Intellimouse Explorer - Gates Broke My Heart
Written: May 31 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Accurate, Smooth, and Cool Looking
Cons: USB did not work for me
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| SirMontego's Full Review: Microsoft Intelli Explorer (B75-00001) Mouse |
After reading numerous positive reviews about the Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer I decided to give the little thing a shot.
First of all this mouse is not cheap. At $59.99, I contemplated the purchase for many months. This is the most expensive mouse I have ever purchased. And as of now, it seems to be the last mouse I will ever purchase.
The performance of the mouse is outstanding. It has very high hand arch that I think has cured my tendentious. See, I used to have a sharp pain on my right hand just between my pinky knuckle, ring finger knuckle, and my wrist. I would walk around all day flexing my fingers and massaging my hand to help the pain. The pain only went away when I got the new mouse.
Red Light Special
The mouse works with a light instead of the traditional mouse ball. It is far more accurate, does not wiggle, and just makes it easier to click on anything. I love it. Did I say it looks cool?
The Buttons
The left and the right button are exactly the same as a standard mouse. The clicking is comparable to other MS mice and feels normal. The two buttons on the left side of the mouse are initially set to forward and back on the internet browser. The back one is the greatest thing that has happened to computer mice since the invention of the scroll wheel. On epinions, it helps reduce mouse movement more than I can describe. Conversely, the forward button is difficult to use. Instead of hitting it with my thumb, I usually end up clicking it with the right side of my index finger. Needless to say, I rarely use it.
The Wheel
At first, I thought the wheel seemed a little loose. It then started acting erratically, like I would tap in and the whole screen would freeze, then skip down, then skip up. This was actually the result of the wrong option being chosen on Ms Internet Explorer, problem soon fixed. Now that I have used my loose wheel for a few months, I actually prefer it to the stiff ones seen in other mice.
USB Rulz!!!!
I have fallen in love with USB mice since I read about them in the February 1999 issue of PC Gamer. The article basically states that average PS/2 connection (the little circle thing) transmits at 40 times per second. Now consider that a PII and a Voodoo2-based accelerator run at about 50-60 times a second. It means that your mouse can not even keep up with your screen. It gets even worse with newer systems. Behold, the USB mouse, updating at roughly 120 times per second, and you have a better Quake III score.
To see this, open MS Paint and draw circles very quickly. With a PS/2 mouse you will not see nice curves, but harsh straight lines. With a USB mouse, those lines should be 1/3 shorter.
This is where Bill Gates broke my heart.
When I tried to install the USB connection, I got nothing but erratic mouse movements. It was unacceptable. I reinstalled it, no success. I went to the Microsoft web site for product support. Followed the registry alteration file and rebooted, no success. I removed the old Microsoft mouse drivers. (So the machine thought I did not have a mouse) Reinstalled it, again, no success. Finally, admitting defeat, I plugged it into the PS/2 port, and that is where it has remained for the past 3 months.
Even though the USB does not work on my computer, I still think this is the best mouse ever made. By now the Microsoft logo has rubbed off (actually that’s a plus) and the back button is fairly worn. Since it is nice and gray, it does not show the nasty sweat marks that my old-white MS mouse did. Additionally, I have never cleaned it. Compare this to my twice a month cleanings of my previous pointer. If the USB installed properly, I would give this a full 5 stars.
--SirMontego, look for me on battle.net
My System Stats:
Pentium II 400 Mhz
192 MB SDRam (100Mhz)
DVD drive 4x (I think)
HP Cd Writer 8250i
8.4 Gb
8mb video 3D card
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
SirMontego
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Location: America!
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