 Macs, somehow I feel it's easier to stick to one button mice since that way I get proficient with keyboard commands that I'll have EVERYWHERE. I imagine it would suck if I bought a multi-button mouse for work that crippled me when I was at home or on the road trying to work without it.
I've attached Griffin's PowerMate to my 2 desktop Macs. It's the same as having a 3 button mouse (1 on the mouse, 1 on the Griffin, plus a third when you hold down the Griffin button) and scroll wheel, but it's better for video/music scrubbing etc.
It's also a convenient 2-hand solution, good for some, bad for porn...
I have it set so that Expose is tied to the Griffin with short clicks showing all windows and long clicks showing the desktop. Turns provide scrolling in all apps. I also set up a set of actions specific to Safari that turns the short click into the command butting (for tabbed browsing) and long clicks as expose windows.
Very customizable, plus the Blue LED just looks cool!
Comments
So then i got a first gen Apple Optical Pro Mouse, and the tracking was not great with that either, but having used other Optical Pro mice, i suspect mine just had an issue with its hardware, as the LED used to flicker bright and dim without any pattern (i.e. not just low brightness when not in use).
Then i went back to my purple "hockey puck" iMac mouse. The accuracy on that thing is amazing when you use it as intended - i.e. using finger & thumb to 'pinch' the coloured side areas, and the index finger to click. This was OK for a while, but using OS X i wanted a multi-button mouse.
Currently, I'm using a Logitech MX 700, which is really nice ergonomically, and has a slick industrial design. However, the drivers are not perfect, and not totally Mac-like (their button which is added to System Preferences launches another app to actually modify settings). A major annoyance is that every-time i restart, i have to adjust the tracking, by going to Apple's Mouse & Keyboard control panel, and clicking on the tracking speed widget. This seems to re-set the MX 700 to track more accurately and at a not-so-extreme speed.
These niggles aside - (and they are enough of an annoyance to make me carefully consider buying another Logitech in future) - the scroll wheel is great and has a good response if you fiddle with the speed settings..
Also, the "Cruise Control" buttons are good if you set them for Page Up and Page Down, and i've set the scroll wheel click for an Exposé command which is nifty. The back and forward buttons are good, if mapped to Safari's Back and Forward commands, which are the same as those in iTunes.
All in all, a mouse with Pros and Cons. The left and right silver 'fingers' which are the main click buttons meld into the body of the mouse with no discernible separation, giving a fairly Apple-esque feeling to the mouse.
Originally posted by Maffrew
Does anyone use Apple's own wireless mouse and keyboard? They certainly look nice, but how do they perform?
I use the Apple BT mouse with my Powerbook while traveling and it performs flawlessly. It's a bit heavy compared to the wired models, but some will prefer that feel. Connections are perfect, battery life is great, and design is elegant.
I've not yet moved away from Apple mice on any of my 5 Macs, somehow I feel it's easier to stick to one button mice since that way I get proficient with keyboard commands that I'll have EVERYWHERE. I imagine it would suck if I bought a multi-button mouse for work that crippled me when I was at home or on the road trying to work without it.
I've attached Griffin's PowerMate to my 2 desktop Macs. It's the same as having a 3 button mouse (1 on the mouse, 1 on the Griffin, plus a third when you hold down the Griffin button) and scroll wheel, but it's better for video/music scrubbing etc.
It's also a convenient 2-hand solution, good for some, bad for porn...
I have it set so that Expose is tied to the Griffin with short clicks showing all windows and long clicks showing the desktop. Turns provide scrolling in all apps. I also set up a set of actions specific to Safari that turns the short click into the command butting (for tabbed browsing) and long clicks as expose windows.
Very customizable, plus the Blue LED just looks cool!