If you live on computers, as more and more of us do, then finding a proper pointing device, e.g., the mouse, is critical. From their initial conception and design, up through only very recently, these things remained essentially unchanged (okay, RF-cordless was a key design improvement).
About a year or so ago, the classic mouse design reached a pinnacle in the version released by Logitech with its V550 Nano Cordless Laser Mouse (M/N: M-RCS143). This is an awesome Bluetooth based device. It is concise and responsive, and has one of the best combination button/wheel mechanisms ever produced. This device works very well with both PC and Mac based systems. It comes in a brushed-aluminum color that makes it a nice match for the MacBook Pro finish. The cost of the V550 is about $40 (Amazon).
Late last year, the people at Apple released the Magic Mouse. Although I’m not easily impressed, and believe that as often as not new products from Apple are as much hype as substance, I gotta admit that the Magic Mouse is the real deal. It takes a few minutes to get the feel for the new virtual three button mouse – it has a curious curved low-profile shape – but the responsiveness, especially the momentum-queued scrolling, is amazing. The device is not cheap at $69, but for those of us who spend long hours in front of an Apple laptop computer, it is well worth the $.
Semi-unfortunately, the minimum requirements for use of the Magic Mouse as per the Apple website is: ‘Mac OS X v10.5.8 or later with Wireless Mouse Software Update 1.0* or Mac OS X v10.6.1 or later with Wireless Mouse Software Update 1.0’.
Copyright 2010 Peter F. Flynn. No usage permitted without prior written consent. All rights reserved.
