Review: Is Apple’s new mouse all that Mighty?
Apple’s new Mighty Mouse has gotten huge press for being the first two (actually three) button mouse from Apple ever. Does it live up to the hype? We’ve had ours since the day they hit the shelves, and it’s time to report.
A mouse is a mouse, of course of course
My first impression out of the box was one of disappointment: This was just a mouse. It didn’t have a cape. It didn’t do anything that mouses don’t do. Certainly no mere mouse could be worthy of all the attention this one got in the press.
But I put my disappointment aside, installed the software, and plugged it in to my trusty laptop.
And it was a great mouse. Firstly, it feels exactly like Apple’s standard mouse under regular usage–there’s nothing for Mac users to get used to. Furthermore, the right-click action works every time even though there’s no actual separate button–there’s nothing for two-button mouse users to get used to either. The mouse detects which side of the mouse you’re depressing for a right click. If you press with even pressure on top or on the left side, you get a left click. Die-hard one button fans (I think that’s only Steve Jobs) can also disable the right button entirely if it offends them.
The scroll ball is interesting. It’s essentially a tiny mouse ball (remember when mice had those?) with a soft spring action that works like a track ball. If you push the ball hard enough to cause a click, the click is interpreted as a 3rd button. Otherwise, you run your finger over it vertically or horizontally to scroll the active window. And, unlike the kludgy “scroll wheel with tilt†that is appearing on Logitech and Microsoft mice, the scroll ball feels the same in both axes and doesn’t make horizontal scrolling a click by click activity. In firefox, horizontal scrolling is interpreted as back/forward buttons–but it’s so sensitive that it’s difficult to go back to the page you actually want. In Safari, if the page doesn’t have a horizontal scroll bar, the action does nothing.
You can also squeeze the two side finger grips to activate a fourth button or function–built in options include Expose, Dashboard, Spotlight, or a fourth button, but you can also select any application you’d like to have it launch. I’ve assigned it to the old-fashioned Option-Tab application switcher, which it works well for.
The included software allows the Mouse Preferences panel to show the Mighty Mouse’s extra features. You can assign pretty much any function or application to any of the buttons.
For PC users, the mouse functions as a typical two button mouse.
Conclusion and Recommendation
Apple makes great hardware, and the Mighty Mouse is no exception. It feels exactly like a regular Apple Mouse, with none of the gadgety extra buttons or right-hand moulded shape that all multi-button PC mice seem to have. It typifies Apple’s excellent “Less is More†approach to human interface and is immediately adaptable both to die-hard one-button mouse users and users who are used to two button mice without having to think about it. My only complaint is that it’s not wireless–doubtless there will be one as soon as Steve decides that Apple has been out of the limelight for more than a week.