Logitech Remains My Choice in Pointing Devices

Over the years I have learned that a computer mouse is not just a mouse; it in many ways defines your computing experience.  A smooth running mouse is a joy to work with, while a mouse that skips, jitters, and has a mind of its own can tack minutes, or even hours onto a project.  Most of this was due to dirty mouse balls and rollers inside the body of the mouse, and could be easily resolved by cleaning the mouse, but sometimes not.    

Then came the optical mouse and all of that went away; no more dirty mice balls, they have been replaced by a camera of all things.  Now I use nothing but optical mice, mostly from Logitech, but a while ago the company raised the mouse technology bar by introducing the MX1000 Laser Cordless (Wireless) Mouse.  This mouse does away with the (now) traditional red laser and camera combination of the optical mouse, and replaces it with a white laser. 

Now Logitech has a whole line of laser mice from desktop models to smaller laptop mice.  Recently in search of a new pointing device to replace my wife's finicky Microsoft cordless mouse she uses with her primary desktop computer I choose one of Logitech's newest laser mouse the G7 Laser Cordless Mouse.

Now Logitech markets the G7 as a gaming mouse and to that end the mouse gives the user instant access to three sensitivity levels-400, 800, and 2000 dpi-before driver installation. With Logitech's trademark SetPoint software, the user can add game detection and independent x- and y-axis settings.  Important to me and mine?  No, but if you are a gamer, these settings mean something.

But since my wife does not play any games that needs the G7's gaming capabilities there must be another reason I choose the mouse over all others.  That reason is two, or perhaps three-fold.

I bought the G7 because I wanted a cordless without the large transceiver and Logitech delivered again with the G7; the transceiver unit is smaller than a stick of gum and plugs into any available USB port.  And the G7 ships, and is powered by, with not one, but two small (rechargeable) lithium-ion batteries, a little smaller than matchbook. The G7 ships with a small charging station that not only holds the extra battery (for charging, whilst the other is powering the G7), but also provides a USB port for inserting the transceiver.  SWEET!  This charging station in turn plugs into an available USB port, preferably on the PC where is can draw more power.   

The Mouse

In the Box

~Logitech G7 Laser Cordless Mouse
~USB transceiver
~2x rechargeable lithium-ion batteries
~Charger Station
~CD with Set-Point software
~Installation guide  

At first glance the G7 Laser Cordless Mouse is a little unusual-it is shaped much like an oval; it is not shaped like any other mouse I have used in the past including the MX Laser. The mouse fits nicely in the hand and its size makes it easy to use; it's not too big and not too small.  What is unique is the small thumb rest that juts out from the black and gray mouse's left side; it's not only stylish but functional. 

In all other respects the G7 Laser Cordless Mouse is a conventional two button mouse with a few extras thrown in for good measure.  The clearest change for the mouse is the rubber scroll wheel that sits in the middle front of the mouse. The scroll wheel allows you to scroll left or scroll right by tilting in one direction or another.  Right after the scroll wheel are two gaming-centric buttons that control the sensitivity of the mouse cursor. 

Along the left hand side of the G7 Laser Cordless Mouse are handy thumb-button controls that allow you to page forward and backward through web pages and documents.  Directly after these buttons is an illuminated low level battery indicator that relays the current charge level of the included lithium-Ion rechargeable batteries.

Speaking of the lithium-Ion rechargeable batteries, the spring-loaded housing for on is located underneath the G7 Laser Cordless Mouse in the rear.  The battery is ejected by a small push-button.  And speaking of button, the G7 Laser Cordless Mouse has another in the form of an On/Off switch.  However, like all Logitech laser pointing devices, the G7 automatically shuts itself off during periods of inactivity; again, sweet.   
 
Installation
 
Installation the G7 Laser Cordless Mouse is pretty straight forward: unplug the old mouse, plug in the small 2.4GHz transceiver; it should be automatically detected and drivers installed.    

Note: you can operate the mouse from this point on without installing the Logitech software, but the specialty buttons will not work, however, as in any standard mouse, the cursor settings can be manipulated, via the Mouse applet in control panel. 

I next installed the Logitech (Set-Point) software which affords me access to all of the G7 Laser Cordless Mouse's functionality.  Of course the software does its part to populate the Windows XP/Vista system tray with a small applet that "speaks" to the mouse buttons; if close the applet you will loose control over the specialty buttons.  Once this step is complete, I was ready to try out my new laser mouse.      
 
Performance and Use
 
Logitech makes claim that the new MX Laser Engine perched inside the G7 Laser Cordless Mouse is many, many times more sensitive than a standard (red) LED.  But because the laser tracks movement more accurately than a standard LED, over virtually any surface (matt or glossy, black or white), the G7 takes more precise readings of the surface.  The result: more exact cursor movement onscreen, which Logitech claims makes for better gaming, and graphics work. 

I can-as can my wife-testify to the G7 Laser Cordless Mouse's smooth movement over the display screen; my wife has had G7 for three weeks and in that time the cursor has never jumped, jittered, skipped, or paused.  And more importantly, my wife loves it and defiantly notices the difference between the G7 and the not-to-be-missed Microsoft cordless it replaced.  She even managed to manipulate the specialty buttons and use the mouse at the same time, though she admits that this took some getting used to.

To date I have not had any hardware problems with the mouse, or any other Logitech mouse I own.  Nor have there been any issue with the mouse losing its connection with the transceiver.  Logitech suggest you place the transceiver away from other electronics (good luck), but if your desk is a as crowed as my wife's is, this may prove impossible; i.e. there is also a wireless-G adapter on her desk. 

Conclusion

The only issue my wife has with the mouse thus far is the lithium-Ion rechargeable batteries; with regular use-about eight hours a day-finds that she has to switch out the batteries every day and a half or so.  However, for a general purpose optical pointing device, the Logitech G7 Laser Cordless Mouse is hard to beat.  Light weight and attractive the G7 is comfortable, and easy to maneuver, and far more functional than any other mouse I or my wife for that matter, have ever used.  The G7 laser guided pointing device is reliable workhorse that keeps getting better with age.