Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Is the Mighty Mouse REALLY that bad?

fivepoint

fivepoint

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Sep 28, 2007
1,175
7
IOWA
This week I got my brand new 24" iMac, and was very excited about the wireless Mighty Mouse that I got along with it. I previously had used a logitech MX 700 and was looking forward to having something with similar functionality actually built WELL by Apple. It would look good, and work good... or so I thought.

When I first started the computer I immediately set up the mighty mouse to work with Expose. I had the side (squeeze) button tiling all windows, and the roller (push down) button to clear the screen completely.

Here is where the problems began. I am a pretty big guy, and was even a collegiate athlete... but I still find it kind of difficult to squeeze the side buttons to activate expose. Sometimes, mid-squeeze, I accidentally let go causing things to happen unintentionally on the screen. On the other hand, sometimes I am doing something completely different and squeeze the buttons on accident causing a similar problem. Just seems kind of inconsistent... or maybe I just 'squeeze' my mouse too much sometimes. :)

Beyond this, the entire mouse seems kind of unpolished. I don't mean the finish... the 'action' the mouse has when being depressed is not very clean, and although I kind of like the scroll ball, I really miss the additional buttons I had on each side of the scroll wheel on the old logitech.


Anyway, I think it is fair to say that the Mighty Mouse is not for me. What I want to know from you guys, is two things:

1) Have you had similar problems with your Mighty Mouse? What is your take on it?

2) Is there a good alternative out there? I would personally like it to be bluetooth (so I don't have to use up a USB port) but from my website searches... this might not be a posibility. For whatever reason, bluetooth does not seem to be a popular choice for wireless mice.

I would like functionality similar to my old MX700 (I think it has like 7 buttons or so) and a good 'heavy feel' to the mouse. No portables please.

Any suggestions you guys could make would be very much appreciated!




-Five "I want to throw my mighty mouse against a wall" Point
 
Mighty Mouse scroll-ball clogs too easily.
Side buttons are too easy to invoke accidentally; mine are disabled.
The Left/right click function has to be learned; difficult to right-click at first.
The shape, size and weight of the mouse is good.

The Logitech MX Revolution is a nice wireless mouse.
 
see now i like my mighty mouse. Yes the scroll ball is easily clogged, but its just as easily remedied. furthermore, when it finally gives up the ghost, apple give you a new one (as long as its still under warranty).
 
I've just got myself the Logitech MX Revolution instead of the Mighty Mouse. The reason for this is i spent a lot of time researching the Mighty Mouse and alternatives, and the MX came out the best overall.

I haven't used it yet, as i'm still waiting for my MacBook to arrive, but as and when it does, it should be really good.

It has 7 buttons, and each are customisable in individual programs too, which is a bonus!
 
when i first got my wireless mighty mouse the side squeeze buttons were very hard to squeeze but i didnt really use it that much as i have exposé set for the scroll button. now after 8 months of use ive found that the side squeeze buttons are a lot easier to use in fact ive now set them to invoke spaces.

fivepoint said:
the 'action' the mouse has when being depressed is not very clean
Click to expand...

do you mean that the right click and normal click arent reliable? make sure you lift your left finder when you right click (or vice versa if youre a lefty) as the shell is heat sensitive. after you get used to this you wont even notice it.

1) the only problem ive had is the scroll bar stops scrolling up. a simple fix is to turn in off and scroll frantically upside down on a piece of paper.

2) when i was looking for bluetooth mice i too didnt find that much of a selection. ice only seen logitech, microsoft and radtech bluetooth mice. i went for the mighty mouse for its 360 scroll ball and for its nice integration into Mac OS X. this logitech MX900 mouse has 6 buttons.

as you would of probably guessed i like my mighty mouse. but if you dont like the squeeze buttons or the "one button" design you probably should look into the logitechs or microsofts.
 
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
I'm in the minority but I like the mighty mouse. It's not the best mouse I have ever used but I like how it feels in my hand and like the scroll ball. I wouldn't call it a disaster.

I agree with you though. I don't want another mouse that clogs up a USB port. There has to be other bluetooth mice on the market somewhere.
 
It just waaay to small for my hand. It amazes me how apple can design so many amazing products and still put out a horrible mouse.
 
arkitect said:
A disaster of design.


Logitech MX Revolution
Click to expand...

I second this here the MX Revo is an awesome mouse. I really like the MM before but I was looking for a wireless alternative and the BT MM is just plain useless. Now I got the MX Revo and it is awesome, it really is worth the money.
 
I love my mighty mouse, but i agree its a tad small and fragile. it just took me some time before i had the hang of it tho.
 
beardboy said:
I've just got myself the Logitech MX Revolution instead of the Mighty Mouse. The reason for this is i spent a lot of time researching the Mighty Mouse and alternatives, and the MX came out the best overall.

I haven't used it yet, as i'm still waiting for my MacBook to arrive, but as and when it does, it should be really good.

It has 7 buttons, and each are customisable in individual programs too, which is a bonus!
Click to expand...

This looks like an interesting alternative. I was afraid of this one at first, because it needs a USB port, but I see now that the USB plug in is TINY! Can you verify for me that it can be connected to the Apple Keyboard with no trouble? Just wanted to make sure that it fit, and that the power was sufficient. I think this could be my new mouse if this aspect is correct. I just don't want to waste my USB ports on the back of the computer.


richthomas said:
when i first got my wireless mighty mouse the side squeeze buttons were very hard to squeeze but i didnt really use it that much as i have exposé set for the scroll button. now after 8 months of use ive found that the side squeeze buttons are a lot easier to use in fact ive now set them to invoke spaces.



do you mean that the right click and normal click arent reliable? make sure you lift your left finder when you right click (or vice versa if youre a lefty) as the shell is heat sensitive. after you get used to this you wont even notice it.

1) the only problem ive had is the scroll bar stops scrolling up. a simple fix is to turn in off and scroll frantically upside down on a piece of paper.

2) when i was looking for bluetooth mice i too didnt find that much of a selection. ice only seen logitech, microsoft and radtech bluetooth mice. i went for the mighty mouse for its 360 scroll ball and for its nice integration into Mac OS X. this logitech MX900 mouse has 6 buttons.

as you would of probably guessed i like my mighty mouse. but if you dont like the squeeze buttons or the "one button" design you probably should look into the logitechs or microsofts.
Click to expand...


Well, yes and no. The unreliable right click isn't what I was referencing. I was talking about the un-clean action any click (right or left) makes as you depress the mouse. I just don't prefer how it works and how it feels. Probably just a preference thing.

The right click thing is also an issue though. It is SO annoying when I try and right click and it doesn't work. I can get it about 95% of the time now... but it is still a bit frustrating.



ayale99 said:
It just waaay to small for my hand. It amazes me how apple can design so many amazing products and still put out a horrible mouse.
Click to expand...

That IS kind of amazing, isn't it! Sometimes I think form comes over function a BIT too much... however, I would never tell them to change that, because there aren't ENOUGH companies that care about design and about successfully developing the complete package. Apple is one such company, and I for one appreciate it. They just plain miss on their mice, thats all there is to it.
 
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
The mighty mouse is very comfortable, the buttons are easy to click, and it's extremely comfortable to wear. However, the ball gets dirty and stuck too frequently and requires cleaning
 
nando2323 said:
fivepoint said:
Can you verify for me that it can be connected to the Apple Keyboard with no trouble?

I use mine plugged in to the :apple:keyboard and it works great.
Click to expand...

Awesome. That USB dongle doesn't magically start looking BIG once you plug it into that amazingly thin keyboard does it? Would you be able to post a photo of what it looks like? That would be great.

And the only other thing that needs to be plugged in is the 'dock' to the power outlet? Very nice. I think I am going to pick one of these up. I've read good things... and now that my #1 major concern is taken care of, I'm ready!
Click to expand...
 
I have a few qualms with the Mighty Mouse...

First, the name. Seriously, Apple!

Second, the scroll ball gets dirty and refuses to scroll in certain directions, necessitating a cleaning. Dirty mouse balls?! I thought we were past this years ago.

Third, the right-click. I strongly feel I should not have to adapt the way I use my mouse just so that one manufacturor can stick with its arbitrary wish to have a mouse that appears to only have one button. As it is, about 30% of the time I right-click, I accidentally left-click instead, and often that causes counterproductive things to happen (like I shift-click a bunch of items in a selection to perform an action, accidentally left-click and lose the selection.. doh!)

Even if it could have been just a proper two-button mouse, I'd be much happier with it.

I recently switched back to my Logitech MX700 Bluetooth mouse. Problem is now it feels so much heavier compared to the Mighty Mouse.
 
fivepoint said:
nando2323 said:
Awesome. That USB dongle doesn't magically start looking BIG once you plug it into that amazingly thin keyboard does it? Would you be able to post a photo of what it looks like? That would be great.

And the only other thing that needs to be plugged in is the 'dock' to the power outlet? Very nice. I think I am going to pick one of these up. I've read good things... and now that my #1 major concern is taken care of, I'm ready!
Click to expand...

It's really not that noticeable at all maybe sticks out about 1/4" from the right side of the keyboard. Its about half the length and thickness of my 4GB Sandisk Micro. I can't take any pictures right now because I'm at work on my Dell :(. But when I get home I can.
Click to expand...
 
nando2323 said:
fivepoint said:
It's really not that noticeable at all maybe sticks out about 1/4" from the right side of the keyboard. Its about half the length and thickness of my 4GB Sandisk Micro. I can't take any pictures right now because I'm at work on my Dell :(. But when I get home I can.
Click to expand...

Thanks man. That would be great! You guys have been so helpful...



nando2323 said:
Also if you don't want anything at all sticking out the keyboard check this out! Hot off the presses BT version of it coming out. I never read anything good about BT mice and I tried the BT MM and it was absolutely horrible. But this is the MX Revo BT so it might be alot better.

http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/31/logitechs-mx-revolution-goes-bluetooth-at-the-fcc/
Click to expand...

Oh wow! That would be perfect... only two problems. :(

1) No idea of when It might be coming out.
2) It will probably cost another $20 more... I can find the current USB one on Amazon for $72. I bet the bluetooth version won't be found for less than $100 for atleast the first 6 months after release.
Click to expand...
 
The only problems I have with the Mighty Mouse is the fact that it's not split in the middle for left/right clicks. I have it setup to perform right click duties, but I sometimes don't click far enough to the right and the left button options perform instead. It's a bit annoying.

I also find the glossy finish really slippery, especially if you've been holding it for a while and your hands get sweaty.
 
Left/right mouse functions..

Hmm.. this is going to put a crimp in my looting the dead bodies that lay before me in World of Warcraft, once I get my iMac. :D
 
Mostly I love the Mighty Mouse.

- It fits my hand perfect.
- The smooth plastic feels nice, a bit luxurious.
- The mouse clicks have a nice tactile feel - I lift my right finger anyways, no matter which mouse I use, so I don't have any trouble with the right click.
- The scroll ball works adequate most of the time, though I agree it isn't always responsive enough, at times I have to press the little scroll-ball a bit to make it respond instead of just smoothly let my finger run over it.
'Accelerate scrolling', with USB Overdrive for instance, doesn't always work smoothly.
Accelerate scrolling is a convenient way of scrolling where a short and delicate finger-movement results in 1 to 3 lines, using more force results in an acceleration and brings you almost immediately at the bottom of a page.
The Mighty Mouse's scroll-ball doesn't always register a short and delicate movement and I have to press-scroll in order to get things moving, it therefore unintentionally accelerates, which can be pretty annoying.
 
my friggin scroll ball clogs like a mofo....

this is my second one after my first one turned yellow and the scroll ball ceased to work (after 2 months of usage).....the second one is also loosing its white finish and also turning yellow and the scroll ball is also starting to muck up


what the heck!! am i overfly filthy? lol...im a clean person!!

argh
 
It took me awhile to get used to mine, but I like it okay now. The one-button clicking doesn't bother me - I don't really ever "mess up" and press the wrong button. I -DID- make the mistake of getting it just because it's Apple, assuming it would be the best. Looking back, I should have done more research. :eek:
 
18-mouse-mx-revolution.jpg


I ordered my Logitech MX Revolution today. It won't ship from Amazon for another 5 days though... boo. :(

Dang Super Saver Shipping.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back