[Ruahrc]

I just got a powerbook with bluetooth and so obviously I want a BT mouse to take full advantage of my PB's capability and not have to worry about wires or dongles.

The Apple BT mouse is not acceptable as it only has 1 button and no scroll. Silly Apple get with the times and make a better mouse!

I've searched this forum and read the existing posts and also took a look at btboutique.com which seems to have a number of BT mice. I would prefer a larger mouse as opposed to a mini mouse because it would be more comfortable to use (and I don't see myself using the notebook in cramped quarters, so a full sized mouse even on the go is fine for me) so that cuts out a lot of the available mice.

Next I'd really prefer a mouse with more than the 2 buttons + scroll since I'd like a third button to be for expose. (Or can you assign that mouse button to expose? I guess I could handle that) That really cuts it down to even less options, namely the MX900 and MS BT Mouse, neither of which are officially supported in OS X.

The MX900 looks good since it's big and has lots of buttons, I hear it works in OS X without drivers but that the tracking was not that great? Also say I used USB Overdrive would that fix the tracking or not? (Supposedly USB Overdrive will include BT in the next revision?) Also about the rechargeable batteries how long can I use the mouse before a recharge is necessary? And does it use standard AA-size cells that are easily replaceable? The only problems I can forsee with the MX900 and the batteries is if I take the mouse with me on a weekend trip but not the charger/base. Would it last all weekend, and if not can I buy Alkaline AA's to pop in as a temporary measure?

The MS BT Mouse is pretty good too, I currently have the old Intellimouse Explorer Wireless, same shape as the BT Wireless shown here: http://www.btboutique.com/product_in...products_id=31 (except that it is RF not BT) and it has a good feel as well as multiple buttons. Same issues with OS X not being supported though, again will the current or future version of USBOverdrive work? Not a fan of the updated Intellimouse Explorer's shape (much less comfy) but I do like the smooth scroll wheel and tilting scroller.

So basically as of now there really isn't a great BT mouse out there yet? They all have some drawbacks and they are all fairly significant to the point where I might not buy them. Are there any reports of new BT mice coming up? I saw the thread with that BT Mouse that looks like the Apple mouse except it's 2 button+scroll and has an Al finish to match the PB... (TheMouse it's called?) Is that one supposed to be good? Honesly it looks a little cheap from the photo and I hear stories about the company...?

I may just have to get myself a Logitech Mouseman Traveler for the time being, and hope that a better mouse is on the way.

Ruahrc

[Ruahrc]

Update I'm liking this ANYCOM BTM-100 mouse from btboutique also. I like how it has a small USB Charger. Has anyone tried this mouse out?

Ruahrc

[albook]

I use a Logitech MX900 mouse with my PB, and I am very pleased with it!

Its correct that the tracking is not the best, but for my needs (surfing, mail, music, video etc.) it working great. For gaming I recommend you look elsewhere.
The battery time is around 20 hours. It uses standard Alkaline AA batteries, so if you keep an extra pair your safe.
NB! It lacks an On/Off button, so when travelling you need to remove the batteries.

[Lancer409]

any small one with a off switch and accepts nimh AAA batteries or something? i want one too but they are so damn expensive...

[MilkmanDan]

Originally posted by albook:
I use a Logitech MX900 mouse with my PB, and I am very pleased with it!

Its correct that the tracking is not the best, but for my needs (surfing, mail, music, video etc.) it working great. For gaming I recommend you look elsewhere.
The battery time is around 20 hours. It uses standard Alkaline AA batteries, so if you keep an extra pair your safe.
NB! It lacks an On/Off button, so when travelling you need to remove the batteries.

I love mine, and I play HALO with it and other games. No problems. If you're really worried about BT tracking speeds and games, use a USB mouse or RF mouse. Honestly, I have no problems with mine. Except the lack of an on/off button.

[angelmb]

If I am not wrong, MS have recently released a new BT mouse, just more ergonomic that the previous one. No Mac OS X support again.

[iomatic]

Just ordered this:

http://www.macmice.com/themousebt.html

It'll ship October; we'll see if it's good for gaming.

[OAW]

I recently purchased this ....

http://www.kensington.com/html/5465.html

It should fit your requirements rather nicely. Large, multi-button BT mouse with scroll wheel. What's even better? It has software drivers that allow all of the buttons to be programmed to whatever you need .... not just Expose ... quite unlike the Logitech or MS bluetooth mice.

I've been using mine for about a week now and it works as advertised. The only glitch is that it displays an erroneous "low battery" warning message randomly, maybe about once a day. The scroll wheel is supposed to flash red when the battery gets low and mine hasn't done it yet so I just ignore it the message and keep going. I figure this will get fixed in a driver update at some point. Overall, I'm very pleased with this mouse thus far.

OAW

[rag on a muffin]

love my mx900, rechargeable (just put it in its cradle), lasts me about 2 days just sitting in my pocket, with plenty of use, no need to remove batteries. tracking is fine for me, i play halo all the time with no trouble with the mouse (halo has some major lag issues, that i have not found a cure for). waiting for update to usb overdrive.

[Lancer409]

any small .. travel sized ones?

[Ruahrc]

Are there any stores in which you can buy the MX900? I looked at my local stores (BB, CC, etc) but did not see it there, only the MX700. I might be more inclined to give it a go if I could buy it from a B&M store where returns are easy.

That MX1000 I just realized does not have a replaceable battery! That means when the mouse battery dies (which would go fairly fast I presume, given it gets used often) you can't pop a new one in? I like the MX900 in that you can slap some alkalines in it if needed.

Ruahrc

[fisherKing]

Originally posted by Lancer409:
any small .. travel sized ones?

the kensington pocketmouse bluetooth.
small(ish), light.
tracks great (and works with their mouseworks software, if you want to configure it further).

2 buttons, scrollwheel (plus the wheel is a button, etc)

seen it on froogle for about $54....

love mine!

[rag on a muffin]

ack. i would really like the mx1000 in a bluetooth form, but everyone says that bluetooth is too slow. i thought it was 11 or 12 mbps, but after further research... 721 Kbps!!! thats really pitiful.

[Ruahrc]

Yeah blueteooth is slow but how slow can it be compared to the old PS/2 which was just fine? And do you need huge bandwidth for mouse tracking? Although I agree the BT bandwidth is not the fastest, I am sure it is plenty and what Logitech needs to do is improve the datastream that is being transferred.

Ruahrc

[fisherKing]

i have had no issues with the tracking on my bt mouse; doesnt feel different than my previous wired one.

kensington's mouseworks software (while not officially supporting bluetooth) helped me set up the mouse for my needs (pocketmouse)

still recommended!

[hart]

here's a small BT mouse in silver color to match powerbooks:

http://www.macally.com/spec/usb/input_device/mice.html

I know it's a BLUEtooth mouse but why do so many of them have to be these awful blue colors? gives me a pain in the eyeball.