jakhtar's Full Review: Microsoft Intelli Optical (D58-00026) Mouse
I recently put together a new home computer, and got a Logitech optical mouse to go with it. Yesterday, I finally got sick of the rollerball mouse on my office computer, and headed over to Staples to buy a mouse myself to use at the office. I picked up the MS IntelliMouse Optical, and bought it.
When I got it home, I looked at my almost-new Logitech optical mouse, and then looked back at the new Microsoft mouse... After much hemming and hawing, I decided to install the new mouse on my home computer, and take the Logitech to the office. The Microsoft mouse had the extra buttons which make internet surfing easier (more on those later)... and besides, too much internet surfing at the office can get me fired. ;)
I fired up my home computer, and installed the included software. Really the only thing that this does is add an extra tab for configuring the extra buttons to the Mouse applet in the control panel, as well as put the icon for this applet in the system tray and in your Start menu. After the installation was complete, I registered the product online, unplugged the old(er) Logitech mouse, and plugged the new Microsoft mouse into my USB hub. Windows XP recognized the mouse immediately.
My first impressions: the mouse fits into my hands beautifully - I always found the Logitech to be a bit small, and I have relatively small hands for a guy.
The mouse has the standard two buttons, as well as the center scroll wheel, which is configured to work like any other scroll wheel. The things that sets this mouse apart from the others is the two extra buttons, one on either side of the mouse. The one on the left is pre-programmed to function as your web browser's 'Back' button, and the the one on the right is programmed to function as the web browser's 'Forward' button. Very convenient for surfing the web.
The default button assignments are perfect for me, but some users may want to change them. For this, you simply go to the Mouse applet on the Windows control panel, and you are given options for what you would like these etra buttons to do. You can also change the usual mouse settings here, such as cursor speed, double-slick speed, etc.
Looks-wise, the mouse is very stylish and fits with the rest of my computer equipment nicely. It's beige, with silver/grey trim around the front and around the black scroll wheel. The underpad of the mouse wraps around the bottom edge, so you see an eerie red glow when the mouse is resting on your desktop.
Apparently the mouse has a power-saving feature that turns off the red light on the optical sensor after a few minutes of inactivity. However, this doesn't seem to work on my computer, probably because I have the mouse plugged into a USB hub, and not into a USB port on the computer itself.
For those of you that haven't tried an optical mouse before, I'll just say that you owe it to yourself to try one. They can be had for just a little more that a roller ball mouse, and work on any surface - no mousepad needed! They're more precise, and don't get gummed up and dirty like roller balls.
The Microsoft® IntelliMouse® Optical comes in a versatile ambidextrous design — combining enhanced performance and a comfortable experience ideal ...More at Dell
The more efficient way to work. The IntelliMouse lets you browse the Web without using toolbars or the keyboard. Simply use either side button to goMore at TigerDirect.com
Work on any surface while you easily navigate documents, Web pages, and spreadsheets with the convenient scroll wheel and Internet navigation buttons;...More at Microsoft Store
Microsoft IntelliMouse Optical is one of Microsoft s best-selling optical mice, featuring a versatile ambidextrous design and supercharged with Micros...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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