When our friend Chua told Fred that the new Logitech MX1000 Laser mouse was awesome, Fred got really interested as his trusty mouse cum tablet was coming apart. Chua offered to pass his new mouse to Fred for test drive, and Fred couldn't refuse. Fred was convinced after the test and went out to get himself one. Here's a little review on the Logitech MX1000.
After five years of mousing around with a mouse that came with the first generation Wacom Graphire, it was time for the mouse and tablet to retire for good. They've traveled many miles on Fred's desktop and have withstood thousands of clicking abuse hurled at them. The Logitech MX1000 was just released and was the first mouse be equipped with lasers, claimed to be 20x more sensitive than optical mice.
The mouse came equipped with lithium-ion battery, accompanied by a rapid-charging base station which also doubled as an RF receiver for this cordless mouse, AC-DC adapter and installation CD. On the back of the mouse is a 3-level battery indicator that displays the battery power level of the mouse. With a total of 7 programmable buttons and a tilt-able scroll wheel, the mouse can be configured through Logitech Control Center software which was installed in under System Preferences. I love the curves that were sculpted into the mice as it fits my hand comfortably.
The initial charging took less then two hours to reach a full charge, I left the mouse in the charging station overnight; a normal procedure for me with all electronics equipments equipped with rechargeable batteries. Setting up the cordless mouse is a no-brainer, all one needs to do is install the software that came with the installation CD, connect the USB connector from the charging station to any USB port on the computer. Press the "RESET" button on the charging station followed by the "RESET" button on the mouse. Resetting the mouse and RF receiver sort of synchronises the mouse to the RF receiver.
Once that is done, we are ready to rock-n-roll! I first fired up System Preferences to assign different keys that activates Exposé, this allows me to set the usual keys which I use to activate on the buttons of the mouse as shown on the diagrams below. Once the keys were set on the mouse, I went on to reset the Exposé activation key back to the usual ones that I used. The programmed buttons worked like a charm, and I love it. The claimed 20x sensitivity is indeed awesome; the tracking is very accurate and sensitive. I immediately felt a difference while using it to retouch digital images in Photoshop, one simply has to try it to have a feel.
One thing that I disliked about the MX1000 is the charging station. It required the AC-DC to be plugged-in to facilitate charging of the Li-ion battery in the mouse. I would have loved for it to be able to charge via the USB connection, but I guess the latter does not provide enough current to do so. All in all, I really love this mouse; it is the best mouse I've ever used. Thanks to the recommendation and generous offer by our friend Chua for letting me test drive the mouse for over a month.
Pros
- Excellent sensitivity and tracking control
- Rubbery sculpted curves that fit my hand
- Programmable buttons and smooth scroll wheel
- Rechargeable Lithium ion battery
Cons
- Price
- Requires AC-DC adapter for charging
Do check out various screen shots of Logitech Control Center here.