[Klaustrophobia]

I know we've had this thread many times, and once even relatively recently, but for the life of me I can't find it so I'm starting anew.  My trusty microsoft intellimouse is on its way out after probably 10 years of good service (I blame you dekker, cookie clicker is probably what killed it).  I tried to look around on my own and thought I had found some possibilities, but I can't find a mouse even as good as this 10 year old thing in now, and they all cost about twice as much as this one did to boot.  Looking for (in order of importance):

Wireless - absolute must.  It can be one of those kinds that also plugs in, but it must have a wireless mode.
Comfort - something full size, preferably right-hand sculpted.  Not interested in those absurd razer designs
Battery life - this one seems to be the killer for all the mice these days I've looked at.  This microsoft mouse lasts at least 6 months.  This was the killer for the mice that looked like they had everything else I was looking for.  Didn't advertise a battery life expectancy, and reviews indicated it could be as bad as less than a day.  Another possible looked like a week maybe.  I found one that advertised 3 years, but it sucked at pretty much everything else.
Buttons - my minimum would be two extra thumb buttons.  A decent middle button would be nice but not required.  Same for an on-the-fly sensitivity adjust.  More than this is fine, as long as it doesn't go overboard, like those 'mmo' mice that have like 15 buttons on the side.

And either laser or optical obviously.  So can anyone recommend something good from experience (that is still available)?

[Black-Devil]

Puhh difficult.. i got a mouse which is quite fine and i could write a recommendation of but it´s one of those razer u like not

[Klaustrophobia]

i'm not opposed to razer on general principle, but they usually look horribly uncomfortable, and the couple i've actually been able to touch were pretty much how they looked.  if models exist that naturally fit a hand, i will consider them.

i'm a little frustrated in my search because mouse technology seems to have regressed in the past 10 years.  or i guess the designs have rather than the tech. 

[Fury]

M570. Couple it with G400S, G500S or G700S.

I would recommend M570 + G400S. But if you really need both to be wireless, then M570 and G700S. Can't go wrong with thumb-operated trackball (M570) and optical mouse (G400S) combination. Trackball for general computer use and some games even, optical mouse for fast-paced games. Optical still rules supreme over laser no matter what people say.

[pecenipicek]

MX518 derivates are my choice always. comfortable, rugged and ****ing damn easy to repair if you have spares around.

and i have owned 4 over the past 8 years ( with two falling into disuse due to cable breaking at exit port, so salvaged for parts )


but hey, replacing the failing left button switch was a very trivial procedure. the solder pads are nice and beefy, no other components are in the way.


i've looked at logitech's competition. i've found them all to be crappy pieces of crappy crap overall. that is all from me on the topic.

[TwentyPercentCooler]

Laptop has a 6 year old Razer Lachesis. That thing is effing bulletproof.

Gaming PC has a Razer Naga. I've had it for almost 2 years, no sign of wear and I use it quite a bit. Razer makes decent stuff, although I bought both of these on sale because I think they're a little pricey.

[S-99]

I use an hp ball mouse. Works fine, i clean it once a month. Works nearly as great as a laser mouse. I just use a q-tip on this bastard once a month. It was free, i'm out of mice; i'm not complaining.

[deathspeed]

Logitech G602 promises 250 hours battery life.  I was seriously considering this mouse until I realized it does not have the dual mode hyper-fast scroll wheel that I had gotten used to with my MX1100.
Instead I picked up the G700s when retailers all dropped the price to the same as the G602.  I like the data/charge over cable, but the cable is incredibly stiff.  I still leave it plugged in most of the time to help prevent it from being knocked off my desk by my 4 year old (which is why I had to replace the trusty MX1100).  Wireless battery life is pretty short, even with the AA Eneloop that came with it, but it will get me through a gaming session without plugging in.  My only complaint (other than the stiff cable) is that when I unplug the cable, then later plug it in again, the mouse buttons do not respond until I press ctrl+alt+del.  Logitech has been working with me on this, and even sent me a replacement mouse, but it is not yet resolved.  It happens whether I boot into Win 7 Home 64 bit or XP Pro on the same hardware, so the problem may be specific to my rig.
Oh, one other thing - while I like the gritty non-slip texture on the sides, my wife absolutely hates it, and thinks I bought this mouse for the sole reason of keeping her off my computer. 

[Klaustrophobia]

The 602 looks promising, but I will need to find a retailer with a demo model out that I can try out before buying it.  Or at least just buy it from a retail store so I can return it easily if I can't try it out beforehand.  It looks to be pushing the limits of too many buttons though.  I will never use all 11 of those, and I would think the extras would get in the way of the 2 or 3 I do want to use.  The battery saving mode is a nice touch, and I like the common sense inclusion of an off switch.

[Black-Devil]

I'm not opposed to razer on general principle, but they usually look horribly uncomfortable, and the couple I've actually been able to touch were pretty much how they looked.  if models exist that naturally fit a hand, i will consider them.

OK

I bought a few month ago one of those mmo mouse from Razer. And it took me some time to get to this decision.
One Reason was that I'm playing mmo´s. So i bought the Razer Naga Epic( Yes one with 15 buttons)
The main reasons to take this mouse were:

You got the option to use the mouse wired or wireless
You get a battery included an it comes along with a charging station.
You can change the sidepanels of the mouse to get a good position of your Hand
You can set the dpi and sensitivity and u can write macros

i think the mouse is expensive, and in that point i agree with 15 or 17 buttons are 8-10 too much.
for my self i wouldn't change the mouse.

Hope it helps u a bit

[castor]

As mouses go, my needs are simple:
-NOT wireless
-quiet enough
-flywheel for scrolling
-NOT any of those handy tiny designs

Seems there's nothing like that available.

[AdmiralRalwood]

-quiet enough

I'm not sure what a "noisy" mouse is. Are people getting mice with built-in speakers or something?

[Grizzly]

-quiet enough

I'm not sure what a "noisy" mouse is. Are people getting mice with built-in speakers or something?

Force Feedback mice?

[pecenipicek]

loud clicks and scrollwheel.

[Klaustrophobia]

all mice are going to click.  that's just plain unavoidable.  i've never heard any that were noticeably louder or quieter than any other.  i've also never heard a scroll wheel that made me think "that's loud" but i suppose there are click and non-click versions of those. 

anywho, just bought the g602.  haven't started using it yet, but put my hands on it.  not as perfectly comfortable as the microsoft intellimouse, but it's adequate.  could be a little bigger and have a little bit of a pinky/ring finger rest.  pinky just trails along the side of the mouse, which is normal i guess, but since there is no little outward flair or anything for the ring finger, it has to rest on top of the pinky and puts pressure on it.  the side buttons probably won't be too bad for hitting the right one/avoiding spurious clicks.  the dpi adjust buttons could stand to be a little smaller and further out of the way of normal left clicking.  it came with an extension cable for that little tiny receiver, which is a nice touch.  i should be able to use it from the couch with that if i so choose.  no wireless keyboard, but can be handy as a makeshift remote control when i watch movies from my PC on my TV.  it glides faster and smoother than the intellimouse, but that might just be because it's brand new.  i wish a little that it had that free-scroll thing a lot of the logitechs do just to try it out, but no great loss there.  the battery life and $20 cheaper price way more than makes up for that.

[castor]

all mice are going to click.  that's just plain unavoidable.  i've never heard any that were noticeably louder or quieter than any other.  i've also never heard a scroll wheel that made me think "that's loud" but i suppose there are click and non-click versions of those.

Well there are differences. But they seem to be "accidental", more than a result from an actual design for quietness. Never tried what kind of sound a micro switch click outside the mouse housing makes? It's usually much less audible, which clearly shows manufacturers are not paying attention at all on this huge issue

Worst of all is the scrollwheel rattle though. Luckily that can be usually fixed, by simply removing a small steel part which is functioning as the noise generator.

[Fury]

I find it disheartening how people dismiss M570 without looking twice.
Oh well...

[TwentyPercentCooler]

I find it disheartening how people dismiss M570 without looking twice.
Oh well...

M570 is a great mouse; Klaus said no wireless, though.

I usually take my M570 with me if I'm taking the laptop somewhere, since it doesn't require a whole lot of space. Not really a huge fan of wireless stuff myself, though - I actually have an old Logitech trackball that's beige and wired (although a lot of PCs don't have PS/2 ports now). But you wanna talk about bulletproof...that thing is over 15 years old and still going strong. Logitech may not make the flashiest stuff, but I've never bought a Logitech product that wasn't durable and reliable.

Edit: i speel gud

[Klaustrophobia]

actually, i DID want wireless to the extent it was an absolute requirement.  i just have no desire for trackballs though. 

[Nuke]

did i tell you i have a box full of obsolete ps2 mice. why? because they are an excellent source of still functioning clickey buttons, which i transplant into newer mice with malfunctioning clickey buttons.