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Good to see Walt is still impartial as ever ...

I have no problem with the one button mouse and resent the notion I live in a cave. Whether Apple messed up or not, the use of a mouse is all what you're used to and personal preference. I hate using the mult-button Windows mice. I always accidentally hit the wrong button.

"Apple ships it that way so as not to shock one-button mouse lovers who have been living in a cave,"

Yeah we are all dolts. I've been living under my pet rock from the 70's.

It would be just as easy for me to look at Walt and say "Mouse? You're still using a mouse? What rock have you been living under? A USB tablet is far superior". Because it is.

MW "room" as in, using a mouse is like nudging a peanut around a room with your nose when compared to using a tablet.

Furthermore, along the mutil button discussion, has anyone seen that Dell commercial where the 2 guy are sitting in a coffee shop? That has to be one of the ugliest laptops Ive ever seen.

I love the "more is better" approach their designers take. Lets stick more buttons on these things because its so hard to launch a program without it. Ugly, just friggin ugly. The commercial goes on to show some guy looking at it with envy. Yeah, for that to be anything other than false advertising, he'd have to be using a Powerbook.

I don't want to get Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. That means I don't want to be clutching a mouse constantly, with my wrist basically in one position and positioned at an odd angle. That's why I like the one-button mouse: a lot of stuff that I could do by clutching a multi-button mouse I have to use the keyboard to do. It's faster to use keystrokes anyway instead of a mouse. Besides, a scroll wheel isn't necessary: the page up/down keys and the arrow keys work for me.

According to Mossberg, this makes me a cave-dweller. At least my cave has a nice view of the Pacific Ocean...

Ditto on the flawless right-click operation. As far as diagonal scrolling is concerned, the resolution could be higher, but it works for me.

I do agree that it is nice to have a tech reporter who is truly impartial. Imprtiality in reporting is becoming pretty rare these days.

At least Mossberg's review is more honest than the practically gushy MDN review of the Mighty Mouse. Seriously, SteveJack's review was useless. I could have just read the Apple website to get a glowing review of all things Apple.

Excellent work. Mossberg may or may not be truthful here. I've not tried out the mouse yet, so I reserve judgement, but I still think it's over-engineered for the sake of its looks, and Mossberg's review seems to confirm that).

But Walt has been in danger of looking like a fanboy for a while, so for him to slate an Apple product is probably a good thing. If people accuse him of being a fanboy when he bigs up the next OS release or Mac, he can point at this article as evidence that he's being objective.

I suspect that a lot of people will buy the mouse and think it's great and will never even consider the competition, which may actually be better. I may get one of these, but I'm going to check out the competition first. (But I doubt I'll be buying a Microsoft product).

the might mouse may be lame but

mossberg is still old and ugly

Aug 04, 05 - 10:06 am Comment from: MacDailyNews Webmaster

Just because Mossberg criticizes the Mighty Mouse doesn't mean his review is anymore or less "honest" than SteveJack's review. The mouse worked for SteveJack and he wrote that it did. Perhaps Mossberg had a defective unit or didn't give it enough use? Perhaps they just have a difference of opinion. Don't forget, SteveJack has criticized Apple harshly in the past over such things as lack of advertising, poor marketing and other things, too.

I just can't believe all the attention that the release of a friggin mouse is getting. You'd think that they just unveiled a 3GHZ G5 powerbook.

This is the kind of thing that makes mac zealots look like iodiots.

I like my 1 button mouse. I can do all my shortcuts using keyboard commands. I play my keyboard like Beethoven plays piano, never needed a multi-button mouse, and I don't think I ever will as long as QWERTY keyboards exist.

Just my $0.02

I typically use the mouse with a finger resting on both buttons using the index finger for left clicking and the middle finger for right clicking. Does anyone know how the Mighty Mouse is affected when there is a finger on both sides of the mouse when the button is pushed?

word on the street is you need to lift you finger from the left side in order to right click

... yeah i think its dumb too

camus,

If you rest both fingers on the Mighty Mouse's top surface buttons, it acts as a regular click (primary or left-click) because the mouse has no way of knowing that you intend to right-click. Luckily, I always hover my fingers above the surface for right-clicking, so the Mighty Mouse works perfectly for me.

So, you can rest both fingers on the top of both buttons, but you'll have to slightly raise your finger off the left side when you wish to activate a right-click. If this sounds like a big problem to you, it's not really a big deal in practice.

Perhaps this what Walt was doing, but didn't understand why he couldn't right-click consistently.

The Mighty Mouse is the best mouse I've ever used.

It's just a mouse.

I think all the reviews are moot. No wireless means no sale for me. I also would have preferred a scroll nubbin over a scroll ball. I think repeatedly flicking my finger to continually scroll is silly. I also would prefer the squeeze button to work with pressing either side. Oh well. I'll wait to see what the BT version is like. And they better integrate a programmable vacuum in it or I'm not buying that one either.

I've been a huge Apple supporter since buying my first 128K Mac in 1984 but I've never loved Apple's mouse designs. The worst was the dual color puck. That was a nightmare of form over function.

Microsoft makes some great input products (keyboard and mouse)--you have to give them that. I use a Kensington for both my Macs at home and a Microsoft keyboard and mouse at work.

Now that Apple has this new mouse with a scroll ball on it, I will take a fresh look at the Apple mouse to see if it fits me. Input devices are very personal products. Reviews are going to vary depending on subjective issues such as hand size and habits.

I do hope this is a solid product for many users because I like how it looks next to a Mac and I think Apple could use a solid mouse product to match up with their other excellent products. I also like using Apple mouse drivers because it is one less issue that could cause incompatibilities.

My 6 button logitech works fine for me, don't plan on changing. With so many great mice available and the amount of time Apple took to come out with a multi button mouse I find it hard to get excited.

Well, that proves it. Mossberg hasn't been bought and paid for by Apple.

At least he actually tested it.

Hear that Enderlie? Looking at a picture is just not good enough.

I was sort of joking about Mossberg lying.

And didn't necessarily mean that MDN are complete mac fanboys. If you were, you wouldn't have written about theadvertising, as you say. Or have an article pre-dating the mighty mouse by so long, basically asking for a mighty mouse.

It's amazing how polarised opinions get here. Use a one button nouse and like it : fine.

Use a multi-button mouse: fine.

State that either is madness because you don't use it and anyone who does must be mad : not fine.

It will be funny to see so many people now buying a multi-button mouse now that Apple have effectively told them that it's OK.

I was probably going to get one, but I'll have to see how that right-click while raising the index finger thing works. Sounds to me like it's terrible. Having to adapt a technique in order to diguise the buttons. Really it's looking like form over function on this one. Though it does look nice!

I agree with Hammer, a tablet is the best interface. More accurate, certainly better for graphic work (ever try drawing with a mouse?). Also, the tablet came with a wireless, 2-button mouse with a scrollwheel.

Furthermore, along the mutil button discussion, has anyone seen that Dell commercial where the 2 guy are sitting in a coffee shop? That has to be one of the ugliest laptops Ive ever seen.

And have you ever sat across the table from one of these? It looks like it says SUX vertically along each side of the cover.

Dell must finally be admitting what we have know all along!

Let me start off by saying that I have not experienced Mighty Mouse in person yet, but I am going to the Apple Store after work today to see what the fuss is all about and maybe pick one up.

For me, I have learned that this whole argument of one-button vs. two-button is really a non-issue.

Have used PC's (and 2-button mice) for the past 13-15 years. Made the switch to the light side (and one-button mousing) a year ago. Frankly, I was quite surprised to find how little I miss my 2-button mouse.

Part of the beauty of the Mac OS is that it is designed so that you wouldn't need to rely on right-clicking to do anything important.

In fact, when you right-click on the PC, the menu and slew of options that pop up end up being more confusing than productive.

Besides IMHO, the fastest way to get anything done is by using keystrokes.

Just my $0.02.

I think many will end up agreeing that Apple's Mighty Mouse has gone out of its way to "look" a certain way at the expense of pure function. I've never had a mechanical button fail on a mouse, so I find the argument for touch sensitive buttons a bit specious. Two questions:
1. What is the resolution (important for precise illustrations and gaming alike)?
2. Do you lose your "click" if you pick up the Apple mouse?

It's been so long since I"ve used an Apple mouse that I don't know the answers to these questions and have seen no statements about them in reviews to date.

Thank gawd we have still have some balance in the world! I think the silly thing STILL has the wacky uncomfortable Apple mouse shape so it's a non-starter for me anyway. A mouse is like a personal statement and everyone has a preference. Some people will liek this thing and others won't. BIG DEAL! Not everything Apple makes is perfect for everyone and just because MDN didn't have that problem doesn't mean it's not a problem. I have to agree with many of the PC press on this one. The idea that this is some big deal anyway is rather bizzare when you have the likes of the MX 1000 from Logitech etc.

I appreciate Walt's point of view. I'll admit that I'm a bit dubious about the way they built the buttons, but I'll reserve my judgement until I actually get to use one.

As for who was being truthful, Walt or SteveJack, I think they both were. Not everyone uses a mouse the same way. Most people absolutely hated the hockey puck mouse but it never bothered me a bit. I tried several different multi-button mice before I settled on the Logitech MX510. I love this mouse and think it's probably the best I've ever had, but I can certainly appreciate that others may not like it. A mouse is a very personal piece of hardware. To each his own.

Maybe Walt is just a clutz with big fingers?

I like the one-button mouse design and, frankly, didn't want Apple to introduce a multi-button mouse… that is until i saw Mighty Mouse. I shouldn't have ever doubted Apple would do it right. (Forgive me, for i have sinned.)

Walt is just a dinosaur who can't appreciate innovation and truly elegant design. Being a dinosaur, that's probably how he knows people once lived in caves!

Let's all raise a glass of ale to clutzy dinosaurs; Walt, this one's for you!

The "best" thing about the MS mouse is the Magnifier button? And it's "Windows only"?
OSX has the same thing built right in (found in System Preferences/Universal Access). IMO, it's better implemented than the MS magnifier.
All you have to do is simply map the buttons on the mouse.

Mossberg was looking more and more like just an Apple shill. This trouncing of the Mighty Mouse lends more credibility to his earlier heralding of other Apple products.

For Apple, it's a step in the right direction at the very least. Even if the MM isn't worth an extra $50US at the moment, it will eventually become the standard mouse included with all machines (and hopefully lose the cheesy --sorry for the pun-- name).
Which will be far better than what they have now, in any case.

Walt might be a victim of the capacitance issue.

As I understand it, the right or left click are differentiated by capacitance in the right or left zone incurred by the pressure of the user's fingers in that zone.

For some limited subset of people this may not work.

Ever know a person who absolutely could not wear a watch? For some people watches just stop. I was one of those until I got into my 30s. No watch lasted more than a month before stopping (no matter how expensive or cheap -- I once bought a $150 electronic watch in 1973 to try to get around the problem; it stopped working in about 3 weeks). I still have periods where I have problems using the trackpad on my Powerbook. For these people the Mighty Mouse might not work.

Also capacitance is dependent on the moisture on your hands. Some people have an affliction where their hands sweat profusely. I had a friend in graduate school who had to write his notes with a piece of cardboard under his hand to keep from soaking his notepad and making writing on it impossible. He might have problems using a Mighty Mouse.

And what about those super fastidious people who insist on wearing silk lined suade gloves while using their Mac? They might have problems too. (OK. This last one is a joke!)

The bottom line is Apple's chosen technology will not work for everyone. Is it possible that Walt fits into one of these categories? Or maybe he just got a defective test unit.

The Mighty Mouse Sucks ass...Microsoft's Mice are the best, hands down.

Shrug. It's a new mouse option, take it or leave it but that's a good thing.

Try it for yourself--a lot of people love it.

At least Mossberg has been proven to think for himself--nobody can say his constant Mac praise is fake now.

“I'll have to see how that right-click while raising the index finger thing works. Sounds to me like it's terrible. Having to adapt a technique in order to diguise the buttons. Really it's looking like form over function on this one. Though it does look nice!”

Newsflash: You actually have to move your finger too on a regular mouse, not just a high-tech Mighty Mouse.

NMFY: Yes, The Mighty Mouse does indeed kick some serious ass… and yes, Microsoft's Mice do suck, hands down.

Mossberk needs to put his shoes back on and try it with his hands. The mouse, I mean.

MW- problems, as in-moss grower has some.

I agree with Tyk. I took offense at the "cave" comment, but I'm a firm believer in free speech, so I respect Walt's opinion even though I think he's being terribly short-sighted.

My sentiment leans more toward those who have physical limitations and cannot use a multi-button mouse -- at least not easily. I'm not one of them, although I do appreciate the simplicity of a single button mouse (I have a multi-button USB mouse for my PowerBook, but I rarely use it). However, my mother is another story.

I had always thought that the rocking motion of the newer Apple mice was of questionable value until I realized the method by which my mother clicks her mouse: she tends to use her whole hand. I could definitely see where people with strength problems in their fingers would find this mouse quite a lifesaver vs. the true multi-button mice.

You can do something like this in Mac OS X already (since 10.2 I think).

Never used it before, but I've just configured my scroll wheel to keystroke:

command option equals (zoom in) when I scroll up
commans option minus (zoom out) when I scroll down

If you now activate 'Zoom' in the 'Universal Access' preference pane, when you use the scroll wheel it will zoom in and out of the screen. Quite why you would want to do this however is beyond me, I've always got on quite well with the technique of moving my head closer to the screen.

For the record, I use a 2 button mouse with scroll wheel from Macally, I have used 2 button mice since Apple produced the awful hockey puck mouse, and I couldn't do my job without one now.

Cloudwall, "the tablet came with a wireless, 2-button mouse with a scrollwheel" AND IT DOESN'T REQUIRE BATTERIES!!!

i have been using one, two, and three button mice for a long time. i prefer a single button. i use the keyboard as much as possible because, like others have mentioned, i don't like carpal tunnel syndrome. sometimes, unfortunately, you have to use the mouse. in an awful lot of cases the need to use a mouse implies a badly thought out user interface. not all of course, games are an exception, and drawing something in illustrator needs a mouse. i don't live in a cave either. i think walt needs to cut down on his caffeine or change his meds.

OSX has the same thing built right in (found in System Preferences/Universal Access). IMO, it's better implemented than the MS magnifier.

Actually, Mr. Mossberg's wrong. Microsoft did implement that feature for the WMO 5000 on Mac OS X. Clicking the button zooms the screen or turns off the zoom, and the scroll wheel controls the zoom level.

Not allowed to say why I know this, but let's just say I'm a well-informed source working at a large software company in Washington state...

In response to someone asking about other mice, if you get a chance, check out the Logitech Laser Cordless Mouse, the MX1000. Yes, laser, not optical. I was a total skeptic, but it is absolutely amazing. And the rechargeable lithium battery was icing on the cake. If you find a place with a good return policy, it's worth looking at, especially if you are into design or get wrist cramps (it got rid of mine with its ergo. shape).

Wow, I am usually not overly bothered by the thin skinned "defend Apple at all costs" attitudes you can occasionally come across here at Mac Defence Network, but this thread has been the worst example of whingeing I have seen in a long time. I love my Mac (on my 5th) and would never go back to a PC, but I dropped the 1 button mouse as soon as I could. Spewing venom because some people prefer two buttons and a scroll to a hockey puck is what stops this site from being the absolute best Mac site on the web. Lighten up a little. There are more important things to pout about, like what an a-hole Ballmer is, or how bad Vitsa will turn out to be.

[I]Newsflash: You actually have to move your finger too on a regular mouse, not just a high-tech Mighty Mouse.[/I]

Erm. No you don't. I rest my index finger on the left button and middle finger on the right. I can right-click without having to raise the index finger. Were I to get one of these, I'd have to modify my clicking technique to overcome this apparent design fault.

"It looks cool, but I found it inferior to a scroll wheel and could never get it to work diagonally."

I wonder if Walt Mossberg was testing it on a PC? The diagonal scrolling feature only works on a Mac. No diagonal scrolling support built into Windoze I guess.

I'm curious..what do all you multi-button mouse users do with all those extra buttons on a mac. What do you program them for specifically?

Cloudwall said, "I agree with Hammer, a tablet is the best interface. More accurate, certainly better for graphic work (ever try drawing with a mouse?). Also, the tablet came with a wireless, 2-button mouse with a scrollwheel."

What tablet do you use? Is it still available?

Anyone else have a particular tablet they'd recommend?

I have to go with Walt on this one. The main reason people are looking at this mouse in the first place is the two buttons. Why do you go out of your way to hide the primary feature? Admittedly, it did seem to work okay for me in the store -- although I found the side squeezing action to be harder than just having buttons there -- I just think Apple is working too hard here. Design philosophy over usefulness.

The nice thing about a thread like this is that it shows how reasonable Mac "zealots" like us can be if criticism is reasoned and fair. Oh sure, you can count the knee-jerk "Walt is a doo-doo head" responses, but they're in the minority. The sad thing, it's those folks that the rest of the world thinks about when they think about Mac fans, just like they think of the 300-pound man in a Sailor Moon costume when they think of anime fans.

To be honest a 2 button mouse is nothing to rave about unless playing video games(when I really do love having it for that). I have the MS S+arck and I barely use the right click in most daily uses, more important though is the scroll wheel! I think more people use that more than anything esle. since when reading articles you ususally have to scroll down. just my 2 cents. not supporting either ones just know they both provide something for everyone and now that you have that option in one mouse what is all the fretting for? lol

Wacom is generally considered to be the tablet maker to beat. Here's a link to their tablet selection wizard:

http://www.wacom.com/tabletwizard/index.cfm

I'm intrigued by the Graphire Bluetooth, myself...

[LordRobin, DAMN YOU FOR PUTTING THAT IMAGE IN MY HEAD!!!]