Microsoft Bluetooth Notebook Mouse 5000

 

 

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I have been using this mouse for almost a month now and I am very satisfied with it. It is smaller than most mice, but fits snuggly in my hand, considering that I have big hands. It is very responsive (sometimes too responsive) and the back button and mouse wheel complement its functionality. The battery indicator is another great plus, cause at least you can get a warning when you are running low; although it is very energy-efficient, I'm still using the packed standard AAA batteries with an average of 6-7 hours of daily use. And the power switch is also great for saving energy.

To sum up, Pros:
- Excellent Microsoft design (esthetical, ergonomical)
- Great price
- Very responsive (it's laser, not optical)
- Great battery life (I'll let you know on the comments when the first pair of batteries run out. I already have a rechargeable pair on stand-by).
- Instant pairing with bluetooth enabled PC's (I did not try it on a Mac)
- Back button functionality
- Power switch lets you turn it off when not in use to save battery, and you just turn it on and in a couple of seconds it reconnects (this has been a life-saver since I walk away from my desk very often, and I would not like that some envious co-worker "borrowed" it for his home, and it fits quite nicely on my shirt or pants pocket)
- It glides very smoothly on almost any surface (even on my bed sheets)
- It comes with a nice carry-bag.

Cons:
- It has dropped the connection about 5 or 6 times during the time I have been using it, but it reconnects after turning on and off again. Kind of annoying.
- I wish it had a forward buttong as well.
- It is somethimes too responsive, depending on the surface you wear it on. I fixed this by tweaking the mouse sensitivity on the Windows mouse settings.

I recommend this bluetooth mouse.

UPDATE (2/23/08): Well, the battery indicator is going red now (3 months after I started using it), but, if I could, I would downgrade my rating to 3 stars because of the following: The power switch broke like a week ago (the damn thing kinda got loose of it's place and still moves, but it doesn't change the power state). I tried going DIY and tried fixing it myself, but ended up getting it worse, although I managed the leave the power on. This means poor craftsmanship from Microsoft, because I consider I did not misused the mouse. I now can't turn the mouse off, so I have to remove the batteries every time I don't use it. This resulted on casting the mouse aside and leaving it just for special occasions (long meetings or surfing @ home).

I still consider the mouse is good, but this has negatively changed my opinion on Microsoft hardware (don't even get me started on their SW).

The Mouse that Roared

I waited five months to write this review to give the Microsoft Bluetooth notebook mouse a complete workout. I am using it frequently with my Asus EEPC netbook on the road and at home and am very impressed.

The size is excellent considering this is a small mouse. I have medium-large sized hands and enjoy a mouse that is usually much larger. The Microsoft Bluetooth notebook mouse fits nicely under the hand and has excellent response. In fact, the mouse works on more surfaces and more obscure locations than of the other wireless mice I use on my home computer.

The reason I waited so long to do this review was because others complained about the on-off switches breaking. I had no problems with this switch and while I take good care of my equipment five months of constant use has proved that the switch is as sound today as when it arrived. The on-off switch is located on the bottom and is embedded into the unit. It does not stick out and it would seem difficult to break unless you are pushing it too hard.

As far as battery life, well I am still using the original batteries sent with the unit and five months of use is a lot of life from a single set of regular batteries. I have many times put it away without turning off the power switch yet the original shipped batteries are still working fine. Of course that leaves me unable to comment on the light that would appear if the batteries start to go.

The Bluetooth works perfectly and it is so nice to this feature built into the mouse and the EEPC, which leaves the netbook with no dongles or use of the USB ports. The most interesting thing for me is that the mouse operates on almost any surface. No need for a mouse pad or surface with color or patterns. I can use it on a white table, the couch, a piece of white paper or whatever and it is live and responsive. It also can be used at a greater distance and more obscure angles from the netbook than my other full size wireless (USB related) mice.

While the mouse has a page-back feature button it has no right hand page-forward button. A small drawback. There is a very responsive scroll wheel, which besides scrolling up and down, you can bend to the right or left to scroll pages in the direction you want. This is a great feature on the newer netbook 10-inch screens, which seem to never put the content in view without movement. It now becomes apparent why advertising takes up all the top of a page.

The Microsoft Bluetooth Notebook Mouse is a solid unit that is handsomely designed, well engineered, works without dongles, does not use one of the valuable USB ports, and energy efficient, which offers most, if not all, the features of a full sized mouse in a small compact netbook sized unit. All in all I am extremely pleased with the Microsoft Bluetooth Notebook mouse and highly recommend it.

This mouse works as advertised on a ThinkPad notebook running Windows XP. Bluetooth pairing was painless, and I'm pleased with the smooth functioning of the mouse, not to mention the elimination of the transceiver unit--one more black box I'd have to schlep around.

Size and shape are matters of personal preference, and I agree with a previous reviewer who suggested trading off some comfort is an acceptable compromise for portability. Overall, this mouse has a quality feel and seems to be well made; it has a nice heft to it, and the buttons and wheel provide solid, reassuring tactile feedback.

My biggest beef with this mouse is the lack of a dedicated or inclusive driver. It does not come with a driver disk, and it is not listed among the supported models in the latest Microsoft IntelliPoint software. Please don't misunderstand: this mouse works fine out of the box under Win XP (and, presumably, Vista). You'll only want a new driver if you're not happy with the default button assignments.

I called Microsoft technical support about this omission, and they confirmed anyone who wants to reassign button functions is SOL... for now. The tech rep would not confirm whether a future version of IntelliPoint would support this mouse, but I remain hopeful.

As of this writing (8 November 2007), therefore, I cannot wholeheartedly recommend this mouse. As soon as the software side of things catch up, I'll be singing a different tune.

2115|R4221KBJEY829;2115|R1GN4WFJTYCMN7;2115|R2ZVYKAOGOLJRX;

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4.0 out of 5 stars Normally I'm not into smaller "laptop" mice
But this is pretty slick. Pairing with my MacBook Pro 13" was easy and the absence of an extra dongle to lose is very much appreciated. Read more

Published 12 hours ago by R. Martinez

4.0 out of 5 stars center scroll wheel issues
First the good: I really like this mouse. It's accurately responsive, regardless of what surface I use it on (i.e. carpet, pants, couch, etc. Read more

Published 14 hours ago by Herby

2.0 out of 5 stars Nice, but color doesn't match website
Nice mouse, works as you would expect a mouse to work.

Dark plastic design, not as pictured on website. Buttons are a dark grey, not silver as pictured.

Published 17 hours ago by John

5.0 out of 5 stars great little mouse
This is an awesome little mouse! i First got it 3 years ago for my MacBook and now use it with my new Thinkpad. It's an awesome mouse for the price. Read more

Published 2 days ago by G

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Mouse!
Love it Baby!! This is a great mouse!!! People should Be made to buy this mouse! Buy it! Buy it now!

Published 3 days ago by Michael Rice

3.0 out of 5 stars Decent mouse but annoying click wheel
I would like this mouse a lot more if it didn't have such an annoying clicking noise when I use the click wheel. Read more

Published 3 days ago by A. Dempsey

5.0 out of 5 stars Super Happy !
First, I must admit that I did not expect the product to work because it was priced at half the cost of a Bluetooth Mouse at the Apple Store. Read more

Published 4 days ago by Goodguy

2.0 out of 5 stars GREAT MOUSE!......when it worked.....
I have owned this mouse for about one month, I bought it when I bought my new laptop. I actually bought it because my dad has the same one for his laptop, and I asked his opinion... Read more

Published 7 days ago by MunchyAngel

2.0 out of 5 stars Battery Life Is The Worst I Have Had.
Ok, so I bought this mouse because I thought it would have few BT connectivity issues. I was right. Read more

Published 11 days ago by C Ryan

5.0 out of 5 stars On par or better than Logitech M305
I have a Macbook (aluminum uni-body, late 2008 model). I needed a mouse for delicate tasks that surpasses my track pad skills. I own a Logitech M305 and loved it. Read more

Published 14 days ago by Enoch Shum

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