Style and Comfort Included, Batteries Not Required, Hand Sold Separately
Written: Dec 02 '04 (Updated Dec 02 '04)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Looks good, feels good, performs excellently
Cons: The second thumb button is a bit out of reach
The Bottom Line: Forget the price. Just hold it and try it out. Unless you like junk, the price won't matter afterward.
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| wsmunch's Full Review: Logitech MXâ„¢ 510 (931162-0403) Mouse |
You've got to hand it to Logitech; they put out great products. Unfortunately not many people realize how good Logitech mice are until they try them out. Sometimes the hard part is getting people to look past the price tag to see the value of the product. I'm talking explicitly about the Logitech MX 510 mouse. Sure, Logitech has their standard mice, Cordless Click mice (both wired and wireless), MX 300/310 mice, laptop mice, trackball mice, and their upper-end wireless mice (MX 700, MX 900, and that new MX 1000) but the MX 510 offers the best balance between cost, performance, and comfort for value-oriented consumers.
Comfort
This is the market which separates the mice from.. uh, mice. Comfort should be the first quality assessed when purchasing a new mouse, since all mice will do the pointing and clicking that needs to be done. The MX 510 is one of THE BEST mice in terms of comfort (adult right-hands, since it's a tad large for children and also can't be used left-handed), which also means it's one of THE BEST mice for health concerns. Let's test it out. Stand up and let your arms fall completely limp at your sides. Look down at your right hand and notice the shape of your hand's neutral position. This is the shape that your hand will take when you grip a Logitech MX 510 to use it. Most other mice will have a large end that tapers down towards the buttons, but the MX 510 has a tapered end that rises towards the buttons. It's the natural shape of the hand, so why make something that changes it? This means that you won't have to make any additional effort (aside from finger & thumb motion for button clicks) just to hold the mouse. This means everything in terms of health, especially for those using the computer for extended periods of time. If you have to use muscle power just to handle the mouse (not to press buttons) you're likely to develop strains, increase discomfort, agitate arthritis, or experience Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Imagine if you had to drive a car where the steering wheel was one foot to the right, instead of directly in front of you. Imagine this same steering wheel requiring the driver to maintain a constant inward pull just to keep the car driving. It would get unnecessarily tiring and irritating after awhile, wouldn't it? No one in their right mind would drive a car like this, so why would we use a mouse that does the same to our hand? The mouse is long enough for people with larger hands so their fingers will stay on the mouse, instead of dangling over the mouse or having to arch fingers to press buttons. Once again, it's all about the neutral hand position and there is no other mouse that does it any better. The sides of the mouse is a smooth rubber, and the top of the mouse is a cool plastic that looks like it has satin trapped in the middle. I chose the red color, though there is a blue flavor as well. Comfort? Here? Absolutely. It's definitely easy on the eyes and is particularly stylish. The back of the box says that each mouse design is unique, but when I compared all the units on the shelf they all looked the same. Oh well for that, but it still looks good.
Performance
Not only is this mouse comfortable, it's outstanding in it's performance as well. The optical MX engine of the Logitech MX 510 is amazingly accurate, which eliminates any struggle with the mouse to direct it properly (which lends itself to additional comfort). The MX engine of the 510 has been updated from the 500 model, though having used both extensively I can't really say that I can explain the difference better than "it's just... smoother". Logitech has upgraded their optical engine to 5.8 megapixels/sec from 4.7 megapixels/sec (from the MX 500 model) and upgraded the acceleration from 10g to 15g. Maybe I have been using them for so long, or possibly they're just that good that I don't really think about it much at all. Either way, that is 100% twitch response with zero mouse delay. Your pointer will move where you want it, when you want it. The mouse is loaded with 8 buttons: right click, left click, two thumb buttons (forward and back), scroll wheel/button, scroll up button, scroll down button, and application switch button. By default these buttons allow you to move through web pages and programs with relative ease and minimal movement of the mouse. Less, unnecessary mouse-motion means (that's right) less energy used, and thus more comfort for lengthy mousing sessions. But say that you don't like the button configuration? NO PROBLEM. The Logitech software allows you to reassign any button to a different function. Common keystrokes such as copy (CTRL-C), cut (CTRL-X), or paste (CTRL-V), and common commands such as maximize, minimize, close application (ALT-F4), resize window, switch program (ALT-TAB), or even unassigned, can be set to any of the buttons you want, any way you like. You can even change the speed of the scroll wheel to go faster (like a page at a time) or slower (like a line at a time). The wheel can be used as a button as well (default is directional page-scrolling). I only use a few of these additional buttons, configured to my common used commands, but they just make my work (okay surfing) easier and productive. Now if you're a gamer, then perk up now. The software will let you assign game commands to the buttons in the game itself. No longer do you have to reassign a key to a button and assign the game command to that key to make it work (and in some games even that didn't work). This is an absolute godsend for FPS or RTS games where you can have your most commonly used commands assigned to the mouse instead of scrambling for keystrokes in the heat of action. I have almost every button assigned to my game commands and I can confidently say it gives me an edge. If you combine that with the tracking and accuracy of the mouse do you get performance? Damn straight. The feet of the mouse have that perfect tactile resistance. It doesn't stick to the mousing surface, nor does it slide too easily all over the place either.
Price
"Fifty bucks for a mouse? That's ridiculous! You can buy a mouse for ten." I hear this all too often from customers at my work, but I make them eat their words. "How much did your shoes cost?", I ask them. "Eighty dollars? You know you could have gotten a pair for twenty at Rite-Aid." The customers laugh and tell me that those shoes are ugly, don't fit right, and fall apart. I ask them why they would purchase an ugly, small, two-button mouse to use with their thousand-dollar computer. At this point they usually take a second look at the Logitech MX 510 with quiet wonderment and consider what I just said. You'll buy one mouse and keep it until you lose it or something chews through the cord (mice are not prone to going bad if they're quality). Fifty dollars for a mouse, compared to the money that is spent on replacing clothing, using a cellphone, or renting movies, is only a drop in the bucket. You're getting the MX 510, the BMW of mice, for the price of a Hyundai. That's a deal. Why would one be so cheap to settle for a razor scooter (2-button mouse). Any true shopper of value products will know right away that $50 for this much mouse is completely reasonable. The more expensive Logitech mice are the wireless versions of the MX series. The less expensive Logitech mice are good, but don't have all the qualities of the MX 510 (especially the precise comfort).
Bottom Line
At first sight, the Logitech MX 510 looks like a beast, but then mice aren't meant to be ogled; they're meant to be handled. The real true test of the mouse is to use it. The MX 510 is a corded mouse, which is fine for me since I don't have much need for cordless, nor much desire to remember to keep a mouse recharged. The MX 510 has the standard USB connection, but it also includes a USB-PS2 adapter. The only complaint that I have about the mouse is the second thumb button, which is a bit out of reach of my thumb. Otherwise the main thumb button is placed well and everything else is perfect. Every once in awhile a hair or fiber will get in the way of the optical eye and needs to be blown out, but that's the most maintenance that has to be done. I used the MX 500 for a over a year with no problem whatsoever, and I expect the same performance from the MX 510.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 49.99
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