By James Booth
Optical is obsolete. At least according to Logitech it is. That's the tagline for their new MX 1000 Laser cordless mouse.
Laser? That's right boys and girls. The Logitech MX 1000 is the first laser-powered mouse. Rather than the traditional red glow of the typical optical mouse, the MX 1000's optical tracker emits no visible light.
"Optical is obsolete. I'll say it again. Optical is obsolete."
Not only is the red glow gone, so is the creeping-mouse syndrome and erratic behavior from using a mousing surface that's too reflective. The Logitech MX 1000 Laser mouse, displayed prominently in Figure A, is 20 times more accurate than a standard LED optical mouse. At least that's what Logitech tells us.
FIGURE A
The Logitech MX 1000 Laser cordless mouse. (click for larger image)
One more thing that's missing is the cord. The MX 1000, as stated above, is a cordless mouse. It's not IR (infrared), which this author has shied away from; instead it's RF (radio frequency). What this means is, if you really wanted to, you could mouse your computer from across the room without having to make sure you're lined up with the base station. 'Course, if you've got a really big room, your mileage may vary.
Overview
So what is the Logitech MX 1000 Laser cordless mouse? Well, it's a cordless mouse, with a laser. In essence, it's the next generation in mice.
Logitech says it has a Class 1 laser for optical tracking, which really doesn't mean squat to me. The laser is in the infrared spectrum, so it's not visible to the naked eye, and there's no little telltale red dot, like with laser pointers and the SWAT team's laser gun sights.
It also means that you won't be able to perform laser eye surgery on yourself, or your significant other. But that doesn't mean you should try staring into the emitter either. You would, in all likelihood, damage your eye.
It has an extremely ergonomic architecture. In addition to the normal two buttons and scroll wheel, which is pretty much standard on all mice nowadays, there is a thumb button and thumb rocker switch, as well as a rocker switch wrapped around the scroll wheel.
As Monty Python said, "Now for something completely different." In addition to the wheel scrolling up and down, and acting as a middle button, it also rocks from side to side.
So what's with all these buttons? Well, the rocker button on the thumb is designed as a Forward and Back button for Internet navigation. The other thumb button, is for application switching. Figure B shows the thumb buttons on the MX 1000.
FIGURE B
The MX 1000 Laser from Logitech has both a rocker switch and button that's thumb accessible. (click for larger image)
The rocker around the scroll wheel is for rapid scrolling in settings where you would normally use the scroll wheel. The rapid scrolling rocker allows you to set the scroll wheel for a lower line advance, but still rapidly navigate through a document.
Here's the big one though. The side to side motion of the scroll wheel is for side to side scrolling in documents or Web pages that are too large for the width of your display. In Figure C, you can see all of the buttons located around the scroll wheel.
FIGURE C
The MX 1000 features a rapid scrolling rocker, and a scroll wheel that also rocks side to side. (click for larger image)
Regarding the base station, that's your RF receiver for the wireless function of the mouse. The base station is what plugs into the electrical socket and your computer, creating the link between the mouse and your system.
Powering all of this is an internal Lithium ion rechargeable battery. A four-stage LED on the mouse keeps you informed of the charge level, and to recharge, you just place the mouse in the base station, like in Figure D.
FIGURE D
The base station for the MX 1000 recharges the unit and acts the RF receiver for cordless operation. (click for larger image)
Impressions
Optical is obsolete. I'll say it again. Optical is obsolete.
When I got my first optical mouse, a Logitech MouseMan Dual Optical (which is no longer available), I thought it was the ultimate in mousing technology. Gone was that stupid, temperamental, sticky, rubber, tracking ball. I thought nothing could top the Dual Optical. I was wrong.
The problem with LED optical mice is that the surface you mouse on can't be too reflective; otherwise the LED can't detect enough irregularities to register movement. The laser doesn't have that problem because it's twenty times more accurate than an LED.
This has actually been a problem lately with my MouseMan Dual Optical. I use a white Formica mousing surface and the Dual Optical has been creeping of late. The Laser solved that problem.
"The rapid-scroll rocker is the bee's knees."
I've tried using the MX 1000 on smooth Formica, the glass in a framed picture, granite patterned contact paper, lacquered wood, a mirror, a CD, and the monitor itself. Of all these surfaces, the mirror and the CD were the only two that were too reflective for the laser to track. And who mouses on a mirror or a CD anyway?
Now, on to those buttons.
Like all Logitech mice, all of the buttons on the MX 1000 Laser are user programmable. For example, rather than use the thumb button for application switching, I have it programmed to activate the CTRL key. And I have the wheel button programmed as a double-click.
The rapid-scroll rocker is the bee's knees. Along with the side scrolling of the wheel, and the Forward and Back rocker on the thumb, navigation of your computer has reached levels of ease that only complete voice control could top. The scrolling speed on both the rapid scrolling and side scrolling is programmable too.
Why do we need a rapid-scroll rocker? Well, I like to have my scroll wheel set to a one-line advance, which makes scrolling quickly through a long document tiresome, and who wants to have to work the slider or click those little arrows to scroll up and down. The rapid-scroll rocker makes life so much easier.
The side-scroll rocker on the wheel is so convenient. This is something that's been needed for a long time. And I've never been much of one for the old Forward and Back buttons on a mouse, but it's nice to have it available.
So what does all this mean? In a word, convenience. Logitech has put all of the most frequently used navigation features right on the mouse itself, making life easier for you, the user.
How does the RF work? It works pretty well. You literally can mouse from across the room. Why would you want to? I don't know, but you can. [Well, here's an example: if you have one of those Media Center PCs and your PC is plugged into your TV and you want to mouse from the couch, assuming the signal would reach, you could. -- Ed.]
I did encounter a problem with mousing from around a corner, but who'd be doing that anyway? The point is, there's no need to make sure you're lined up with the base station like with IR.
How does the charge hold up? Darn well. I've been using it on the first charge for a week now and the four-stage power bar has only dropped by two. And with the rapid charger, there's not much chance of it actually running out, unless you intentionally let it.
To save power, the mouse goes into Standby mode within seconds of losing input. In addition, there's a power button on the bottom to completely turn it off. My initial thoughts were that I would keep it turned off and in the base station when I wasn't using it, but there's just no need to be that miserly with the power.
Conclusion
What do I think of the Logitech MX 1000 Laser cordless mouse? I think it's about the best mouse to come down the pike in a long time. Not only could I not find anything wrong with it, I can't even think of anything that would make it better. There's just nothing to complain about.
Logitech has really hit a grand slam with the MX 1000 Laser cordless mouse. It works better than any mouse I've ever had, and the functionality of all the buttons is more than convenient, and the ergonomic design feels like it was made just for my hand. If you can't be happy with this mouse, then you can't be happy.
Here at ZATZ, we don't give out too many 5 ratings, because usually there's something that can be improved in just about every product. In this case though, there's nothing to improve, so I'm happy to give the MX 1000 Laser cordless mouse from Logitech a 5 out of 5. Great going Logitech!
RATING: 5 STARS