Customer Reviews

Microsoft Wireless Rechargeable Laser Mouse 7000 Mac/Windows

5 star:		(46)
4 star:		(43)
3 star:		(37)
2 star:		(29)
1 star:		(54)

 

 

I'm mostly happy with this mouse.

In hand, the mouse is comfortable. I have small hands and was concerned with the size of the mouse and it's shape. But it fits better to hand than the standard mouse shape. Also my wrist rests more comfortably than with other mice. This was the prime criteria and was met.

As a laser mouse, it seems to be more precise than optical mice. At the same time it's not overly selective of the surface it's gliding over. I like this.

The USB transceiver does stick out from my laptop. But as I use this mouse as my desktop mouse (i.e. at home mouse) and my laptop is docked, this isn't an issue. The transceiver is in a side USB port next to the docking plug. The docking plug sticks out further than the transceiver and I think a monitor plug would be about the same. The transceiver is smaller in size than many flash drives.

I was a little worried that it is rechargable. But that's now one of my favorite features. It recharges quickly and easily. The recharging base sits out of the way on my desk. When the mouse needs recharging, I just set it upon the base. There aren't any cords or wires or anything to connect to the mouse in order to recharge it. Just position it on the base and it recharges. As for how it holds a charge, I fully charged it when I received it on March 27th. And I'm doing a full charge today, April 11th. I use my computer more than 8 hours a day. So I'm happy with this.

The magnifier is a nice feature. I use it more often than I would have expected. But I'm unhappy with the button's position on the mouse as it's awkward to click without moving the mouse...which affects the magnification. That feature needs improvement.

The wheel scrolls easily and smoothly. The default Instant Viewer setting for the wheel click is a unique feature. However using the wheel click to doubleclick is an impossibility for me. Clicking the wheel needs too much pressure to be comfortable. The Instant Viewer click is used far less frequently than doubleclick so a more solid push on the wheel makes no matter. This feature was a disappointment.

Recently the left button has begun "squeaking" (well, it's a mouse...what do you expect?). I've never had this happen with a mouse before. Other than being annoying, I don't know if it means anything. Or, for that matter, how to stop it.

There have been reports that the mouse settings revert to default when the computer is turned off. I've not had this problem but I believe a fix is available from Microsoft (see "MS Mouse Pointer Speed Control" among other posts at http://www.microsoft.com/communities/newsgroups/en-us/default.aspx).

So, in general, I like this mouse. The disagreements I have with it are outweighed by the features I like. BTW my OS is Windows.

UPDATE: April 19, 2008
I now realize how sensitive the pointer is and it's becoming an annoyance. I've tried different settings but haven't found one to my liking yet. There's too much play in the pointer. It needs to be EXACTLY where you want it or it just doesn't do what it's supposed to do. I feel like I'm having to slow down and set it just THERE before I can get going again at my regular pace. Hope you know what I mean.

UPDATE: August 29, 2008
I'm still happy with the feel of this mouse. In fact regular old mice feel strange and uncomfortable now. FYI I also use Microsoft's Natural Ergonomic Keyboard and find that very comfortable. As for the Mouse Pointer Sensitivity, for whatever reason, when I checkmark the Control Panel > Mouse Properties > Pointer Options > Enhance Pointer Precision, it doesn't keep my personalized setting after I turn off the computer or re-boot. I have to re-checkmark it when I boot back up. According to the Microsoft Community site, other people are also having the problem. But Enhance Pointer Precision helps with the Pointer Sensitivity problem.

I purchased this mouse after many years of using a Microsoft "Wireless IntelliMouse Explorer 2.0" (from here on out, I'll call it the "WIE" for brevity). I loved that mouse and believe it was nearly perfect. I believe the shape/ergonomics WAS perfect. It was starting to show its age however, and needed replacing. The "Wireless Laser Mouse 7000" looked like a great replacement. It's Microsoft (I've always loved Microsoft hardware), it's rechargeable (awesome!), and it looks like it has great ergonomics, perhaps even better than the "WIE".

In a few respects, it IS better than the "WIE". The mouse is incredibly responsive and accurate. The left and right mouse buttons have a nice, firm click, but are easy to press. The thumb buttons on the left (which I rarely use) are not in the way like they are with the "WIE", resulting in less accidental clicks. The recharging feature is very much appreciated (and I appreciate even more that the battery is replaceable). The scroll wheel feels very smooth and the left/right tilt functionality of the scroll wheel is far less stiff. The tilt feature however, is also something I rarely use, but maybe I'll start now that it's actually usable.

It's not all roses and strawberries though. There are plenty of reasons I still prefer the "WIE". I have a large hand and this mouse is too small. At least, it *feels* too small... It's ironic, but the footprint of this mouse is actually larger than my beloved "WIE" (which feels perfect in my hand). I think this might be related to the low profile, especially on the right side. On the right, there are contours which are obviously intended to cradle your ring finger and pinky. But, I find my ring finger crossing over into the pinky "slot" and my pinky rests on the table (in fact, the tip of my ring finger rests on the table too). Another problem with the low profile is that it makes it very difficult to pick up with one hand. I never noticed how often I pick up and reposition the mouse until I used this one. Now, I HAVE to notice it because it takes a bit of effort. There's simply no way to effectively grip it tight enough to pick it up without it "squirting" out of my hand. This is my #1 complaint and, prior to this mouse, I probably never would have thought of it at all. Less important, but worth mentioning is that the wheel, when used as a center button, is very stiff. It's much too hard to press IMO.

Despite having some great features, due to the problems I described above, I can't recommend this mouse.

There is a much easier fix that will only require you to open the battery compartment once and only once and not deal with rotating how its plugged into the wall outlet or any other hokey ideas of reversing polarity and spinning the battery Microsoft and whomever they have contracted to build the batteries had the same issue with the 7000 series as well and this is a fix Ive used on all the 7000 series Ive ran across.First take a piece of paper and cut a strip slightly under the length of the battery itselfThen wrap this strip around the battery 2 to 3 times and cut off the excess length and tape it into place to keep it from unrollingReplace battery into compartment and test - it now should be the appropriate thickness needed to depress the sensor switch within the compartment and verify to the mouse itself a battery is indeed installed, THAT is the reason for the flashing red light, Microsoft contracted with a company that built a series of batteries that are too thin and do not depress the switch and the wonderful QA department never caught it and obviously marketing figures it is more cost efficient to continue to sell these units with an improperly designed battery than re-build and replace all of them already shippedHope that helpsDoug

This is a good product but for one ridiculous MS oversight. The power charger MUST BE plugged into the wall socket in one particular orientation. If it is wrong the red light will flash and mouse will not charge.

Do not rotate the battery, ROTATE THE CHARGER IN YOUR WALL SOCKET.

This will guaranteed fix the blinking light propblem! The charger has no earth pin and hence does not force the correct +/- orientation in the power socket. Unplug the charger, rotate and plug back in.

The mouse fits my hand perfectly and I like that the wheel is smooth rather than the clicking. The buttons by the thumb are hard to reach, so I don't use them very often. The charger does not work. I put it on the dock and it goes green for the first few seconds and then starts blinking red. Which makes me mad because the reason I bought this mouse is so I wouldn't have to buy batteries. I tried rotating the charger on the wall and trying to make the dock as level as possible, but it still doesn't work. If you don't want to buy batteries for a wireless mouse, don't get this one.

FIXED BLINKING LIGHT PROBLEM: I tried the paper taped around the battery and it works! My mouse charges now, so no buying batteries and it lasts for a long time before a full charge is needed!

I have been using this wireless mouse for over a month now and I find it to be an excellent product. The design is excellent. I had been wearing a wrist brace every night but since using this mouse I do not have to wear the brace at all. The battery life is more than I expected. I'm on my computer most every day averaging 15 hours a day. The first battery recharge was after 18 days, now I just slide it onto the handy recharger at night and I'm good to go the next day. I would highly recommend this product to anyone.

This product worked fine until, on a trip, I plugged it backwards into the charger. This is easier to do than one might think. Why is it even possible? Apparently it ruined the battery.
After that, even in correct orientation, the "charging" light never stopped blinking and the mouse would not function. I did not find this topic discussed in Microsoft's online troubleshooting section on this device perhaps because, once it has happened, it is "too late."
Better instructions might have helped. But better design for this human factors issue is clearly needed.

I gave this mouse the acid test: image editing in Adobe Photoshop. It succeeded admirably at all the basic mouse tasks, and gave me great precision. The software is very configurable, but the documentation is oddly lacking in basic information.

This is a very high resolution mouse, which is a step up from the standard LED mouse I've been using. You will want to play with the settings, because this mouse gives you many more configuration options than any other mouse I've used. For example, in additional to vertical scrolling with the mouse wheel, it includes horizontal scrolling when you press the wheel sideways. This is very convenient in Photoshop, when you are zoomed in and want to navigate around the image. You can also set up a magnifier window, macro editor, application switcher, and a whole host of other functions on the available buttons. I've currently set one thumb button to Undo (control-z), which seems like it could be productive.

When the mouse needs recharging, just drop it into the included cradle for a few hours. This is quite convenient. Battery life is quite long-I've gone a week without needing a recharge yet.

There is one operational down side: The scroll wheel has no "clicks" or stops. It just scrolls smoothly to any position. This is fine when used for scrolling or editing in Photoshop, but gets very annoying when using software that expects there to be stops. I have gotten very attached to scroll wheel functionality in many of my applications, so this annoyance can be significant.

Now for the documentation. The quick start pamphlet will get you started, and successfully walk you through the installation. It tells you to insert the battery and to turn the mouse on using the switch on the bottom of the mouse. Oddly, the help file makes no mention of either the mouse power button or the "three arcs" buttons on the mouse and USB transceiver. So I do not know whether I should turn the mouse off when not in use to save power, which is an obvious question. Regarding the other button, I'm guessing from the three semi-circular arcs that it has something to do with the radio signal being sent, but whether it turns that signal on or off, or resets it, or synchronizes something, there's no mention anywhere.

This lack of documentation is particularly annoying because in searching for the answer about the power button, I had to sort through these topics that describe features my device does not have:

* Maintaining Battery Life in a Presenter Mouse
* Using Flash Memory on a Wireless Mouse
* Connecting a Bluetooth Mouse
* Mouse LCD Display

You get the idea. I am annoyed because it is clear that a lot of good design effort went into this device, but I cannot find out the answer to my first, and so far only, questions. When should I turn the power switch on and off?

Summary: Works well, with the exception of the non-clicking scroll wheel. Documentation lacking. If these don't bother you, this may be a five star mouse for you. I would give it three and a half, but amazon doesn't allow half stars, and three stars seems too harsh for a wireless mouse that works well and has many useful features.


[Jan 2010] Update after daily use for a year:

The battery lasts a long time-about two months. I've only recharged it about 5 or 6 times.

The lack of clicks on the scroll wheel still annoys me, and pisses off others who try to use my computer.

I initially bought this after trying out the 6000 (Silver instead of black, not rechargeable, moreso for notebooks). I definitely love the feel and look of it, as well as the fact tha tit is rechargeable with user-replaceable batteries that i dont have to worry about having to send out to get replaced. My only 2 problems with this mouse is, of course, the wheel. I prefer the tactile "click" response of other mice and do not particularly like the notchless design. Secondly, while the base is great for recharging, it is not exactly easy to get the mouse onto the base. You have to put it on top and kind of move it around a little to get it to snap in. Maybe I'm just doing something wrong though.

There are aspects of this mouse i liked very much...however, the random skipping, pausing and freezing were not.

When it works, it's fine, but on two different computers, virtually anytime I'd get mouse pointer freezes, skipping, pausing etc. I assume the problem is some kind of wireless communication problem, but I was never able to determine what it was.

The mouse was only a few feet from it's USB transmitter.

So even with this mouse being fine in many respects, it failed miserably in the most important use. That is simply being able to reliably move a mouse pointer.