Not directly about Sketchup, but sketchup makes you look at your mouse differently, what might be OK for daily use can be really aggravating in Sketchup (and makes the touch pad on your laptop useless).
Anyone have a cheap(ish?) one that you really like?
I have 4, and they all have their issues:
Logitec M305- the oldest, a classic. Feels the best in hand. I think my center wheel button is wearing out because you have to hold it pretty hard. It tracks the worst. I often grab a book and use it as a “mouse pad” on the couch or bed, this one if there is any gloss to the book it does not track well. This is my second one but I don’t remember what happened to the first
Microsoft Mobile Mouse 3500- This was a really nice mouse, not as good in hand as the Logitec but OK, and tracked beautifully on most surfaces. If I’m going to have a dongle I like how it’s stored in a spring loaded compartment in the bottom (nothing to open, just press a button and it pops out). My center wheel mouse click just quit working, if it didn’t I wouldn’t be asking the question. This is my third or fourth one, all died in some way, making them “expensive” and not durable.
HP X4000b (bluetooth)- I really want to like this one, it’s fullsize, a lot of cleaver design features and I really like the lack of a dongle. It feels weird in hand and seems to annoy me. Doesn’t track well and seems to have connectivity issues.
Gigabite m77008 (bluetooth)- Feature and function wise this one is the best or maybe tied with the MS 3500- tracks well on most surfaces, the lack of a dongle is nice, I love the dual CPI button. OTOH, it just refused to connect to my laptop for months (when the others were acting up I tried it one last time before throwing it out and it worked), It has random connectivity problems, it will just stop working at times for a few seconds and then start again (which would lead me to believe that my laptop has bluetooth connectivity problems but they are different then what the HP mouse does and I’ve never had issues with my bluetooth earbuds). The ergonomics suck- it’s wierd angular spaceship gaming mouse shape doesn’t work in a small mouse size. It’s bigger than the Logitec/MS (very close to the same size and shape), but feels smaller, you kind of end up working it with your fingertips, and it doesn’t help that I have big hands (I have about a 50/50 chance of fitting in a pair of 2XL gloves). Honestly I’d probably put up with the random connectivity drops if it didn’t annoy me so badly to hold.
Any recommendations? I’m surprised how many >$10 wireless mice there are on amazon now… I’m thinking there has to be something that won’t annoy me, will work well and last for fairly cheap out there.
I’m a devoted Trackball user and I use the Logitech M570. There is (I think) a mouse version. but I don’t know the number. It’s in their “Unifying” series of peripherals. Here’s a list of all their mice in that series:
There are two “extra” programmable buttons which I’ve set to “<spacebar>” and “<Esc>” - those being the two most frequent keys I use when I’m modeling.
One great feature with this series of Logitech Wireless devices is that they can share a single USB wireless receiver on your computer. I’m also using a wireless keyboard from the same series.
One (slight) disappointment is that Logitech doesn’t (yet) have wireless headset that shares the dongle. Oh well, I guess I can’t have everything - but I reserve the right to want it!
I use the Anywhere mouse MX from the list @sjdorst has posted up. Works on pretty much any surface thats not too glossy. Had it 2 years and it’s not let me down yet. Personally I wouldn’t go too cheap or you may get reliability problems.
Use it on a MacBook pro so receiver (which is small) takes up one of the usb ports. V-Ray dongle takes up the other port which is a pain. I’m gonna break it or loose it one of these days!
I’ve long used both low and high end Logitech mice. I had a Bluetooth one (MX Master?) that quit on me, weird clicking, etc. I broke down and got the 3dConnexxion CadMouse (wired) - I now own 2. 1 stays plugged into a USB hub on my desk, the other in my laptop bag. When they make a bluetooth one I will buy it, no matter the cost…
When I teach I recommend any of the Logitech ones, even the low end, wired ones.
Acknowledging that the subject is er… subjective, so your results may vary. I have had no complaints about the Bondidea N86. It’s got a dongle which some find annoying but I don’t mind. 3 dpi sensitivities, good crisp buttons and wheel, and it’s $7.99. I’m on number 2 and it’s lasted over 2 years, which is pretty cheap rent.
Consequently, all three of the wheel buttons see a lot of use and I’ve found they’re the weakest part of every make and model of mouse I’ve used.
A couple of years ago I began using the Logitech M510.
It’s a full-size mouse, the rubber grips make it easy to control and the side buttons are easy to reach.
Also, the new Logitech Options control package is way better than the previous SetPoint mouse controls.
My first M510 lasted less than a year.
The second is beginning to have center wheel down button issues.
I can’t complain. They work well, until they don’t.
At $20 - $25 one can afford to have a spare or two on hand.
I have a perhaps unfounded dislike of Bluetooth mouses because I had a small Microsoft Bluetooth mouse that was somewhat sluggish. Maybe they have become better since.
I currently use a Logitech Zone Touch mouse. It is small but therefore fits to my right hand that has a couple of somewhat dysfunctional fingers. It shows some wear outward, and looking for a replacement I found that the model has been discontinued
Traditional 10€ Logitech wired mouses have worked well too. The wheel button seems to be the first thing in them that wears out.
I decided to play with my bluetooth mice a little before deciding what I’m doing. The fact is that I often just throw my laptop in my gym bag or backpack and it’s really nice not having a dongle hanging out or having to pull it out and store it somewhere.
I ended up disabling window’s power management of the BT radio and found that my bluetooth mice haven’t done anything weird all day and i used one or the other for almost 6 hours.
I still hate the HP one- it’s controls are just too heavy, especially the center wheel. It has heavy detents keeping you from spinning it and the click is heavy also. Also, it’s resolution is not adjustable and I end up having to either slow it down till the touchpad is useless or deal with it it being really touchy/jumping around. I tried some third party software to set multiple speeds but I didn’t get them working well.
The gigabite works really well now, but it’s just not comfortable. The hard edges and shape make it feel smaller than it is (it’s larger than the Logitec and MS and both feel larger than it).
I’m going to give it a couple of days and if I don’t have any issues with the bluetooth one I’ll likely try to find a better bluetooth mouse. I wish I could remember where my bluetooth dongle is so I could use it on my desktop.
I use one of these and don’t need to remove my receiver in order to slip my Mac into it. So throwing a laptop into whatever bag you use shouldn’t be much of a problem if you get a mouse with a small receiver.
