Many reviews of Apple's new Mighty Mouse have already appeared on the web, and most of them were quite negative. Walter Mossberg even concluded: "Microsoft has beaten Apple on hardware design, at least in this one case." Are these findings correct? To find out, we put the Mighty Mouse to the test.
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Member since:2005-06-28
I am sorry, but I find the Windows and X11 and BeOS mouse movement and acceleration MUCH more sane than OSX's. For me and my husband, and many of our friends, and obviously Thom himself this *IS* a problem.
If that was not a problem, successful and popular utilities like USB OVerdrive would never exist in the first place. Its popularity is a proof in itself that there is something wrong there.
Apple at the very least should add one more slider on their mouse preference panel to let users adjust the acceleration. At least users who are USED to Windows/X11/OS2/BeOS acceleration they will have a CHANCE to make the behavior as they EXPECT it to.
Member since:2005-06-30
Member since:2005-06-29
I'd agree there should be an option. However, Apple generally seems to like providing as few options as possible: They're mislead into thinking users are incompetent and can't figure out options.
I think that's really the Apple way: Provide a good default (and acceleration is a good default, it actually is proper*) and let third party apps provide options.
*Back in the day with crappy analogue mice most people have to have their mouse move quite far to make it accurate at all. So we see the arm driven mouse of today. But, there were also puck mice. These engineering wonders were accurate with only small wrist movements. No one **bought them, unless they had a DEC or some other expensive machine; and so we all got used to crappy mice.
Now we have good mice: Still cheap, but optical mice today are more accurate than puck mice 15 years ago.
**Someone will mention the mice that shipped with the old iMacs. Those were shaped like puck mice, and apple wanted you to use it like that because they thought they had a good mechanism. But it was still a ball mouse. Puck mice have two rotating cylinders; ball mice have a ball that spins two rotating cylinders.
Member since:mighty mouse is terrible. the shape makes no sense and isn'tm ergonomic at all. the hand needs arch support like almost every mouse provides minus apple's mice. the mighty mouse's rear is its highest point and then slopes downward... not comfortable. MS Intellimouse Explorer rocks it. the apple scroll ball feels flimsy and is too small to hit precise spots, unlike a conventional wheel, and you can't right click without lifting the left finger off the top shell, poor design.
Member since:2005-07-02
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It's not a "problem." That's the way it's supposed to be. You flick the mouse quickly to move it long distances. Otherwise it's way too hard to hit precise targets (a la Windows).