Is the Magic Mouse the Ultimate Mouse?
Today I got the chance to have a play with the new Apple Magic Mouse. Released earlier this week as part of the Apple hardware refresh, the Magic Mouse introduces gesture technology to the mouse, which was previously only found on the MacBook and iPhone.
So what does this mean for the user?
First impressions are the lack of buttons. While it’s predecessor, the Mighty Mouse, didn’t have visible left and right mouse buttons, there was the tiny scroll ball built into the top casing and the pinch buttons on the side.
With the Magic Mouse there is nothing, just a smooth curved back. But don’t let that fool you as this mouse is still a two button mouse and supports scrolling. The clever part is in the software which analyses the finger movements over the top of the mouse and translates them into actions, such as left or right click.
Its clever enough to understand the difference between a click and you laying your hand on top of the mouse. The scroll wheel is replaced by dragging your finger across the top of the mouse and just like the trackpad on the Unibody Macbook, the Magic Mouse will support 360 degree scrolling.
A nice touch is that the scrolling can be set to work relative to your finger speed. So if you want to slowly scroll down the document then a gentle stroke is all you need. If you want to rapidly scroll to the bottom of the page then a flick of the finger will easily achieve this.
Cover flow can also be operated by a two finger scroll to the left or right and during testing it appeared that a two finger stroke vertically would also let you move from one message to the next in Apple Mail.
That is where the gestures end. No three or four finger gestures like the Macbook trackpad, which is a shame as I especially like being able to initiate Expose through this method.
Again in my brief testing it would appear that you do have the option to set the right click to initiate either Expose or Spaces, when the mouse is over the desktop but this seemed pretty cumbersome in practice.
As the gesture support is mostly achieved through software, then I would expect to see updates from Apple over the coming months and years to expand on the limited set currently available. However with limited space on the back of the Magic Mouse, its unlikely they will ever be able to achieve the same levels of functionality offered by the trackpad.
First Impressions?
To be honest I was disappointed. Admittedly I have quite large hands but to me the Magic Mouse just didn’t feel comfortable. I like to feel that I have a good hold of my mouse when using it but this didn’t seem tall enough to sit comfortably in my hand and it also felt too lightweight for my liking.
The biggest let down was the lack of configurable buttons, something which is essential for my day to day use. If all you are after is a mouse which supports left & right click and scrolling then you will be more than happy but if you need more then I suggest you look elsewhere.
Basic Specs
- Multi-touch gesture support
- Configurable as one or two button mouse
- Laser tracking engine
- Bluetooth connectivity
- Battery operated (AA)
- Price: £55
Summary
So in answer to the original question, is the Magic Mouse the Ultimate Mouse? Although its definitely an impressive bit of kit and the technology has potential, for this user the answer is no and I will be staying with my trusty Logitech mouse for the the foreseeable future.
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By web design lexington on November 10, 2009 22:01
The sleek design makes it a perfect spic n span mouse: an added attraction in a computer set.