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Microsoft Re-Launches Its Classic 'IntelliMouse' (hothardware.com)
An anonymous reader quotes HotHardware:
Every so often, a company will tap into our penchant for nostalgia. That is the case right now with Microsoft bringing back its iconic IntelliMouse, which was first introduced back in 1996... Microsoft continued to update the IntelliMouse for several years, up through 2003 when it released the IntelliMouse 3.0. The new 'Classic IntellMouse' for 2018 is based on that 15-year-old design with the same classic ergonomic look and feel, but with improved performance and features built around modern technology.
So, what exactly is different? "We improved two really important factors, the tracking sensor and the tactility and feel of the buttons. What we know our fans will see and feel is that it's the exact same shape and size of the IntelliMouse Explorer 3.0 from 2003. However, underneath the hood it's all brand-new technology, brand new mechanical engineering and brand-new structures so it's a lot more rigid than the original. The build quality is really excellent," Microsft explains.
HardOCP notes that Microsoft has also released "a fantastic Rube Goldberg machine video unveiling the mouse."
So, what exactly is different? "We improved two really important factors, the tracking sensor and the tactility and feel of the buttons. What we know our fans will see and feel is that it's the exact same shape and size of the IntelliMouse Explorer 3.0 from 2003. However, underneath the hood it's all brand-new technology, brand new mechanical engineering and brand-new structures so it's a lot more rigid than the original. The build quality is really excellent," Microsft explains.
HardOCP notes that Microsoft has also released "a fantastic Rube Goldberg machine video unveiling the mouse."
Then you overslept. Trackballs have been cool for a long time.
"We mustn't be caught by surprise by our own advancing technology" -- Aldous Huxley
Giggity.
#DeleteFacebook
Looking at the Microsoft spec page for this mouse - https://www.microsoft.com/acce...
I can see that it's only compatible with Windows 7 and up (although the way they say it's not customizable with Windows 10S is pretty awkward) so why would I buy it? I suspect that "compatibility" means "customizable" in terms of buttons and dots per inch and, somewhat ironically, it will work like the original Intellimouse on other systems.
Personally, I demand that I go between systems with a minimum of mechanical transition; that means I use the same keyboard and mouse whenever possible for all my systems. OSX is always going to be problematic, but I think it's reasonable to expect to be able to have identical human interfaces on my Windows Linux systems.
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It still lacks a real middle button. They could have added a real button instead of the weird bump before the scroll wheel.
It is too difficult to not scroll by mistake when trying to press down the wheel. I mean, you can press accurately 95% of the time, but each of those of the 5% mis-clicks are errors that you should never have made.
"We mustn't be caught by surprise by our own advancing technology" -- Aldous Huxley
I have a Kensington Bluetooth trackball that is awesome. I also have a Logitech trackball that connects over the Logitech URâ"my only complaint is that the keyboard misbehaves occasionally with the console switch. My biggest frustration is when I have to use a computer that only has a mouse.
Let's hope it's as good as the old ones... Literally the only Microsoft product I use is an old IntelliMouse Explorer 3.0 a friend of mine (hardcore gamer at that time, so it had already received a lot of abuse) gave me once the 4.0 or whatever came out. That was around 2004; I use it a lot, every day, and apart from replacing the micro switches once after they got bouncy; it's still going strong. Built like a tank, although my fingers have long since worked through the surface coating.
Anyway, given the extreme quality of this good old device, I conclude all Microsoft really had to do with it, is slapping their logo on it (fortunately 14 years of hand sweat has removed that, too).
CLI paste? paste.pr0.tips!
Now bring back the trackball. Please. nice big ball, contoured to your hand, buttons in the right spots. Too bad they have moving parts that do wear out.
Still exists... Take a look at the Kensington Expert Mouse... plus, they have a 5-year/3-year warranty for the wired/wireless version.
I've tried their wireless versions and I always go back to the wired version due to inteference/lag. I haven't tried the newest Bluetooth version yet, though. However, wireless is much less important for a proper trackball than it is for a mouse.
In an age of cheaper, cheaper, and cheaper, Microsoft seems to be the only maker of quality mice.
You didn't put much effort into looking.
Logitech's mice and trackball offerings have always been more comfortable and maintainable. In both the ball and optical versions, the design and function that the extra few pennies bought me was worth it.
Inheritance is the sincerest form of nepotism.
Are you insane? I regularly use a mouse with 13 buttons and only very rarely accidentally hit one.
Amateur. I couldn't use anything less than my 18 button mouse.
Now bring back the Trackball Explorer for a reasonable price.
Last time I went shopping for a mouse many years ago ended up with comfort mouse 6000 (S7J-00010). It's the best mouse I've owned so far. Only problem with it using scroll wheel as middle button is virtually impossible without having click register as a scroll.
Apparently this new IntelliMouse suffers from losing track of where it is when moved rapidly. Reviews so far gamers seem to hate it.
It's like they don't even bother testing hardware before release. These are all things that should have been easily identified and resolved prior to releasing product.
I had a stockpile of old IntelliMouses for years because eventually the left and or right clickers would always break. The rough plastic material also really sucks. It always accumulated gunk that was impossible to remove. Shiny plastic like the comfort mouse is best because gunk slides right off and mouse always looks brand new.
There seems to be a huge gap when it comes to wired mice.
You either end up with some tiny cheap ambidextrous POS made by the lowest bidder, some crazy "ergonomic" BS or ridiculous "gamer" machination that looks like it came out of a transformers movie. Almost got a razer death mouse until I found out driver calls home and requires an Internet connection to work. No chance in hell.
Companies that do nothing but HID like Logitech have all of a single wired USB mouse I would even consider (M500). I don't understand why mice are so screwed up.
People like you are the reason I have to travel with either a crappy mouse with not enough buttons, or a bulky gaming mouse with extra buttons. Logitech used to make a small travel mouse with 4 buttons on the side, but they reduced it to 2 buttons because people like you complained. The only wireless mouse I've been able to find with more than two programmable side buttons was a larger gaming mouse.
If you don't like the extra buttons, don't use them. Simply program them to do nothing. Let those of us who like or need the extra buttons continue to use them. Don't do things which get the product changed to make it unusable by those with a different preference than you. What you're doing is like complaining that restaurants should stop selling chicken because you don't like chicken. If you don't like chicken, just don't order the chicken dishes. Don't try to get the restaurants to drop chicken from their menu, depriving people who like chicken of the opportunity to order chicken.
I miss my old Trackman Marble FX. GIS for it; I think old ones were going for $100.00 as a collector's item a few years ago. GOFK what one would cost you today.
It put a large ball with lots of intertia in your hand. And by "in your hand", I mean your gripping fingers traversed the center of mass of the ball.
It was awesome--You could easily throw the pointer across the screen(s) or tweak pixel by pixel.
It was a throwback to the PS2 days, but PS2->USB adapters are easy to get.
There were also a few buttons scattered around the device.
If somebody would build a device with modern electronics and that sort of mechanism I'd buy it.
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away." - Philip K. Dick
If it's not ambidextrous it's not worth having.
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This. Why do nearly all trackballs currently on the market have tiny balls you manipulate with your thumb? I want a big ball under my fingertips. I had a Trackman Marble FX; the only reason I stopped using it was that Microsoft came out with the Trackball Explorer, which had a scroll wheel. I still have my Trackball Explorer after 15-ish years, and have no idea what I'm going to replace it with when it eventually dies.
Trackball Explorers are plentiful on eBay for about $125-$150. You can even find the rare unopened brand new one occasionally, if you don't mind spending $500-$600. A highly recommended upgrade for them is zirconia oxide bearings to replace the steel ones. The steel is so soft that the red ball actually wears a flat spot in them, and the worse it gets the harder it is to turn the ball. Replace the bearings with those ones and it's like new. And they won't wear out as quickly as the steel, if they ever will. Every one I've replaced them in is still feeling new.