Ask Engadget: Best Bluetooth mouse out there?

We know you've got questions, and if you're brave enough to ask the world for answers, here's the outlet to do so. This week's Ask Engadget question is coming to us from Sang-Jung, who is desperately in search of the perfect cordless critter to take some of the strain away from that trackpad.

"I'm heading to university next year, and I've purchased a MacBook. I'm also taking my four year old desktop, just in case I'm left with no computers when the MacBook is being repaired or whatnot. With only two USB ports on a MacBook, I want a Bluetooth mouse. Budget is about $100, and of course, it needs OS X support. Thanks for the help!"

Alright folks, it's time to get serious. Do you own a Bluetooth mouse that you can recommend? Recommend against? Be sure to spill your thoughts in comments below, and feel free to send in a question of your own to ask at engadget dawt com.

[Robert Baker @ Jul 2nd 2009 10:29PM]

I don't have any recommendations, but i would advise AGAINST the wireless mighty mouse. that thing sucks after about 2+ months use.

[Jin @ Jul 3rd 2009 10:51AM]

Ya, dont buy the mighty mouse.. it is not that great.

[Mmmm... Dohnuts. @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:28PM]

At least it lasts that long... stay away from Microsoft bluetooth mice :/

I recommend Logitech for heavy users.

[LJKelley @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:29PM]

I agree. The might mouse is cool at first but then the scroll wheel stops responding sometimes because it so small and dirt gets trapped. And then I've had disconnects both under Windows and OS X.

[Patrick #2 @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:46PM]

I disagree, but agree with the folks below, the mighty mouse is great after 1 year of use. I don't know why people dislike it so much. The scroll ball and button versatility is something I really miss at work everday.

[Jason @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:45PM]

I've been using The Mircosoft Bluetooth 5000 for almost a year. It has great battery life & connects everytime coming out of sleep mode and booting up!

[Greg @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:49PM]

Not to mention how when using the mighty mouse, the cursor will randomly jump to the corner of the screen. I can't stand that.

[John Chang @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:54PM]

in defense for the mighty mouse,
All you have to do is put the mouse up-side down and start scrolling that ball as fast as you can with the palm of your hand for a while.
grime free again.

What the mighty mouse needs improving on though is a more sensitive right click button. i have to slightly push the mouse towards the right with my hand to activate it.

[Gaucho @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:55PM]

I've been using a wired Mighty Mouse for about a year and half and I haven't had any problems with it yet. Maybe I got lucky.

[KingOfGods @ Jul 2nd 2009 10:21PM]

I agree with Jason.

http://www.microsoft.com/hardware/mouseandkeyboard/ProductDetails.aspx?pid=099&active_tab=systemRequirements

I use the microsoft Bluetooth 5000 with my mac book pro and i love it. It is meant to use with built in blue tooth so it doesn't use a dongle

[ishism @ Jul 2nd 2009 10:25PM]

http://www.newtonperipherals.com/mogo_mouseX54.html

The best.

[Apreche @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:08PM]

Logitech's new M555b

[ishism @ Jul 2nd 2009 10:27PM]

http://www.newtonperipherals.com/mogo_mouseX54.html
There is no better mouse. IF macbook has the x54 slot, this is it.

[AMiSH PiRATE @ Jul 2nd 2009 10:34PM]

Jeff puts out a pretty good mouse with blue tooth, and it's totally compatible with a mac.

http://images.encyclopediadramatica.com/images/4/4c/Thepowerbook_img_2.jpg

[DR House @ Jul 2nd 2009 11:53PM]

Logitech V470 is the best by miles
once you try it there is no other option
its very accurate too even for gaming never failed me

[AndrewNoNumbers @ Jul 3rd 2009 12:50AM]

Get the wireless Mighty Mouse duh! If you have a Mac that's the only way to go.

[wickywills @ Jul 3rd 2009 4:08AM]

while I own a mac, i would recommend AGAINST getting a Mighty Mouse - i personally think it's one of the the most unusable mouse out there and was a big mistake by apple. People only buy it because it's made by Apple and it 'looks' good...thats my opinion though!

[Kelmon @ Jul 3rd 2009 4:14AM]

DO NOT get the Apple Wireless Mighty Mouse unless you do not want a reliable right-click function (if you are OK with the old skool Control+Click to invoke a contextual menu then the Wireless Mighty Mouse is quite nice). There's a reasonable bit to like about the Mighty Mouse (I likes the scroll ball, the feel of it in the hand and the click action) but the thing is fundamentally flawed if you want a right-click because it only works about 90% of the time; the other 10% of the time will be so annoying that you want to throw the thing across the room.

While I don't have one (I'm still on my VX Revolution that replaced the Wireless Mighty Mouse), I tend to agree that the new Logitech M555b looks like a good bet because it has the fly-wheel style scroll wheel found on some of the Logitech mice, such as my VX Revolution. Once you have used it for scrolling quickly through a document I very much doubt you'll accept anything else.

[Kelmon @ Jul 3rd 2009 4:29AM]

Oh, if you go with a Logitech mouse then you might want to consider using a 3rd party driver for it. The Logitech Control Center (LCC) drivers are awful and have been known to cause my MBP to kernel panic, or fail completely to recognise the mouse connected to the system. It is possible that the drivers are now better (I doubt they could get much worse) but I've been using SteerMouse now for the past 3-years for my VX Revolution and it does the business (supports wired and bluetooth mice, even those without Mac OS X drivers):

http://plentycom.jp/en/steermouse/index.html

[John @ Jul 3rd 2009 1:08PM]

I use the Logitech V270 (m-rbb93) on my macbook pro. It works flawlessly and I have no complaints. You can get it for around $20 online.

[AMiSH PiRATE @ Jul 3rd 2009 10:24PM]

Kelmon, the mighty mouse has a reliable right click. I've used multiple mighty mice regularly (both in a work and home environment) since they debuted a couple of years ago. The drawback is that you need to lift your index finger (assuming you're right handed) when pressing the right button.

[mabhatter @ Jul 4th 2009 2:21PM]

I agree, the Mighty Mouse from Apple is terrible. It's got cool design, but the little ball gums up quickly from regular normal use and once it's dirty there's no RELIABLE way to get it's performance back.

I like the Best Buy Rocketfish Bluetooth Mouse. It's a nice plain white two button mouse with scroll and tilt... and it's bluetooth, and it doesn't even have that annoying red light.

[daniel @ Jul 24th 2009 12:30AM]

+1 for Mighty Mouse.
For me, it works very nicely, and it looks very put-together, and matches my MacBook (although my Mac-matchiness has gone down since I got a black iPod, Dell monitor, Logitech speakers, and a Logitech keyboard). I have no problem with the right-click, although my friends always get frustrated using it, so maybe it's just me who likes it. My scroll ball has been fine, and it hasn't gummed up at all (yet). The only bad part about it, for me, is that the whiteness makes it look sorta dirty all the time, especially around the edges, and the glossiness makes it show scratches and scuffs.

[Apparatus @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:09PM]

New engadget logo?

[jpories @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:18PM]

nah its just an Ask Engadget logo... but [cue Turk talking to Carla in Scrubs voice] looks pretty snazzy to me, baby!

[nicleT @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:46PM]

Swell brand new ol' logo!

[dantidote @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:09PM]

AGAINST the Microsoft Wireless Laser Mouse 8000

[Gregory Pius @ Jul 2nd 2009 10:38PM]

Against? Not me. The Presenter Mouse 8000 is fantastic. I use it for presentations all the time, and it's my primary mouse on gigs. It has NEVER failed me.

[marioandluigi206 @ Jul 3rd 2009 1:04AM]

yeah, the presenter mouse is awesome.

[dantidote @ Jul 3rd 2009 1:07AM]

The drivers on OSX are awful. Even with third party drivers, the cursor is jumpy.

[Brent @ Jul 3rd 2009 2:42AM]

For the Mac I'd have to agree. I've found that mouse to be picky about surfaces for one thing, but also on my Macbook I have to turn up the pointer speed all the way to get even close to a decent speed and I find there to be problems with accuracy.

[Tom Robertson @ Jul 3rd 2009 4:32AM]

The Wireless Laser Mouse 8000 and the presenter mouse are 2 completly different mice. Get it right.

[clintsclayton @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:10PM]

i love the wireless mighty mouse, really good, really nice, and works.

[d @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:11PM]

wait a few months, you will change your mind

[Cris T @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:12PM]

I have been using mine for 8 hours a day, 5 days a week for 4 months and it still works great.

[John @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:15PM]

I agree! The scroll ball is so useful for panning around images.

[clintsclayton @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:16PM]

I've had it for like a year and it still is working perfect.

[Esteban @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:17PM]

I've been using the BT Mighty Mouse for about 16 months now. I absolutely love it and would never get any other mouse.

[Mmmm... Dohnuts. @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:18PM]

I agree, the mighty mouse is a very sturdy and easy to use mouse, definitely worth the price. Personally I go for ones with more buttons for adjusting the brightness or volume, but they generally cost more than they're worth (there seems to be a direct correlation between build quality and fewer buttons).

[d @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:19PM]

I was having the classic trackball problem where the trackball needed to be cleaned or it wouldn't work. I cleaned it and it worked, but I just got tired of cleaning it. I recommend something third party, logitech's a great brand (I posted somewheres below too)

[lawyer bird @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:20PM]

We used the mighty mouse for the imacs in the school library i worked tech support for. After about 6 months of use the scrolling basically just stops working and they are a BITCH to clean out..took about half an hour per mouse. And this was about 5 out of the 8 we had. Just not really worth the headache in my mind

[marc @ Jul 2nd 2009 10:01PM]

+1 Another Bluetooth Mighty Mouse user. 1 year and still loving it. Get one.

[Ron Aragon @ Jul 2nd 2009 10:33PM]

Yeah! Apple Mighty Mouse is very reliable. Pairing and connectivity is very easy. I have it for 1 year and a half. Works for me. I still use the same battery that came with it. I think it save energy when not it use.

[rosstard @ Jul 2nd 2009 10:54PM]

@ all the people who have trouble cleaning the trackball,

1. take a sheet of clean plain paper

2. turn your mighty mouse upside down

3. roll the trackball on the paper

also +1 for mighty mouse

[Webber @ Jul 2nd 2009 10:55PM]

I used for for like two years before the scroll stopped working (but only in one direction). Googled it (learned to be better with the keyboard while doing so), and got something: Just disconnect the mouse, take a blank piece of regular paper (the printing, non-glossy, kind of thick kind works well), turn the mouse over, and squeeze the scrollball against the paper (don't worry, it won't break), and slowly roll it around (the paper). When I first did it, loads of black grime and dust came out, spent about 3 minutes doing so (until nothing would come out again), reconnected, and, voila! It worked just as if it were new again! I haven't had to clean it again yet. Plus, it took less than five minutes to get the paper, disconnect the mouse, clean it, and reconnect it.
Hope this helps!

[Webber @ Jul 2nd 2009 11:00PM]

Woops! Rosstard beat me to it be less than a minute, maybe because I spent a lot of time perfecting my comment. Anyways, glad to see other people are using this method!

[Matt @ Jul 3rd 2009 12:15AM]

I have found the Apple's mighty mouse to be fantastic. Truly great mouse.

[Cronick @ Jul 3rd 2009 12:34AM]

It's a great little mouse... operative word being little. Anyone with hands bigger than a little girl's will soon start getting cramps in their mouse hand. Fine for limited work but trying to use it all day every day for a few weeks and you'll want a change.

[d @ Jul 3rd 2009 1:12AM]

@rosstard
you don't understand. I don't want to have to clean my mouse for it to work. I want it to work. I also want a mouse that puts function (in this case, ergonomics) over form. That's why I bought my Logitech VX Nano.

[MrNuclear @ Jul 3rd 2009 2:07AM]

+1 for Apple wireless Mighty Mouse. I got it around 14 months ago and use it 8-10 hours a day. My big hands don't cramp up at all.
The last few months I've been cleaning it every few weeks with the screen-cleaner cloth from the iPhone, but thank you to those above who mentioned the sheet of paper, much easier!
Also wanted to say, the scrollball is the best part of the Mighty Mouse. 4-way scrolling rules, press for dashboard. Squeeze the mouse for expose (or set it up to do whatever you like).