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Kensington Pocketmouse Pro Wireless

Kensington Pocketmouse Pro Wireless

List Price: $49.99
Your Price: $40.84
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Wireless magic
Review: (Technical note: I am using this on a subnotebook with WinXP Home; I installed no drivers and this mouse is happily co-existing with the built-in keyboard "nipple" and touch screen)

I am not a big fan of mice in general (I prefer trackballs; this is the first mouse I have purchased since 1992), but have really enjoyed my new pocketmouse pro wireless. It isn't the most compact mouse, but it doesn't waste much space -- the tiny receiver stows inside the mouse in the neatest compartment I've seen in a while. The range is great -- they claim 3 feet, but right now I can get > 8 feet away and still get reception. At that distance, I can't read the screen! Of course, YMMV as the batteries wane and if your desk, etc is made of metal. One caveat: I haven't managed to wear my batteries down yet; if rapid battery becomes a problem, I'll change this review. (Apparently this is a major problem with many wireless mice.)

This is my first optical mouse and I am impressed -- it works on the carpet, the arm of a chair, my pants, my shirt -- wherever! If you are a serious gamer, of course, be cautious, though as wireless mice may not live up to your 1337 gaming requirements.

Otherwise, this is yet another quality input device from Kensington.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Wireless magic
Review: (Technical note: I am using this on a subnotebook with WinXP Home; I installed no drivers and this mouse is happily co-existing with the built-in keyboard "nipple" and touch screen)

I am not a big fan of mice in general (I prefer trackballs; this is the first mouse I have purchased since 1992), but have really enjoyed my new pocketmouse pro wireless. It isn't the most compact mouse, but it doesn't waste much space -- the tiny receiver stows inside the mouse in the neatest compartment I've seen in a while. The range is great -- they claim 3 feet, but right now I can get > 8 feet away and still get reception. At that distance, I can't read the screen! Of course, YMMV as the batteries wane and if your desk, etc is made of metal. One caveat: I haven't managed to wear my batteries down yet; if rapid battery becomes a problem, I'll change this review. (Apparently this is a major problem with many wireless mice.)

This is my first optical mouse and I am impressed -- it works on the carpet, the arm of a chair, my pants, my shirt -- wherever! If you are a serious gamer, of course, be cautious, though as wireless mice may not live up to your 1337 gaming requirements.

Otherwise, this is yet another quality input device from Kensington.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Works well so far
Review: Have been using it for a week now - works well so far. My only advice to Dell Notebook users - DO NOT install Mouseworks - it replaces your touchpad software and does funny things with the mouse - such as on left click does right click, on right click does nothing.
On Windows 2000 on Dell laptops - just plugin, wait for default USB install and tune the speed settings slower than your touchpad settings and use.
More updates a few weeks from now - battery life, durability etc.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Good design, bad implementation
Review: I bought this mouse ($20-$25, not $50) b/c it was the best looking mouse (not avant garde like some) and it had a small receiver unlike some other wireless mice. I've had this mouse for a few months now and there are some notable issues. Please note that this is also my first optical/wireless/wheel mouse.
1. Changing batteries isn't as easy as it should be. Removing the cover is cumbersome. Most of the time, I have to open the receiver trap door to get the back of the mouse open. Minor annoyance.
2. Previous (earlier this year) software under OSX worked great. Able to fine tune mouse for fast vs. slow movement. HOWEVER, the current version of MouseWorks is very BUGGY. Had to uninstall in after only 15 minutes (major problem). Note: OSX will WORK w/ the mouse, you just can't customize the buttons per application.
3. Because I use this mouse on a desktop, I leave the mouse on all the time. Battery gets replaced every 3-4 wks depending on usage. (minor)
4. The paint sucks and has worn out. I have beige spots where I've rested my palm, pointer, and middle finger. (uggh..)
5. The scroll wheel is too jumpy (under OSX). Not smooth like the cheap MS 5-button optical mice (under windoze). Haven't tried it under the PC for direct comparison.
6. Last straw was when the left click went haywire on me. I click once, it'd click twice. I took it completely apart and broke a leg of the power wire. Could easily fix it myself, but given the above, I'll just toss it.
? ...When not in use, the mouse goes to sleep.. Not sure if this is an issue w/ OSX or the mouse.

Other than the above it seems to work ok. I've used it at ~5 ft (for slide shows) where the receiver is rated at 3ft.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: GREAT MOUSE!!
Review: I had a wired mouse hated the wrapping the wire and putting away. THIS MOUSE solved the problem. TRUE plug and play, you dont have to worry about losing the USB tx'r it stores away easily! worth the price and then some.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Good concept..bad receiver quality
Review: I purchased this from Amazon.com which is not surprisingly the [best] deal I could find. For two days the product worked decently, though I had to adjust the mouse sensitivity. After two days the receiver's swiwel design started showing signs of wear. Ultimately it just broke into two pieces where it swivels. It appears to me that the swivel hinge is made of plastic that is not suitable for the type of forces it is put to when it swivels. I wish it was made of metal or something to that order. Also inside of swivel are wires which are simply coiled together with what I think are just resistant coating to prevent shorting (think coils of an electric motor). After the receiver broke these wires shorted together so even a fix with superglue or something does not seem possible.

Anyway, after two days, the wireles connection between the receiver and the mouse also was intermittent. I think it could be because damage to swivel and shorting of wires.

Other gripe I had was that the mouse is active as long as the receiver is not plugged into it. I like to keep the laptop on for long hours and connected which is a drain on mouse battery.

I am returning it and will try to look for other products with similar features. (Wireless, Optical, small USB receiver, minimal items to carry)

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great mouse, nice price
Review: I purchased this mouse to go with my Toshiba laptop and WinXP operating system. It has worked flawlessly! It works on all kinds of surfaces and travels extremely well. Storing the receiver in the mouse was a great idea for extended battery life and has the added benefit of extra compactability. It also has a nice feel to it. The curve of the mouse seems to be slightly higher and fits perfectly in the palm of my hand, allowing my fingers to rest straight across the buttons. I don't seem to experience as much fatigue in my hand as with other mice.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Good for portability
Review: I purchased this unit to use with my forthcoming Mac Powerbook 17". I liked the idea of having a 'self-contained' storage unit for the receiver and the small size of the mouse itself. I've used it with my Win XP desktop unit as well.

Overall, the style and craftsmanship are good. It looks sharp and it feels pretty solid in your hand. I've found that the button to access the USB receiver compartment is a bit difficult to press at times. It works, but the door covering the removable receiver doesn't open automatically.

The receiver swivels once place into an open USB port, thus making it a bit more 'directional' in design. The mouse itself tends to be a bit fast. I've had to use the included software/driver to 'slow the track rate' down a bit. I've noticed that the mouse can be at almost 3 feet away before it loses signal, but I have found at times that it has lost signal only inches from the receiver. I'm in a completely wireless office and sit closely to another machine with a wireless mouse/receiver so I cannot be certain that this not due to interference.

Overall, I plan on using this mainly when I'm mobile and want more than just a trackpad.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Nice addition for your iBook or Powerbook
Review: I really like this mouse. If you're within a few feet of the receiver, the mouse has good responsiveness and a pretty decent feel. Where this mouse really shines, though, is with its features. Once you download the software from the maker's web site, the scroll wheels works well in OSX. In addition, you can assign a specific function for the right click, center click, and a function when both left and right clicks are depressed simultaneously. For example, I have mine set so that when both the left and right button are pressed together, a window pops up that shows open programs and allows you to quickly switch between applications. It really is a nice replacement for the standard Mac mouse with one button, especially if you're accustomed to using Windows systems.

There are a few flaws with this mouse. I had a problem with it working on a surface that was only slightly reflective. However, it works fine on most other surfaces, including wood, cloth, and pretty much any other non reflective surface. The other slight negative for this mouse is that to use the features I mentioned above you'll have to download the software, as it's not included. For anyone with an internet connection, and you're reading this now, it's not a problem. Finally, the mouse doesn't have an off button, which is strange. To turn off the mouse, you place the USB receiver into it's storage space in the mouse. Kensington's web site claims batteries should last 3 months under average conditions. I've only had my mouse a week, so I cannot gauge this claim.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Dream Mouse
Review: I think I've finally found my dream mouse. Although I never before saw the need for a wireless mouse, after buying a new 17" PowerBook I decided it would be nice not to have to deal with cables. After hearing about this mouse I found it on Amazon for less than anyone else was selling. The mouse works beautifully. Smooth and very solid feeling in the hand, perhaps due to the 2 AAA batteries inside. If you have small-ish hands (Iike me) this mouse makes a perfect fit. Even the scroll wheel feels more substantial than others I've used. Great product; I'm thinking about buying another.


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