Please help! Need mouse recommendations!

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
Hello !



I am looking to get a new mouse, and was hoping some of you could give some recommendations! Ive been using a mighty mouse since it came out, and am on my second one. I am tired of the scroll ball always screwing up.



What are good non-mac mice that will work on a mac, and support the "mighty mouse" features? I am really sick of the mighty mouse, but I LOVE two of its functions (pressing the scroll nub launches dashboard, and pressing the two "side zones" launches expose). I use expose ALL the time, and really dont want to to lose that. Are there non mac mice that can do "mac things"?



Its for a desktop computer (so size is irrelevant - not looking for a portable tiny mouse).



Thanks!

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 9
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Courfeyrac View Post


    Hello !

    What are good non-mac mice that will work on a mac, and support the "mighty mouse" features?



    You can take a look at this mouse:



    http://www.razerpro.com//index.php?o...d=12&Itemid=45



    It has drivers for Leopard and absolutely tons of options for tracking, acceleration, and buttons galore.



    My Mighty mouse seems to gum-up on ball roll (scroll) down only. I fix this in seconds by spraying a weak solution of washing up liquid (or isopropyl alcohol) on a cotton handkerchief (laid on my desk surface...don't soak it) and then vigourously roll the mouse ball backwards and forwards over its wet surface for 10-20 seconds and then a dry area for a few seconds more and bingo! It works like new again for several weeks. (When cleaning press down the inverted mouse reasonably hard and ensure you are actually only moving the ball and try drawing figures of eight with it like when trying to get a stuck ball-point/Biro to unclog)
  • Reply 2 of 9
    gongon Posts: 2,437member
    *Any* mouse with extra buttons can be configured to activate Dashboard and Expose right from the Expose panel in System Preferences. No specific drivers necessary.



    Another vote for Razer. I'm using a Razer Lachesis. I can't adjust acceleration due to not having real drivers like the Pro|Click ones, otherwise it's perfect. DeathAdder is worth checking out too. I think the side buttons on Pro|Click are not quite as good.
  • Reply 3 of 9
    mimacmimac Posts: 872member
    I never buy anything else but Logitech mice. VX or MX range (corded or cordless) are very good indeed. Easy to configure and good quality.



    http://www.logitech.com
  • Reply 4 of 9
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by MiMac View Post


    I never buy anything else but Logitech mice. VX or MX range (corded or cordless) are very good indeed. Easy to configure and good quality.



    http://www.logitech.com



    +1 for Logitech.



    I like this one, but a lot of mouse choice is personal ergonomics/hand position preferences, so you might want to go to a best buy or someplace to test some out for size. Once you decide, Newegg will probably the cheapest place to get it (definitely cheaper than the logitech site).
  • Reply 5 of 9
    dentondenton Posts: 725member
    +2 for Logitech



    I have the VX Nano. It's a travel mouse, so you probably don't want that one particularly, but I'm very impressed with it. I'd point you toward the MX Revolution, as bob suggested, or the VX Revolution. Try them out to see which "fits" you the best.
  • Reply 6 of 9
    As an ex-PC Gamer, I've used all of the mice listed above. Most of them are really nice. The higher end mice use a real laser instead of a red light, allowing for extremely precise control. Some go up to 4000 dots per inch of motion. And I agree that the mighty mouse needs work.



    However, after all is said and done, I ended up using just a ambidextrous generic Microsoft 2 button + scroll wheel optical mouse. OS X doesn't have the drivers to see over 800dpi anyway, or any of the "advanced macros" that Logitech advertises. So those mice are overkill. Gaming mice are nice, but on OS X they just aren't needed. Most of Logitech's merchandise "works" on OS X. But only the basic buttons. Logitech seems to have absolutely no desire to support OS X with the more advanced buttons and macros and all that, so while they're the king on Windows, there really isn't a "king" on OS X.



    I set the scroll wheel's click to Expose via the Spaces & Expose pane, and set Dashboard to the upper right corner of the screen. And that's good enough for me.
  • Reply 7 of 9
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Synthetic Frost View Post


    As an ex-PC Gamer, I've used all of the mice listed above. Most of them are really nice. The higher end mice use a real laser instead of a red light, allowing for extremely precise control. Some go up to 4000 dots per inch of motion. And I agree that the mighty mouse needs work.

    OS X doesn't have the drivers to see over 800dpi anyway, or any of the "advanced macros" that Logitech advertises. So those mice are overkill. Gaming mice are nice, but on OS X they just aren't needed. Most of Logitech's merchandise "works" on OS X. But only the basic buttons. Logitech seems to have absolutely no desire to support OS X with the more advanced buttons and macros and all that, so while they're the king on Windows, there really isn't a "king" on OS X..



    The Razer Pro mice do see above 800dpi on OSX with their very stable Leopard drivers (handles 10.3.9 and above).



    I love my Mighty Mouse yet as an Ex PC platform gamer who now uses a MacPro and boot camp for such frivolous entertainment, and the Mac for everything else, the Razer is perfect. For both graphics and gaming it is extremely precise and highly configurable and I love the way I can change the speed/acceleration (precision) on the fly without having to open any prefs pane. I usually keep both mice connected simultaneously and switch between them as required.



    Logitech drivers are poor, to say the least, and whilst they work (just) they are buggy. Unlike Logitech (which I have also used) Razer worked very hard to make the Pro range of Mice a dream to use on the Mac and Leopard. I would strongly recommend a Razer|Pro to anyone with the budget to cash in.



    IMHO a mouse manufacturer who goes to the lengths of developing drivers specifically for Leopard, Vista and XP deserves our patronage.



    Although you can shop around for the mouse for a better price, see here:



    http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPL...nplm=TJ731LL/A
  • Reply 8 of 9
    faxthatfaxthat Posts: 64member
    I have used a Kensington Optical Elite 5-button mouse for years and it's still going strong. They have a few newer 5-button mice, including the Ci60 Wireless Optical Mouse. Kensington Mouseworks software allows ample customization for doing all that you've mentioned. Customization can be done system-wide and also application specific, allowing buttons to function differently for various apps.
  • Reply 9 of 9
    azcoderazcoder Posts: 44member
    I' really like the mouse that comes with the Wacom Intuos 3 graphics tablet.
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