Customer Reviews

3M Wireless Ergonomic Mouse, Large Size, Black

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I put off writing this review until I had adequate time to use this mouse in all different situations. I purchased this mouse in October 2009. I had developed a very painful Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI)in my right hand and arm from heavy mouse use; in particular the constant use of the roller wheel and the click-click-clicking of the mouse buttons. I am a medical librarian and use my computer all day for long stretches of time. However, I don't play video games though that require much more clicking than office work.

I considered and tested quite a few "ergonomic" mice. Most of them merely changed the user's hand position, but still required clicking buttons with the index and middle fingers.

I am mostly pleased with the mouse, and I will address specific features, both good and bad, in hopes that this will help someone else with a similar condition.

Comfort - 5 stars - Compared to other ergonomic mice I have tried this one is very comfortable for extended use. Though it looks like a joystick, the handle doesn't move. When grasping the mouse handle the user's hand is at about a 45 degree angle. Left and right button clicking (for Windows users) is accomplished with the user's thumb on a rocker button at the top of the handle. The thumb is much stronger and has more leverage for short movements than the other fingers, and the movement of the thumb is very small. I have only encountered thumb pain after performing tasks that involved constant clicking for over an hour. If the user takes short breaks (which is recommended for ANY repetitive task) then I have had no problems.

Cursor movement is accomplished by moving the mouse with the entire hand and forearm instead of flexing the wrist back and forth. Since much larger muscles are used in this movement they tire less quickly and practically no stain is put on the more vulnerable parts of the fingers, hand and wrist. I was able to use this mouse virtually pain free from the beginning.

Ease of use -- 4 stars - By ease of use I mean how troublesome (or not) is this mouse to use compared with the standard mouse. I have to grade it down a bit here due to several of what I consider to be design flaws.

Most wireless mice that I have used include a small cradle or slot to store the antenna (the small part that plugs into a USB port on your computer) when not using the mouse. Typically this also turns the mouse off. This mouse does not have that feature which can mean (if you're like me) losing the antenna occasionally since there is no convenient place to store it. The USB plug of the antenna does not come with a cap. I finally glued a small piece of Velcro (the fuzzy part) on the top of the thumb side of the base, and two pieces of Velcro (the hooks part) to the underside of the antenna and the cap (which I had to provide). I attach the cap to the Velcro when I am using the mouse. This works fairly well, though it's not pretty.

The only way to turn the mouse off is by an on/off switch on the bottom. If you forget, which I often do, the mouse will stay on and constantly seek a surface which runs down the battery.

There is no roller wheel. Instead there is a large button on the front of the handle where the user's hand wraps around. The button is operated by gently squeezing the button usually with the third and fourth fingers. This activates (again in Windows) the page scroll feature which then allows the user to scroll the screen up and down by moving the mouse back and forth. This is a bit clumsy, but since using a roller wheel partially lead to my RSI, I don't miss it.
It took me a while to get used to this mouse and to develop the same precision I have with a regular mouse.

Battery life -- 5 stars - The unit takes two AAA batteries. So far, even when forgetting to turn it off, I have found the battery life to be as good as, or better than most wireless mice I have used.

Signal strength - 4 stars - I have not had the problem with signal strength that some of the other reviewers have. Normally the mouse and antenna are within 1-2 feet of each other and I have had no problems with an intermittent signal. On a few occasions I have had my laptop on the floor about 4 feet from me while sitting in a chair. I can usually still control the cursor, though clicking sometimes does not work as well. The only time I have had a real problem is when the batteries begin to lose power, and the signal strength lessens until it's obvious that new ones are needed.

Durability -- 5 stars - Again, I have not had the problems other reviewers have had. I have dropped this mouse several times (by accident, not design) from a height or about 3-4 feet on to an uncarpeted floor and have seen no cracks or problems afterward. I have not had the buttons break.

Conclusions - I would purchase this mouse again, but I might consider buying the "wired" version because of the antenna storage issues. I credit this mouse for playing a significant role in helping my RSI to heal. I can immediately tell the difference if I have to use a standard mouse for even a shirt time.

I am happy to answer any questions (leave a comment on this review) that anyone has.

I love my regular 3M wired ergonomic mouse (3M Ergonomic Mouse SMALL/MEDIUM), but because it's a bit of a pain to use a mouse that is tethered to the computer, I bought this wireless version and gave it a whirl. On the positive side, the wireless ergonomic mouse itself is a joy to use -- comfy in the hand, good quality, everything you'd expect from 3M. But the mouse comes with a fatal flaw. The mouse and the computer dongle -- the receiver that plugs into your computer -- just don't communicate very well. Actually, they communicate rather poorly. They keep dropping events, at the rate of several each second. This means that you'll be moving the cursor across the screen, and suddenly the cursor will freeze; or you'll try clicking the mouse button, and nothing will happen. It is truly frustrating to try to use a mouse that works, or doesn't work, essentially at random. I've tried reducing the distance between the mouse and the dongle to just a few inches, but the behavior persists, so I have to assume that it's a problem with the electronics and not with some local radio interference. A real shame because otherwise the mouse is fantastic. But the randomly-works-at-times behavior is sufficiently annoying that I must reluctantly recommend against buying the wireless 3M mouse, and point you instead back to the regular wired mouse, which is a great product.

This 3M product is GREAT in concept. The handle is comfortable, the movement crisp, and the reality is - it virtually eliminated my wrist pain from using a mouse all day long. The only 2 problems are - 1. there's no "roller" wheel for scrolling up/down on web pages - a virtual necessity in today's web world. 2. the mouse button on top is built too weakly. I only had the product for a few weeks and I was very gentle with my clicking all day. One day the clicking button broke. There is no way to "fix" it as the tiny little plastic tab holding it in was less than .5mm thick! No wonder it broke! This product is worth the money, but they need to redesign the button and include a roller option for the index finger.

I bought this mouse because i've been having a lot of pain. I work in spreadsheets and am using the mouse all day every day.

The product is comfortable but it takes me twice as long to get my work done. Within 2 weeks of owning the product, the buttons started giving out on me. It now takes 3-4 clicks to ACTUALLY click.

The lack of a scroll wheel also destroys this product. The scroll "button" is on the joystick itself and its way too easy to click that when you don't want to.

POOR POOR design...I expect way more from a company like 3M. I'm extremely disappointed with it. I've thrown it in the garbage and gone back to my regular mouse. My next ergo mouse will not be made by 3M.

After experiencing wrist pain at work from constant computer use, I tried this new mouse. I was surprised how easy it was to adjust to. My wrist pain has diminished, and I have recommended it to all my co-workers. The only thing that has been harder to get used to is the scroll feature. It doesn't work on all of my programs, so it can be a little annoying to have to use the scroll bar on the side of the window in some software programs. Overall, I love it and think it was a great value.

I am an arthritic and can not use a roller ball or conventional mouse because of crooked fingers. I have had a wired one for a number of years. 3M Ergonomic Mouse, Optical, USB/PS2 Compatible, Large Size, Black (EM500GPL)The cord had to pass through to the keyboard area which left the extra cord dangling. My feet would sometimes get tangled in the cord. I am so glad that this product is finally availabel. I love it. It was an easy transition and I have a new freedom. I can't comment about the battery life at this time. I do turn it off when it is not in use.

I was having trouble with repetitive stress injury from over-using a standard mouse, this has fixed the problem. I recommend it to anyone who needs a different mouse angle for relieving ongoing stress on the forearm.

I really wanted to love this mouse. Ergonomically, it is excellent. I had no trouble with it communicating with the dongle. The battery life is astonishing. But there are two fatal issues that make me want to break it with a hammer. 1. The left-click is unreliable. Soon after I started using it, I noticed occasional misfires, but I pretended to ignore them. But the symptoms grew more chronic over time, and now maybe one out of five clicks works. I have resolved today that I will take it into the garage and hit it with a sledge hammer until its delicate electronic bits are scattered everywhere. Oh yeah, I said there were two issues. 2. The tracking--the ability of the mouse to respond to one's hand movements--is nearly as frustrating. I have an exceptionally clean desktop, it is wood, and the darn thing makes me repeat my movements way too often. Hear that? A mouse designed to help with injury due to repetitive movements causes unnecessary repetitive movements! Bah! Die, mouse; Die!

I have been using this mouse for about 3-4 month. And now the left click button became very soft and works not every time it pushed. I wanted to find something for my Carpal Syndrome and unfortunately I have to keep looking. This mouse did not work for me and quality is very poor. If you want to throw 50$ away - that's the right thing to buy.

I have have 6 or so of these in the last year.

They never last more than 3 months. BUT, recently, the button has started sticking. I recently bought 2. I buy 2 at a time because they go out often.

BOTH of the buttons stuck, and broke within 30 minutes of using them.

THEY do, work well for wrist pain though.