Customer Reviews

Logitech VX Revolution Ergonomic Design Cordless 2.4 GHz Wireless Laser Mouse for Notebooks/Laptops/PCs with Hyper-Fast Scrolling

5 star:		(265)
4 star:		(104)
3 star:		(36)
2 star:		(15)
1 star:		(34)

 

 

If you've used Logitech mice, you know most of the stuff you need to. The VX Revolution is a neat little mouse that is small enough to take with you, and large enough to replace a desktop mouse if you want to. It isn't one of those tiny travel mice though, so if space is limited in your laptop case you might want to consider something else.

Insert the included AA battery, plug in the tiny USB receiver, and you're off to the races. If you want to use many of the additional features, like horizontal scrolling, zooming, search button, or to set the speed and acceleration, you need to install the Setpoint software. The included CD has what you need for Windows. Mac users will need to download it from the internet.

When not in use the receiver tucks neatly away inside the mouse. When you put the receiver away it shuts the mouse off, and when you remove it, the mouse turns on. There is also a small power button, should you choose to leave the USB plugged into your PC. According to the power meter, the single AA battery will provide 120 days of use. Time will tell how accurate that is.

As far as price goes, you probably can get a mouse with comparable features for a lot less money, but if you don't want to screw around, you won't likely be disappointed with this product.

One little problem is easily corrected. When I used the mouse the first time, I found that scrolling was pathetically slow in some windows (IE6), and didn't work at all in others. What you have to do is go into Setpoint, choose scrolling options, select Internet Explorer, and uncheck the box to "allow Super Smooth Scrolling", and you're back where you should be. I hope this saves others from the frustration of having to search through the Knowledge Base, or calling tech support (which for Logitech mice is NOT toll-free).

So far, I am pleased with this purchase...

I have been using Logitech pointing devices more than 15 years. They are consistently the best quality and the easiest on my joints (since I develop software for a living). At this point I will use nothing else.

The VX is smaller than other Logitech mice (such as the MX 1000 I use at home), but it is reasonably weighted and has a good solid feel. Settings (speed, sensitivity, etc.) are quite customizable, as are all the buttons. It almost goes without saying that if you are going to use this mouse, install the accompanying software and update the software to the latest version from the Logitech website.

I especially like the way the wireless USB dongle stows away inside the mouse when not being used, also turning the mouse off to conserve the battery. As for the battery, it uses a single standard AA, and obtains a very reasonable lifetime out of it.

Even though this mouse is sold as a laptop mouse, and for which it is quite appropriate (it has a small, portable size, and packs up easily for travel), I would certainly use it as my permanent desktop mouse, if I didn't already have a really great mouse, already.

After using the new Revo MX and VX for about a week, I can say that the smaller VX is more useful for Macs in a couple ways. First of all, the Zoom slider on the VX can be programmed to zoom, click, adjust volume, switch application, eject a disc, or just about any other action. The equivalent thumb knob on the MX can only be set to zoom or application switch. Why this is, I don't know. But the Logitech drivers give the VX more flexibility. I also like that the VX takes just one AA battery. The MX has a sealed Lithium battery, so if you happen to run out, you must wait while the mouse recharges. With the VX, you simply pop in a new battery and you are good to go!

One shortcoming of the VX is that the much-hyped Gear Shift wheel does not automatically switch from smooth scrolling to click-by-click -- you have to manually flip a small switch on the bottom. For me, this makes the feature useless. In the middle of a long web page, I'm not going to pick up my mouse, flip it over, slide a switch and set it down again. So if you want it to automatically switch between the two modes, get the bigger MX model.

There are some nice Mac specific things: The search button bring up your Spotlight search -- NICE! You can get the forward and back buttons work better if you change the default keyboard shortcut from left and right arrow to [ and ] brackets. That way you can use forward and back in Finder windows, as well as any web browser -- really handy!

In a nutshell...
PROS
Much improved Mac OS X drivers (per application settings)
Silky smooth gliding
Incredibly accurate laser tracking (works even on high-gloss desks!)
Easy battery swapping
Very tiny USB receiver turns off the mouse when hidden away inside it

CONS
Expensive
Microgear scroll wheel pretty useless
Somewhat tiny if you usually rest your entire hand on your mouse.
Side scrolling is very slow on Mac, even at maximum setting. (you are best off just turning it off with the driver.)

The distinguishing feature of this mouse is the heavy metallic flywheel for scrolling. You can set it to free rotation (without clicks) mode where it will scroll on like a gyroscope flywheel, or the old standard clicky mode. As for the rest, such as shape and materials, are not entirely new from Logitech. Let's try to break it down here:

Pros:
- The wheel is actually quite useful in free-wheeling mode once you get used to it. It sorta replaces the center-click browsing feature, and I just liked the feel of a freely rotating wheel as it is very satisfying. I adjusted the mouse setting to have one line per mouse scroll. It became more manageable.

- The laser tracking feature is a definite plus as it works on all surfaces and is far more reliable than the optical mouse it replaced. The radio signal is pretty reliable too at a fair distance compared to the other cordless mice I tried.

- It uses only 1 AA battery, which greatly reduces the weight of the mouse which can be a problem. I used to have a 2AA battery mouse where the balance was horrible and it affects precision and induces fatigue (little things matter over time). The battery also lasts for a long time (I haven't depleted the first one after a month), which is no small feat by Logitech (and that they are famous for).

- The size is really not small for a portable mouse, but you can stow the transmitter away and it is probably more comfortable than any other portable mouse I tried. It may just be worth toting around for comfort's sake.

- Buttons are nice to the touch and are responsive with minimum effort. (not all mouse are like this, and it's important as it gets to you over prolonged use). However the center click and the zoom slider are not as well implemented.

Cons:
- The software. It crashed within my first restart after installation, and it was the nastiest crash I had in a while. The system totally froze where I couldn't even shut it down, CPU was running some loop task and fully loaded, and I had to use the hardware button to shut-off the machine. The software adds configurable features to the side buttons, sroolling click, scroll tilt, search button, and the zoom switch. Without it, the scrolling click is just the regular center click, tilting doesn't work, and zoom slider doesn't work. The side buttons becomes forward and back buttons, and the search button actuates a standard windows search (as opposed to possibly a page like google). I left it this way, and I think these remnant features works better than Logi software's parallels (e.g., the center click-scoll is different when you run logitech's software, and it's somehow awkward and not as responsive).

- The flywheel is a metallic wheel with rubber surrounds wrapped on it. The rubber actually became loose after a few weeks, and start showing a bit of "lumps". It's not a big deal, except it may have contributed to the stickiness of the wheel since the wheel bay is very tight.

- The wheel became sticky after just three weeks. It doesn't scroll very smoothly and will get stuck. You can also feel the bearing becoming rough instead of smooth. I am not sure if it's due to dust or the rubber surrounds getting stuck on the wheel bay, which has a VERY tight space tolerance(I opened it up to clean it, to only minor improvement). I can remove the rubber surrounds, but then the wheel will just look terrible with a deep center groove.

- The wheel in its free-mode can be hard to press as a center button. For example, if you want to center click on a link in firefox, sometimes you will end up scrolling first, because the finger would have actuated the wheel rotation much more easily. The center click really isn't as effortless as a regular mouse, even with the standard clicky-scroll turned on. (I wonder if it has anything to do with the tilt feature, in that design sacrifices must be made to accommodate two more side switches). You really have to curl your fingers and work a method where you keep the wheel stable and press it down at a certain angle. Center-clicks have become a mental and physical exercise of sorts.

- The zoom sliders really don't slide very easily. There's no feedback and requires much effort. For me, the software supplied text zooming feature really isn't that useful, and I ended up messing up the text size in my system for some reason (now many dialog windows/fields display text that's either too big or too small), even after I uninstalled the software.

- While this may not be a problem for most, but this mouse is designed so the user cannot disassemble/open the mouse easily. I attempted to clean the scroll wheel as I imagined there must have been dust trappings, which then resulted in the sticky wheel. There are 5 screws, but they all hide under the pads/feet at the bottom of the mouse. Those feet are not really removable, as they have rubberized layers that separates the adhesives from the sliding surface when you try to peel them off. So once you remove them, you either need to get new ones, or you have to stick it back on with glue, and the feet/pads would have become thinner. Not very user serviceable at all, and it was probably intentional. Yet given the fact that the wheel became sticky after just 3 weeks, and how I did find some dust trapped in the bearing and the VERY TIGHT wheel bay, AND how it actually alleviated the problem, I think it really would help if the mouse had a more user-serviceable design. Now I am stuck with mouse feet that look horrible with crease lines and have been glued back on. I imagine I will probably have to open it up again pretty soon, as the stickiness problem is developing.

- The shape: now depending on who you talk to, this can be a plus or minus. I had a biomorphically shaped mouse from logitech before (in fact it looked very much like this one). This is really not that much improved from the previous designs. You can't help feel that logitech wants you to hold the mouse a certain way, and that would be the only way that can be called "comfortable". However, putting your hand on the mouse comfortably doesn't mean you can use it comfortably. I usually ended up holding the mouse differently than the design intended after using it for a while, then I kinda wished it's more flexible as the shape gets in the way if you hold it in any way other than "intended". I actually found the classic logitech teardrop shape to be more pleasant to use.

- build quality: It's probably an [...] retentive gripe, but my mouse came a bit scratched up at the shiny bottom and the rubberized sides, and some are pretty deep. You can tell the mouse has been tossed around a little bit. With the kind of money Logitech is asking for, I think they can use better quality control. Mine may have been a singular case, but it can happen to anybody.

Overall, this mouse has great features, but some of the buttons are rendered useless if you remove the software, which really shouldn't be running at all if you value your work and want to avoid crashes. The hardware has a few gripes, and the most prominent feature--the flywheel--may become disabled/handicapped with use. It is not very user-serviceable so you can't really clean it up easily either. However, the mouse still works very well otherwise, and redeems itself with pluses such as great button clicks, long battery life, laser tracking, relatively light weight and reliable wireless transmission. [...]

This is the very best mouse I have ever owned. I love everything about it, except one thing - it doesn't work.

As for the features, this mouse rocks! I gotta hand it to Logitech, they make beeeauuutiful products. They really think them through, and each feature is carefully crafted. I consider them unmatched in the creative design department.

The problem is, their build quality just sucks. It seems that every logitech item I buy is a wonderful, passionate affair - that ends very quickly. I love it, use it, and then a few weeks later, it breaks.

As for what I like about this Logitech model - oh, where to start!?

- on/off switch (you laugh, but a lot of mice don't have this, and the batteries run down faster)
- battery indicator; you can tell when the battery is getting low
- infra-red eye; better than the laser eye, uses less battery too
- very resposive; it got 'twitchy' at one point, but then I just cleaned the eye (got a bit dusty), and it went right back to normal
- great comfy shape; some say it's small, but I think it's the perfect size and feel
- slick, classy look
- small, thin USB antenna; does not get in the way of other USB devices
- USB antenna stores neatly inside the mouse
- one-click search button; calibrate to your fav search engine, highlight any text, click button, it takes you to search results instantly; sweet!

In short, I thought this was going to be the perfect mouse for me. I was HAPPY to pay the inflated price for such a gem. I got it home, used it, loved it, and really thought we were going to live happily ever after...

Then, quite unexpectedly, it just stopped working. Just stopped.

Okay, I said, don't panic, I said. It's a super-duper mouse, and worth a little extra effort. Quick trip back to the store, and I had a replacement in hand; even trade. Welcome home.

And then about 3 weeks later, that one stopped working too.

AARRRGG! What is it with this Logitech stuff!? Someone is not doing their job! Their design department gets an A++ in my book, I really could not be happier. But their engineers/builders? They must be out to lunch! It passes all tests with perfect 10's, except for the most important. And sorry, but even a perfect 10 x 10 x 10 x zero is still ZERO.

I very much wanted to love this mouse and give it 5 stars, but alas, it is now just a fancy, little (not to mention, expensive) paperweight. Very, very sad.

It just works! It's a light, stylish, plug and play notebook mouse that I can take with me anywhere. The usb receiver is tiny and stows nicely inside the mouse for travel. I found the accuracy to be excellent. It should be more than adequate for most computer uses. I don't think you could call it a "gaming mouse" since the dpi is fixed and the response time is slower than a wired gaming mouse. However, I mostly play WOW. So, I don't need anything that indulgent anyway.

VX vs MX:
Battery -
Like the VX, the MX also has a nice, compact usb receiver. However, it uses a built in battery, which requires a set charging station. When the battery finally goes out, replacement may be an issue. Plus, that charging station is something else to carry around with you when you travel (ACK, wires!). Not a huge issue if you're not planning any LAN parties, or you just have a desktop that never leaves your room, but it's still lost deskspace. The tradeoff is that the MX has a MUCH longer battery life. Never tried it myself, but I've heard that the MX can literally go for months without a recharge depending on usage. The VX, by contrast, uses regular batteries that you can buy anywhere. I use rechargeable batteries in mine. Although, I honestly don't remember the last time I had to recharge them. I've heard people complain that they're worried it will go out while gaming, but honestly, there's a bright battery indicator light that comes on WELL before that. So, I don't care if you're too "hardcore" to look down while gaming, it's a non issue. In any case, the battery life on the VX is amazing. It really doesn't use very much power. A nice little bonus is an on/off switch built into the mouse. I've noticed other mouses (Microsoft) require you to pull the receiver out of the usb slot and stick it in the mouse to turn the unit off. I've always had problems with this as it will eventually wear out the usb connection. With the VX, I can leave the receiver plugged in and turn it off with the power button on the mouse. If I forget, the mouse will go into sleep mode anyway when it doesn't sense any motion. This isn't exactly a new feature. However, with the VX, you don't have that infuriating delay between shaking the mouse and the cursor responding when it's coming out of sleep mode. It's instant on, no lag. (Note: This can be deceptive, as I've had friends tell me their el cheapo mouse has the same feature for a lot less money. However, in many cases, it turns out there's no delay because their mouse never turns off in the first place. It's just always on, which saves no power whatsoever.)

Size -
The MX is much bigger. If deskspace is an issue for you, don't get the MX. The mouse itself is quite a bit larger than the VX, and you still have to put that charging station somewhere. The tradeoff is that the MX (to me) is much more impressive and stylish than the VX. It just has that WOW factor that screams expensive and completely unnecessary. Plus, those of you with larger hands will appreciate a larger mouse. For me, however, the added size, weight, and charging station makes it far too bulky for everyday use.

Hope that helps!

Length:: 0:37 Mins

I've been using both the VX Nano and Revolution for several months now. In the end, I prefer the feel/design of the Revolution.

Here's why I prefer the Revolution:
- The size is just perfect and easier to get a grip.
- The scroll wheel is also larger/durable - hyperscroll works better.
- Two more extra buttons (zoom in/out)
- Back/forward button is located near the thumb (whereas you have to use your index finger for the Nano)
- Uses just one AA battery (The Nano requires two AAA batteries)
- VX Revolution can be suitable for desktop use also.
- USB receiver can be easily stored and removed (for the Nano, you have to open the battery cover to store the receiver [but then again, one really doesn't need to store it for the Nano, since it's already convenient to keep it attached on the laptop forever]

Pros about the Nano:
- Obviously the receiver is the biggest selling point. It's nice to keep it on the laptop and really just forget about it.
- You can alternate between hyperscroll/regular scroll just by pushing down on the scroll wheel. (For the Revolution, you have to move a switch on the back of the mouse)
- It comes with a case and USB extender (for desktop use [although the design/size of the Nano is really more for laptops)
- Suitable for both left/right hands. (Left handers were left out [no pun intended] on the Revolution.)

I'm sure most people will find the Hyperscroll really awkward at first; I certainly did. However, once you get used to it, there's no going back. It 's just so much better with less effort to scroll than the "old generation" scrolling techniques. It almost makes it feel like your computer becomes faster, since you can navigate long folders, websites (especially forums), and email effortlessly.

I've yet to have the hyperscroll stop working for the VX Revolution (seems to be more durable than the Nano so far); the hyperscroll stopped being "hyper" on my VX Nano twice already (even after I got a new replacement). However, I have read stories about the hyperscroll dying on the MX, VX Revolution/Nano, so the hyperscroll mechanism must have a major design flaw. Many who have opened up their broken hyperscroll mouse state it has something to do with the rubber rings; Logitech should really look into this and use a tougher rubber material.

Both has it's pros and cons, but in the end, I really prefer the Revolution. If you plan on using the mouse for laptop and desktop, definitely go for the Revolution (assuming you're right handed) - no question. Ultimately, it would be great to have a VX Revolution mouse with the nano receiver.

The new Logitech mouse, VX Revolution, is by far the best I have owned. What's the big deal? How special can a mouse get? For one thing, this one has so much functionality and refines key features for the modern mouse. First of all, the scroll wheel on this mouse rocks. Rather than operating in staggered scrolling, this scroll wheel allows for more sensitive control - it isn't very resistant to momentum so with a little bit of force, you can scroll through a lot of screen space with one good motion. I think the scroll wheel is the best recent feature of new mice, and this scroll-wheel dominates all others. It somehow "senses" whether you need line-by-line scrolling or fast-scrolling, don't ask me how, and for the most part it works wonderfully. Also, the usual function of pressing the scroll wheel down (where you would get those up and down arrows on the screen, and then moving the mouse up or down scrolls up or down on the document) is rendered redundant by the dynamic nature of this mouse's scroll wheel. So replacing it is a really handy feature where pressing the scroll wheel effectively duplicates the effect of pressing Alt+tab (allowing you to switch through different windows very efficiently). In my work I often need to quickly cut-and-paste between different documents and this makes it very smooth and easy. Also useful are the zoom-in and zoom-out buttons on the mouse, for use with basically any software with zooming features - Adobe Acrobat for example, and IE - which is good because my eyes are horrible and a lot of newer webpages use quite small fonts. You can actually change the buttons features also, so you can make the zoom buttons do cut-and-paste (very handy) or other functions. There are also the Back and Forward buttons on the side of the mouse, which is handy as well. Perhaps best of all, there is an integrated search button on the mouse - if you highlight a word or a phrase, you can hit the search button and perform an immediate search through the search engine to which you've linked this feature. Very handy! Naturally I chose Google, and combined with the IE Google toolbar, you become a deadly searching MONSTROSITY! The mouse is super-comfortable in its ergonomics, and despite all its features, it feels _really_ small and loosely snug in your hand and all the buttons are located intuitively. Its contours are so nice you don't really even _hold_ the mouse - you just kind of rest your hand on it and when you move your hand, the mouse smoothly follows beneath. As to the connection, it's awesome. I previously had an infrared mouse that was vastly inferior to the laser-based interface with this device (it too was Logitech, actually). With a small USB connection, the signal transmits without a hitch. And it's almost stupid how far away from your computer you can sit and still move your cursor with the mouse! This actually comes in handy if you have your computer hooked up to your TV in any manner. You can sit on the couch, away from your desk, and control, fr'instance, your media center with the mouse on the side table or on a surface on your lap. Additionally, the unit only requires one AA battery rather than two, which is a big plus. Pretty crazy! I give the VX Revolution the highest recommendation possible for a mouse.

I really like this mouse, it's an excellent device on so many levels, but it is NOT DURABLE as a portable device ought to be.

On separate occasions, I have had two of these mice experience a SINGLE, minor drop (3') onto carpet, and they each no longer work.

So, if you're a professional who has to carry your mouse around meeting to meeting on campus and you have any potential of dropping it, be prepared for it to be a resident of the gadget graveyard.

11.Jul.2007 Update: THREE IS A CHARM. I've now had three of these mice crap out due to very minor drops. I give up and will be moving on to another product.

It is true, as other reviews point out, that the scroll wheel doesn't automatically switch on this model from free spin to ratchet.
I found that a disappointment when I first got it.
However, I left it in free spin mode and you quickly get used to it. It isn't very hard to control to go slow and it does work well to cover lots of ground fast.
It does take a deft hand to use the center click wheel button in free spin mode... but hey... humans adapt.
I like that it has thumb buttons. Hard to find a notebook mouse with that feature so far, and a center button on the wheel for easy use with tabbed browsing.
A little large for a notebook mouse... but what do do, ey?
I don't really like the slide "zoom" switch. Too hard to use and I usually don't. Doesn't provide enough feedback and feels like it will break.
Also.. it is overpriced.
I got it on sale though when it first came out and so far I am pleased with it in use.
Even with its flaws, and it being on the expensive side, it is the best notebook mouse I have come across so far.
Wait for sale maybe... and then jump on it.

- Mike