Cons: NO MIDDLE CLICK. Buggy and/or weird software. Expensive. No fun at all for lefties!
The Bottom Line: Very cool new features; I now hate using other mice. But erosion of core functionality makes this an iffy buy. Hopefully the next version irons out the kinks.
rasi2290's Full Review: Mouse,LASER,CRDLS,BKSR (LOG9316900403)
You know, I was going to give this mouse two stars, and suggest avoiding it. But the more I used it, the more I liked it. It's actually pretty great - it just has a learning curve and takes a little getting used to. Now I love it.
Here's the skinny: the MX Revolution has a free-spinning scrollwheel. With a flick, you send it merrily spinning at various speeds, to smoothly scroll through pages of any length. And I do mean ANY length. It's fantastic. But at first, I dismissed this feature as a novelty. And there are quirks, including the removal of the oft-used middle-click function. That, combined with the icky software and a useless "search" button that just got in the way, is why I planned to recommend NOT buying this mouse. Logitech makes great stuff, but this time they went a little overboard and began messing with core functionality.
But then I tried switching back to my old mouse, and instantly missed the smooth free-spinning action of the MX Revolution. Compared to that, my old mouse felt like riding a bike with square wheels, made of brick, on a cobble road.
That's how awesome the Revolution's scrollwheel is. I dislike using other mice now. For that reason, in addition to the other cool features, I'm going to recommend this product. But the quirks cost it a star. I'd give it 3.5 if I could, but instead I'll round up. Go ahead and try it, you'll probably like it...but keep the receipt.
In The Box
You'll find the mouse, a sweet-looking recharger stand, AC cable, USB receiver(no wires, like a jump drive), instructions, 3-year warranty, and installation disc.
Installation And Setup
Installation was a breeze. The mouse works without the Logitech software, you can just charge it and go. But you'll have no sideways scrolling, limited free-spinning options, and no use of the extra mouse buttons until you install the software.
Once that's done, you can remap most of the buttons to a variety of other functions. Unfortunately the software, Logitech SetPoint, is rather clunky. You'll probably end up setting the same options over and over again, because the software seems designed to make this process difficult.
Ergonomics, Aesthetics & Build Quality
This mouse is perfectly shaped to fit a typical right hand - that is, one slightly larger than my own. The entire left side is curved inward for the thumb, which rests on a neat little thumbrest. I can reach all buttons easily, except the Document Flip wheel which rests a tad beyond my thumb's normal reach. But like I said, I have small hands.
The mouse is on the heavy side, but sits on very slippery teflon-coated pads, so it moves easily and smoothly. This is a laser mouse, which means it is more accurate than a standard optical mouse, and I do indeed feel the difference. I use graphics programs like Photoshop, where a comfortable and accurate mouse is crucial, and this one definitely passes muster.
Logitech does make a notebook version of this mouse, the VX Revolution, which I think is a little small for everyday desktop use. But left-handers may prefer that one, because it lacks a button that they can't reach anyway. And it's $20 cheaper, so hey. Frankly, if I were left-handed, I would skip Logitech altogether. But that's just me.
The build quality is excellent, better than any mouse I've ever used.
The finish is a nice combination of piano black, matte grey, metal trim, and rubberized texture grippy stuff, all fitting together for a sleek and elegant look.
The Buttons
Left and right click are self explanatory. Between them rests the free-spinning scroll wheel.
Now, this free-spinning is pretty slick. It's a hefty scrollwheel, 14 grams of metal clad in rubber, as opposed to the 2-3 grams in a normal scrollwheel. This extra weight is needed so a good flick can send it spinning for 7-10 seconds. You can also flick more gently to send the page scrolling along at a slower pace. It's a nice tactile sensation and it definitely aids browsing. You also have a variety of options on how to use it - you can leave it permanently on or off, or switch between free-spin and ratcheting manually by pressing down on the wheel, or have the software shift between the modes automatically depending on how fast you spin the wheel and what program you're in. It's a little confusing at first, but once you get the hang of it, you won't want to use other mice.
Notice I said that pressing down on the scrollwheel performs a new function: manually shifting between scroll modes. Great. But that means there's no middle click! I use middle-click constantly in Firefox, for scrolling and to open new tabs, and I'm completely flabbergasted that they removed this function.
Now, I need to explain that technically, the middle-click is still an option. But it's been severely hobbled to the point of uselessness. You need to disable the manual-shift option, which then frees the scrollwheel click to be remapped to it's One True Function: middle clicking. You can still access free-spinning mode by giving the wheel a good flick in ratchet mode. You can even adjust how fast it needs to spin before it automatically makes that transition. Sounds good in theory. But there are a few problems with that: First, it's a nasty middle click. The wheel is designed to be heavy and slippery, and it's part of a very complex mechanism. So you have to press extremely hard and you can feel all kinds of wiggling and clunking beneath your finger. Second, you remap the button in the Logitech software, and that software is a pain to use. You have to define these options for each program individually, even though you're given an apparently useless "all programs" option. If you don't have it working the same in every program, you get a very disconcerting effect when you switch to a new program and your scrollwheel suddenly free-spins when it wasn't a moment ago. This is on purpose, and it's yet another "cool in theory" idea, that just doesn't work so great in practice.
But it gets worse. Below the scrollwheel is a "search" button, almost as easily reached as the scrollwheel itself. The actual search function it performs is buggy (limited search choices, creates duplicate search pages) and useless - Firefox already has a much better version of this concept in the right-click menu. This button would have been PERFECT to replace the middle-click, and instead they gave it a useless search function? Bewildering! So of course, I tried mapping that button to the middle-click...and I couldn't. The software simply did not give me that option, period. It let me map the button to something called "autoscroll" that almost worked for this purpose, but then I had to double-middle-click everything. Bleh. I was able to map this button as a CTRL keypress, which in conjunction with a left-click, works as a substitute for middle-clicking firefox. In other words, after trying four different ways, I found a half-decent workaround.
What a mess. These are the quirks I was talking about in the intro. I adjusted and now enjoy the mouse, but that doesn't make it right. The free-spinning scrollwheel is great, I love it, but some aspects of it have been poorly implemented. The next version needs a lighter middle-click and better software, including more remapping options for all the buttons.
On to the remaining buttons. Your thumb sits near Forward and Back buttons, both placed nicely on the left rim of the mouse. I liked using these buttons, and they're a legit alternative to alt-arrow and mouse gesturing, my two usual browser navigation methods.
Below that is the "Document Flip" wheel, a new feature. This looks like another scrollwheel, but it's on a spring so it bounces back to neutral when you flick it. It serves the same purpose as Alt-Tabbing, letting you switch through your progams. But it improves on the normal Alt-Tab by letting you click on the icons instead of just tabbing through them. Also, it brings up the switching window directly under your mouse pointer, wherever it is on the screeen. These two details make it much quickier and easier to switch programs, so thumbs up for this feature. I love it.
Charging & Battery Life
The battery is a lithium-ion charged by placing in an upright charger than plugs into a wall. Logitech claims 14 days between charges, which is hogwash. I've used the mouse for 3.5 days, and it's 50% drained. I think that's still acceptable, but I've heard even lower numbers elsewhere. Honestly, as long as it gets through one day - which doesn't seem to be a problem - I don't really care; I'll just leave it on the charger when I'm done for the day.
There is an on/off switch on the back, but for a mouse costing this much, I would expect an auto-standby feature.
Conclusion
That's about it for the Logitech MX Revolution. It most certainly is a revolution in ease of scrolling, and it represents new level of development for the humble old mouse. If you don't mind adjusting to a few quirks, you'll have a jolly good time with this one.
Logitech’s right-handed wireless VX Revolution mouse gives you the comfort of a contoured rubber grip body and fast precise tracking. Just pl...More at Newegg.com
Get a mouse engineered to rev up your notebook with superior performance. Features advanced laser tracking for extreme precision and smooth movement. ...More at Business-Supply
Advanced laser engine provides extreme accuracy and flawless tracking on nearly any surface. Digital cordless technology delivers reliable operation i...More at ErgoInDemand.com
Rev up your notebook. Powerful controls let you fly through large documents at hyper-speed, or navigate lists, slides, and image collections with clic...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.