Bluetooth Versus Wireless Mice

Meneguzzi writes "Having stuck with wired mice for years, I have recently been impressed by a couple of cordless mice I've used on other people's computers so much that I now want to buy one to use with my Mac Book Pro. However, while shopping around for the perfect cordless laptop mouse I was stuck with the question of whether to go for a bluetooth mouse or one of the many proprietary cordless mice with tiny USB receivers. To my surprise, there seems to be little literature systematically comparing these two options for attributes like precision, battery life (both for the mouse and the laptop), RF interference, and whatnot. As a Mac user, bluetooth has the advantage that it won't take up a USB port, and (in theory), would consume less battery than a USB port, but I wonder if this is actually true in practice. On top of that, I noticed that there are far fewer (and less fancy) options for Bluetooth mice than there are for proprietary cordless ones. Logitech, for instance, has a very basic Bluetooth Mouse, while its proprietary options are much fancier. So I was wondering what are the experiences from Slashdotters on this particular type of hardware, and any recommendations."

Comments

You ask us a question...

[Anonymous Coward]

...And we'll fight about every little detail, go off-topic, crack jokes about welcoming you to the year 2000, debate form over function, laser over inferred, brand versus brand versus model, and in the end you'll still have to decide for yourself.

Have you at least read the reviews on Amazon? Are we only deciding blue-tooth versus wireless, or do we have to pick the exact model for you? Is your 'perfect mouse' going to be someone elses 'perfect mouse' and vice-verse?

Not actively trying to troll here, but wanting to bring your attention to the fact that it ends up being a very heavy personal decision based on your preferences, hand-size, availability, etc...

Re:You ask us a question...

[Another, completely]

Typically, it's because it's not used properly. The protocol itself has plenty of features for reducing power draw, and has been getting better, but a surprising number of products use the manufacturer default settings for their Bluetooth chip.

For example, the clocks at the two ends need to stay synchronized to despread the signal. The more closely synchronized they are, the smaller your listening window needs to be to catch the beginning of a frame, but the more frequently you need to synchronize (depending on the accuracy of the clock you use, which also has an effect on power consumption). There are a lot of parameters that could be adjusted, and several performance measurements that you need to balance; the manufacturer defaults work well enough, so many product teams just use them.

Those that take the time to do it right get better performance, but it's not usually noticed, as people assume that all Bluetooth devices will perform similarly (which closes the cycle of not being able to justify the effort to optimize your settings).

My experience...

[Max Romantschuk]

...is that a dedicated wireless tech like Logitech's is better than Bluetooth.

My Bluetooth mouse at work occasionally lags behind, or sometimes stops moving for short whiles (even when it's not fallen asleep). Generally it seems the Bluetooth layer adds the occasional issues encountered with wireless networking in general.

I haven't ever seen this with Logitech's dedicated wireless devices.

Then again, I could just be a victim of bad drivers. :)

Re:My experience...

[prockcore]

My experience is similar.. although I'll go a little further.

The problem with bluetooth is that once it's paired, it works fine.. but pairing can be a problem, especially in a busy office. The mouse and keyboard always wants to pair with the dozens of macs in the room, except for the one I want it to pair with.

RF vs Bluetooth Mice

[Nasser]

I've used several bluetooth and RF wireless mice. One thing you should consider is that when the CPU is bogged down the bluetooth mouse will become jerky and unusuable.

Murhpy

[mrbene]

Your decision to move to a system that requires an independent power supply (batteries) is an invitation to Murphy to send his law to your house / place of work at the most inopportune moment.

Oh, and radiation. I'm sure it'll kill you too. Bluetooth will force you to visit your dentist too.

Plus what are you going to fight off the ninjas with if you don't have a mouse cord?

Holy surrealism, bantha!

Re:Wireless Mighty Mouse

[Anenome]

Yeah, I've stuck with corded mice too. Every time I've used someone else's wireless I hear the stories. From the WoW tank who's mouse battery died while the guild had the last boss to 1% hp for the first time, to the intermittent rolling and clicking. It just all sucks. Plus, I don't want to be buying batteries all the time, or plugging my mouse in like its a Norelco razor. I am damn happy with my corded mouse. 100% reliability. Doesn't get much better.

My dad has a cheap USB cordless laptop mouse, one of those super tiny ones with a single AAA battery. It works like a charm. But I would never use one for my desktop.

Re:Bluetooth

[Adlopa]

Cordd kyboards ar the most rliabl kind and thr's vry littl than can go wrong with thm. I'v bn using this old Chrry modl for yars and it's still as good as nw.