Apple's Mighty Mouse: The Move to Multi-Button
by Anand Lal Shimpi on August 4, 2005 8:10 PM EST- Posted in
- Mac
High Resolution LCD and Gaming Performance
One of the reasons why I originally switched to the Logitech MX1000 was because of my use of higher and higher resolution displays. I found that the larger the LCD I moved to, the more of a pain using low DPI optical mice became. When I first decided to leave my old Microsoft mouse behind, I bought two mice and did a little mini roundup for myself to determine which one I'd use for my main machine. The running was between the Logitech MX1000 and the Microsoft IntelliMouse Explorer 4.0. In a nutshell, my conclusions were that although I liked the ergonomics of the IntelliMouse Explorer 4.0 better than the MX1000, the scroll wheel (I accidentally middle-clicked a lot with the IntelliMouse's wheel) and, most importantly, the tracking accuracy of the MX1000 was far better for my needs, especially on using very high resolution displays. So, the MX1000 became my work mouse and the IntelliMouse Explorer 4.0 became my testbed mouse.
One of the areas where Logitech's mice are supposed to excel is in gaming. So, I fired up a few games and tried out Apple's latest just to see how mighty it was. However, it was in its gaming performance that I was actually the most disappointed. The tracking speed and accuracy were good enough for me; granted, my first-person shooter skills have atrophied over the past few years, so I'm not as dependent on the perfect mouse as I would have been before, but I would say for the majority of casual/recreational gamers, the tracking and accuracy won't be a problem. The major problem instead was an issue that I mentioned earlier in this review: the problem of right clicking when your left click finger (in my case, the index finger) is resting on the left side of the mouse.
When using the mouse for anything but gaming, I'm not usually alternating left and right clicks all that much, especially given how much of a keyboard-shortcut nut I am. But even when I am clicking a lot, the pace of my clicking isn't so great that I have problems remembering to lift my index finger before I go to right click. It's a pain, sure, but it's something that I can deal with. In games though, it's a very different story.
I fired up a game of Command & Conquerer: Generals, a real-time strategy game where left clicking will select your characters and right clicking deselects them. The reason why I picked this game in particular is because it involves a lot of alternating between left and right clicking, which was where the single-button design of the Mighty Mouse truly failed. Quickly switching between left and right clicks using the mouse had my hand doing a finger dance that it wasn't used to doing at such a fast pace; it went something like: index finger up, right click, index finger down, left click, combined with a lot of dragging and selecting. Although the Mac is far from a gaming platform, those of you who do happen to game on your Mac (or want to use the Mighty Mouse on your PC) should know of the mouse's shortcomings.
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LincTX - Saturday, August 6, 2005 - link
I don't think the mouse is the only one with small balls. There is a difference between Professional and just being plain tame. This is a horrible, horrible product that is sure to annoy more than just gamers and PC-switch users.I say pass the Apple product reviews on to a reviewer which hasn't been recently bitten with the Apple worm. It's only fair I think.
cryptonomicon - Friday, August 5, 2005 - link
Logitech or microsoft are not perfectly ergonomic and do not fit many people's hands, however they are infinately more ergonomic than this attempt by apple.Why can't apple just put two buttons on the top of their mouse??? The bottom-clicking mechanism is an overly complicated way for a mouse to work and causes alot more accidental clicks in my experience.
Vitaboy - Friday, August 5, 2005 - link
By the content of most of the comments here, it seems you have a lot of people who feel very threatened by the Mighty Mouse.
It seems Anand's review was very objective. He pointed out the mouse's good features as well as the bad features. In the end, he basically stated the mouse is certainly appropriate for some people (like Apple Pro Mouse users) but not so great for others (gamers and hardcore multi-button mousers). Yet, a lot of people seem to be very threatened by this seemingly sensible language with comments like, "This proves the mouse sucks!" or "Apple is all style, no function!" when it's clear most of the people posting have not used the mouse, do not have an open mind, and do not even care to have an open mind about it.
I've tried the mouse. The mouse isn't perfect, but it's perfectly good enough for most Mac users and probably a lot of less experienced Windows users. It feels comfortable to my hands and is thus "ergonomic" for my needs. Considering most companies slap the term "ergonomic" as nothing more than a marketing label to make consumers think they are getting "ergonomic" without really explaining why their product is so "ergonomic" (like the marketing guy that Dilbert needles by explaining what he means by "paradigm"), it seems to me the only definition of ergonomic is something that doesn't cause you discomfort or pain after use. And that, it seems, is a very personal thing rather than Microsoft, Logitech, or Apple telling me that their mouse is "ergonomic."
That being said, for every comment of "It's amazing how much Apple can get people to pay for useless style", you can always find someone who feels threatened by the idea that there are many people out there who find that Apple products work for them just fine.
The bottom line? Some users will love Might Mouse because it works well for them. Many other will not like it one bit. But everyone would benefit from the discontinuation of inane and childish mentality of "I think the mouse sucks and you are getting ripped off if you buy because I hate it and I know better than you and you should use what I think is better because Apple sucks." Nuff said.
IKeelU - Saturday, August 6, 2005 - link
I don't feel threatened by apple's products. It just seems arrogant to me that a company would forsake ergonomics and functionality just to be "different". Granted, I don't actually know why apple chose this design, but from Anand's reactions to the product, I can't see any other reason why someone would want to buy it.MCSim - Saturday, August 6, 2005 - link
Mighty Mouse is one way to say "we don't want to expand to gaming". If it only works in simple use, there's no way it would become popural outside of Apple fanatics or "we don't know anything else".My MX700 is ergonomic, can use it anyway i want, doesn't have same kind of limitations as MM, can use it with Mac's and PC's.
MM is just bling bling. There's no way telling what it causes in long periods of time to your hand. Only Apple can deliver this kind of "limited" usage products, because it's "cool".
As you said, most Mac users are a lot less experienced than the Windows users. My friend once told me a joke, simple computers for the simple users. He was just being sarcastic. :)
kmmatney - Friday, August 5, 2005 - link
Well, I think this mouse sucks. I also thought the "hockey puck" mouse sucked on the old imacs. I don't think they make the old hockey puck mouse, because, well, it sucked. This one seems way to easy to miss the clicks. The market will show how long this mouse lasts in its current form. I bet it won't go over all that well.Ocaid - Friday, August 5, 2005 - link
Amen.cryptonomicon - Friday, August 5, 2005 - link
" This is a case where I really think Apple has sacrificed usability in order to achieve aesthetic elegance."Yep. This mouse sucks. I feel sorry for the people who are going to use it.
SMOGZINN - Friday, August 5, 2005 - link
It seems to me that this mouse was created for the type of people that move the mouse over the icon and then pick up their hand and click with one finger. You know the same people that type with one finger, probably the same finger that they click the mouse with. I often think that Apple does not take their customers seriously, and makes systems designed for the lest common denominator. This is a shame because they often have really interesting ideas, and I would like to be able to get a system that does not look like it was designed for a 14 year old's room like the all plastic 'ninja' cases or a warehouse (flat metal case, beige case.)Houdani - Friday, August 5, 2005 - link
Mind you, I'm not bellyaching for the sake of bellyaching. This is a case where I really think Apple has sacrificed usability in order to achieve aesthetic elegance.I totally wouldn't be surprised if prolonged use of this mouse didn't cause significant musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) due to the unnatural way you have to manipulate your hand in order to use the mouse. Quite seriously, I expect users of this mouse to enjoy the pleasures of Tennis Elbow -- and they probably won't even realize it's the mouse which is causing it.
This mouse is a failure in the sense that in order to use it, you have to do unnatural things with your hand. Yes, you can "get used to it" but that's hardly any reason to excuse it's flawed implementation.
>> You should not have to physically lift one finger in order to click with another.
>> You should not have to pinch with your thumb and pinky in order to use the side buttons. Hello thumb button!
>> Moreover, you should not have to reposition your entire hand in order to use the side buttons.
>> You should not have to apply pressure to the trackball in order to use it. That's just unnecessary strain.
>> When using the trackball, you should not have to repeatedly move your fingers in a contorted manner (while exerting a slight amount of downward pressure) just to get to the other side of the document. Anand has me thinking the "high scroll rate" isn't all that high a rate.
On a side note, what happens when you click the trackball when either of your fingers is resting on the mouse? Do you have to physically remove your fingers from the left and right "buttons" in order to get a trackball click?