Tag: Mouse

While working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic I was in need of a new mouse to use. My work laptop is a Macbook Pro 15” and for extended periods of time using the mouse track pad is not great, even though the large size makes it easy to use. At the office I would use the Apple Magic Mouse (which I am not really a fan of) and right now using the mouse track pad long term is not an option with my current working from home setup.

Using a USB connected mouse (corded or receiver) is a little difficult, as most USB connected mice are not cabled with USB-C or have a receiver that is USB-C which is the one of the only ports my Macbook Pro has. I could buy a dock or a dongle but I’d rather get a wireless Bluetooth mouse to keep my ports available if need be and would not want to spend the extra money on a dock.

Seeing as I was going to be using this mouse for extended periods of time I was thinking of getting an ergonomic mouse and I watched a number of different YouTube videos discussing the types of ergonomic mice and good Bluetooth mice, and read a number of articles covering a range of Bluetooth enabled ergonomic mice. At the end of it all I found that the mouse which covered everything I was after was the Logitech MX Ergo Wireless Trackball Mouse.

The criteria I had (in no particular order) for the ergonomic mouse that I personally bought had to:

1. Cost under $200 AUD. I am not in the market for a gaming mouse and do not really want to spend a fortune on a mouse I would primarily be using for work. There are suitable mice for under $20 AUD so :shrug:
2. Bluetooth enabled. As I stated above, it is critical that this mouse not have a dongle to connect to my laptop as my only wireless means. Happily the Logitech MX Ergo Wireless Trackball Mouse can connect to a computer via a USB cable, a USB dongle or Bluetooth. So many options which is great.
3. Rechargeable battery. I do not want to have a wireless mouse that takes removable batteries, and I do not want to buy some more rechargeable batteries.
4. More than two buttons. Having the option to navigate pages, go between lines of code that I previously visited and jump across different class files helps in my day to day work.
5. Horizontal and vertical scrolling. All mice that I pick up in the future must have this option. Not being able to scroll in all directions with the mouse wheel is a massive pain and should be standard in 2020.
6. Comfortable for extended periods of time. This is really subjective, but what I found was among the ergonomic mice there was a general consensus whether the mouse was comfortable to use for extended periods of time and did not cause strain in the forearm and wrist.

I was a little hesitant to get this mouse even with the stellar reviews because to move the mouse cursor, you move your thumb on the trackball and the mouse stays where it is. Once I started using it though and adjusted the speed to be a little faster, it was really easy to use and I had no problem performing my daily tasks. So the learning curve is really (IMO) fairly low. Some people may take some time to adjust to not moving your arms and wrist to move the mouse cursor but long term I think it is far more beneficial for you. Plus there is a button that allows for fine grain movement if you really need precision which is a nice bonus.

The Logitech MX Ergo Wireless Trackball Mouse is fairly heavy (which is good as it will stay put when placed), does not slide around, has the ability to be tilted at a slight angle to change the position you hold it (does not go completely vertical), and is built extremely well i.e. does not feel cheap or poorly made. The time I have spent using the mouse I have not been able to fault it. If I could change some things on the mouse I would have it support USB-C for charging as the port for charging the mouse is micro-USB, and I would support a number of different angles instead of just the two it currently supports.

There is special Logitech software that you can install which allows for greater customization of the buttons and other special features. But out of the box the mouse does everything I want it to and I do not need anything more. Having the option to pair across two devices is nice, so if you have multiple devices that could use a Bluetooth mouse this is a bonus. Overall I am please with my purchase and I hope that my right wrist and forearm will thank me for not putting more strain on them. If you are in the market for an ergonomic mouse, or a Bluetooth mouse then this mouse may be the one for you. I have not tried it to play games with but for working day to day, it does the job really well.