Customer Reviews

Targus PAWM20U Wireless Optical Notebook Mouse

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

THIS UNIT WORKS BEST WITH THE MATCHING DOCKING & CHARGING CRADLE, WHICH WAS SOLD IN A SET WITH THE UNIT I BOUGHT AS A REPLACEMENT FOR THE ORIGINAL DAMAGED ONE. The dock acts as a booster antenna, far extending the unit's range. I bought one of these to use with my two Compaq notebooks, both at work and at home, where it shows one of it's major drawbacks, (if one is as consevative as I, in wanting to conserve batteries when not in use) the mouse, powered by two AA batteries, has NO ON/OFF SWITCH, so, when transporting between work stations, one must remove one or both batteries to shut down the unit, which otherwise remains on when not connected to the computer. This may be different when used in conjunction with the charging station (sold seperately) which I have not purchased yet. Disconnecting the receiver and/or removal & replacement of batteries in lieu of a power switch requires resetting the frequency each time the mouse is moved.
Another drawback is that the transmitter will not work through the chassis of a metal framed laptop, where the USB ports are either in the rear or on the left side, a problem Targus attempts to solve by including an extention cord (about 6" long, half the lenght really needed).
If the transmitter and receiver are not in direct line-of-sight, the advertised three foot range falls off dramatically, causing hesitations and missed or partial click actions. Also, the receiver contains a BRIGHT blue light that FLASHES CONTINUOUSLY with movement of the mouse AND clicking any of the controls, which is HIGHLY distracting when one is trying to concentrate on one's work.
Some may complain that the control switches are somewhat stiff, but I prefer a more crisp click action on my controls, which this unit provides. With internal power provided by the two AA batteries, the mouse does suffer somewhat from overweight (a 3V camera battery may have been a better choice), but the loss of that annoying cable drag more than makes up for this.
For a fixed station home or office PC, this medium priced optical wireless could be a welcome addition, but it's not the best choice for use with a notebook, especially in portable mode.
NOTE:

Either Targus has come out with an advanced model(I recently purchased a replacement for the original damaged unit), or I failed to read the fine print in the owner's brochure. The unit DOES have an ON/OFF switch, operated by pressing the "Sync-Up" button on the bottom of the unit for three seconds, which will put the unit in "sleep" mode until the button is pressed again to re-activate it.

I agree with the other reviews. This mouse is just the right size. Larger than a traditional travel mouse and smaller than a full-size. Easy to set-up if you follow the directions (however, the instructions are limited and could be better).

Included are the mouse, charging base, charging base AC-adapter, radio-signal USB receiver, USB extender cable (pig-tail), two NIMh AA-size batteries, and instruction booklet.

You MUST use only NIMh rechargable batteries if you plan to use the charging base. Otherwise, regular batteries can be used in the mouse when traveling, but you cannot recharge regular batteries in the charging base (they'll leak or explode).

The charging base has a USB connector cable also, so you can plug the charging base directly into the computer and plug the radio receiver into the charging base OR, just plug the receiver into the computer directly and use the charging base as just that, a stand-alone charging base.

The pig-tail extender cable comes in handy when you don't have the base and need to keep the receiver away from other receivers and/or electrial units (the cable is a bit short though).

The mouse does not need to be in the base charging while you're using it, but if the mouse is not in the base and not used for about 3 minutes, it goes into sleep mode automatically--a nice feature. However, to save battery life, you must turn the mouse off if not used.

If you press the scroll wheel on the mouse it will smooth scroll up or down a page without you having to rotate the wheel. It also has an on/off/reset button on the bottom. Overall, an excellent value.

P.s.--If you buy a used mouse, be sure to purchase new NIMh batteries and charge them for at least 4 hours before using the mouse.

i tried microsoft, logitech and some no name brand wireless mouse and the conclusion: this mouse is awesome! the range is great (despite what ONE person said), battery life is great due to energy saving auto power off mode, RECHARGABLE, slightly small for comfort, did i mention RECHARGABLE? anyway, this mouse sells for almost $50 but i bought it for way less on e-bay without any problems. give this mouse a try and you'll know what we're talking about

I've been shopping around for a mouse for weeks and finally settled for this product. This has everything I wanted in a notebook mouse. It's not too tiny and yet not too large. I was considering getting a pocket mouse until I actually tried it. Using those things just hurt mywrist! This mouse is the perfect fit for my palm and yet small enough for travel. It also comes with a charging cradle so you dont have to worry about rushing to the store in the middle of the night just to get batteries for your mouse. I use this mouse with a notebook so I never had any problems with the range because the mouse is really close to the receiver. This is the first time I used an optical mouse so I am not sure if it's really this way or what but sometimes I think the mouse pointer just moves a bit faster than what I am used to. Although like what I said, it just might be that I am still in the process of getting used to using an optical mouse. All in all I would still really recommend this mouse to anyone who is looking for a small and compact wireless mouse.

I own the discontinued model of this mouse (which I received as part of a rebate offer when I purchased my laptop), but am also ordering this one for my wife to use on her laptop. It looks as if the difference is that the dark color and silver color are reversed. I will see if there are other differences when I get the new one.

My experience is that the reviews are correct which state that the instructions could have been better, much better. However, once I figured out how to use it (with no help from the instructions) it has worked flawlessly. Remember that the NiMH batteries need to be charged before use. I plugged the USB receiver into the back of my laptop and use the mouse alone, occasionally placing it in the charging cradle to recharge. You can also plug the USB cord from the charging cradle into the USB port on the computer and then plug the USB receiver into the provided port on the charging cradle. I believe this allows the mouse to be recharged through the USB connection if there is not a 110 volt plug available.

Either the USB receiver is to be plugged into the computer, or the USB receiver is to be plugged into the charging cradle and then the cradle plugged into the USB port on the computer.

Look at the pictures on the web site.

I don't have the instructions in front of me, but seem to remember needing to push the black button on the bottom of the mouse to allow it to set the channel it is using with the receiver, which also has a small black button on the end of it.

The mouse goes to sleep on its own and wakes up by pressing on the thumb wheel. No need to turn it on and off. The NiMH batteries were provided with the unit. I think the instructions said the mouse would work 1-3 months per full charge on these betteries.

Also, I kind of like the flashing blue light. Kind of hi-tech. I even forgot it did this as I have the USB receiver plugged into my laptop in a rear port. I never see it.

Good product. I am now going to order one for my wife.

love the mouse, easy charging and easy to work with. I'd recommend this mouse to everyone, try it you will like it. thank you amazon and the seller.

After receiving the first one that quit working within half an hour, Amazon replaced it. The replacement works great. It responds well, is palm sized, and no wires. Wonderful. Would recommend to others.

This unit just didnt communicate well. The USB port is on the back on my laptop, but the mouse would have to be within about 10-12 inches from the receiver to work.

The range on this mouse is horrible, not much further then a foot away until it becomes slightly unresponsive, 1.5 feet away and you get no signal. Forget around a corner, this mouse seems to need line of sight (why, if it is RF?) The USB port is in the back of my laptop and it doesnt work unlessi use the extension cable to put the reciever on the side of my laptop.

Horrible. Felt like going back to the guy who told me it was good to kick his b..t Anyhow, rarely seen such poor construction. As said some one else, good concept.....don't have to carry the base arround, can swap between rechargable and non-rechargable batteries...small mouse, small receiver...but hell, nothing works...NOTHING. A lot of reviews accuse the mouse of obviously OS-related problems...(typical USB stories), but no one seems to mention the most important of all: THIS MOUSE LIKES NO SURFACE AT ALL...NONE! Even an optical mouse pad....I can't beleive this. On top of all the rest of the crap, I had to fix the battery cover, it's really hard to sync up with its receiver, and the cursor is all over the place.....

Fortunatly, it is solid enough to withstand the many times I chucked it at the wall. I'm still waiting for a decent portable wireless mouse to apear on the market.....has not happened yet....the logitech model seem as crappy as this one....Good Luck.