2 Optical Mice $16.90 shipped

[Groch]

This is very odd, 2 digital optical 3 button mice with pads for less than $18 shipped. I see that Compgeeks just got them in for $9 plus shipping. They are serial mice but appeareantly need no drivers. What do you'all think?

http://store.yahoo.com/mside/digitalmouse.html

 

[minus1969]

I have an MS optical mouse, I highly recomend it

 

[cmv]

ah! here is the rub:

Includes: Manual and Mouse Pad (Must be used with provided pad)

Anyone who has played with old Sun workstations will remember their optical mice. They require these mouse pads that have a kind of cross hatched pattern that lets the mouse keep track of its place. So these won't work without the special mouse pad.

 

[aolj]

I think it's 2 for $8.00. Anyways, nice find.

 

[cgclausen]

Linked

 

[RichieZ]

These things suck! This summer I took a programming class where we used some old Sun workstations. These mice must be used with that stupid mouse pad. This thing is a piece of junk compared to my MS Explorer mouse.

 

[Coca-cola Bear]

Stay away from these mice. I had to use a bunch of these on sun sparc stations when I was taking my circuits class. Oh man these things are garbage. They track worse than my old 2 dollar ball mouse.

 

[Nack]

Just picked up the $25 MS Wheelmouse Optical with the "improved" (debugged) optical technology at Worst Buy. I recommend it. The red laserbeam shining out the back takes a little getting used to, but other than that, it's very cool. Almost zero resistance when you move it, more responsive than my old Intellimouse, works on ANY surface, and no wheel on the bottom to get gummed up.

Nack

 

[Mr.Diggler]

I don't understand the complaints about these mice. If this is the old laser mouse that we used on IBMs and Sun/SPARC stations years ago, then it is a fantastic mouse. I would take it over any ball mouse I've ever used by far. Sure, the new optical mice are better because you don't need to use the mirror mouse pad, but other than that, they're the same.

We had a bunch in the lab and everyone I talked to about it wanted to get one to use on their PC, but couldn't.

Btw, I don't see on the website where it says the mirror pad is included or even that it needs one. Maybe I'm mistaking these mice for different ones.

 

[commOdog]

they gotta be old, listen to this comment:




<< The Joystick mode improves directional responsiveness perfect for playing virtual reality games such as DOOM?. Select this mode by pressing the middle and the left button simultaneously. >>

 

[cmv]

It says that about the mouse pads on the compgeeks description for the item. See the new arrivals section.

 

[commOdog]

here is a link to the manufacturer, it is not a sun/sparc mouse. but anyway, here is linkhttp://www.goodsystems.com/pcmice.html

 

[mcdull]

Don't get any old optical mouse which requires a mousepad.

Optical mouse is not a new stuff. I got my first optical mouse for my 286 PC. It was light and looked cool. However, it requires a special reflective mousepad and the sensitivity in diagonal movement is not as good as mechnical mouse. So, they had disappeared for years. The new optical mouse works on any surface so I think they shouldn't have the same problem.

 

[kendogg]

Optical mouses are seriously not for gaming i think..... dont have the right feel, sensitivity as a ball has..

 

[DesertFoxzz]

I disagree with you, Kendogg. An optical mouse is excellent for gaming. Once you set it for your liking, they are more accurate and faster then a ball mouse.

 

[prodigy]

<< JOYSTICK MODE - The Joystick mode improves directional responsiveness perfect for playing virtual reality games such as DOOM? >>



Virtual reality? That's the funniest thing I've heard in awhile. I wonder what they consider Q3A. :Q

 

[Bohemian]

I have over 100 Worstations (Mostly Ultra 10s and Ultra 60s) that have these type of optical mice and WE HATES 'EM!

 

[cpebbles]

I ordered these on a whim and, after a brief out-of-stock period, they arrived today. I must say that I'm not disappointed. They're not ergonomic, the middle button sticks out a centimeter and looks like you could cut yourself on it, and the mousepad is tiny. That said, it seems to track very well and it's replacing my old MS ballmouse made back in 1934 because of the novelty factor alone.

cpebbles

 

[mcdull]

Forget those old optical mice!
I got one more than 10 years ago for my 286 PC. There must be some reasons why these kind of mouse has disappeared from the market for so many years, e.g. the common problem of old optical mouse is the precision in diagonally movement is not good.
(Are those mice in compgeeks has been stocked for 10 years?)

 

[joecool222111]

WHO NEEDS 2?

 

[cpebbles]

I'm sure you can find someone you like just enough to give a lame Christmas present to. That was my plan anyway.

cpebbles

 

[SoyBoy004]

They give two because they assume that one will wear out! might as well buy a good MS one because it will be a lot better to hvae one mouse a loooonnnggg time rather than having to switch out cheap ones.

 

[CounterStryke]

DesertFox,

I have to disagree with you, at least from an FPS standpoint. RTS or RPG games like StarCraft, and Diablo are just fine with optical mice. However, an FPS game like Half Life requires the player to be able to execute fast-twitch motions. Many times, the difference between life and death depends on you being able to do an immediate about-face to kill your enemy behind you.

Optical mice cannot do this. If you flick the mouse to the side too quickly, the laser cannot &quot;read&quot; the texture of the surface quickly enough to register your movement in the game. The result is that you only turn 90 or some odd degrees, rather than the full 180 degrees you need to do an about-face.

If you don't believe me, try this test. Place your mouse cursor all the way to the right side of the screen. Slide to the left VERY QUICKLY to get to the far left side of the screen. You will see the cursor stop moving halfway. Now try the same test with a ball mouse, and you will see that you can get to the other side with no problem.

-----------------

COUNTER-TERRORISTS WIN!

 

[Black.Lotus]

I have an Everglide Giganta mousepad that I use with my MS Explorer (both purchased cheaply with techniques from this great forum), and if I use the latest drivers and turn acceleration off, I can move it as fast as I want with absolutely no tracking errors. If I turn acceleration on, the tracking errors appear. Acceleration is bad for FPS games anyway, and the optical mouse has increased my accuracy and saved me the time of cleaning balls... so optical gets my seal of approval. Optical mice are also handy for DTP...

 

[cpebbles]

He's right (for these mice anyway) if I go absolutely as fast as I can. But if I drop off the speed about 10%, I get no problems.

I couldn't care less myself--not a FPS guy--but I guess those who are should stick with ball mice unless MS's track better than these suckers.

cpebbles