Any recommendation for an alternative?

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pika2000 November 23, 2009

Any recommendation for an alternative?

My bluetooth mighty mouse is starting to act up (more frequent random disconnects, etc). Other than having to clean the nipple frequently, I actually like it. Now that I might have to get a new mouse, the Magic Mouse seems to be an obvious next step. However, I'm not too fond of the flat design. Anybody have any recommendation on an alternative? My requirements:
-Bluetooth, no dongle. This is the problem with many non-Apple mice. They each have their own dongle, using up a precious USB port.
-Can scroll vertically and horizontally
-Have extra button for expose (I use the might mouse's middle click for this)
-Preferable a full-size mouse, not one of those mini notebook mouse.

It's funny that I don't see a lot of options. MS has 1 model that is dongle-free, but it's a mini mouse and cannot scroll horizontally. Logitech has 1 model too (out of the gajillion models that make), but I think it's also mini.

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14 replies

Politik 2009-11-23 18:01:55

Have you considered a non-mouse device e.g. Bamboo Touch? (gdgt.com/wacom/bamboo/touch/)

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pika2000 2009-11-23 18:08:13

I thought about that, but I don't know how well those things work for small buttons and text selection, and whether it can deliver the same accuracy as a mouse.

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RyanTV 2009-11-24 04:41:30

there really aren't good solutions for Bluetooth mice. The Logitech MX 1000 Bluetooth was the last of the really full featured, full sized BT connected mice.

If it's on a desktop computer, I say with the advent of small, inexpensive USB hubs, the preciousness of a USB port is questionable for low power & low throughput devices. I say get yourself a Logitech MX 1100 or Performance Mouse MX and call it a day.

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pika2000 2009-11-24 07:16:04

Well, I already have a 5 port USB hub, and its ports are mostly occupied already. Call me picky, but I really hate dongles, especially for something that is already built-in in my computer (in this case, bluetooth).

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RyanTV 2009-11-24 16:24:13

The thing is, you can hate dongles all you want, but manufacturers just arent making full featured BT mice. You are either going to go BT and have a tiny notebook mouse with no features, or you will break down and use a port on your hub. That's about how this story ends.

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mvtpinheiro 2009-11-24 23:39:12

Microsoft has BT mouses. I have one that is very small and has buttons on the bottom to control PPTs and a laser pointer. The good thing is that you can configure all the buttons to do whatever you want.

www.microsoft.com/hardware/Presenter/productdetail...

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OldDrunknSailor 2009-11-25 00:01:01

The Lenovo Bluetooth Laser mouse is the best mouse that I've ever used, hands down. It's tiny, uses almost no battery, is acurate as hell, and has a really quick reconnect time.

www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=4407

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OldDrunknSailor 2009-11-25 00:02:43

after re-reading (or just reading, actually) your requirements, i guess it doesn't quite fit. it does the vert/horizontal scrolling and you can program the middle click, i believe, but it's smaller. i love how it firts in my hand nonetheless, but ah well.

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pika2000 2009-11-25 07:03:51

Thing is, do Bluetooth mice that require dongles work with the built-in bluetooth on my iMac (sans the dongle)? I mean bluetooth is bluetooth, right?

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sarchi 2009-11-25 07:51:28

same here..

drebes suggested changing the network setting from 2.4 to 5 GHz

discuss.gdgt.com/apple/wireless-mighty-mouse/suppo...

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pika2000 2009-11-25 08:00:13

Well, that's assuming all the wireless devices you have are 802.11n capable. Problem is, I still have many 802.11b/g only devices (PS3, iPod Touch, iPhone, DS, Wii, etc). Besides, even my netbook is 802.11n capable, but only on the 2.4GHz band. A good advice nonetheless if all your wifi devices are 802.11n 5GHz capable.

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