SteelSeries' Kinzu pulls off the bargain gaming mouse gambit way better, at $35. Or you can get more aggressively armed gaming mice at Amazon for about the same price, even from Razer.

RAZER ABYSSUS™ GIVES GAMERS THE COMPETITIVE EDGE BY FOCUSING ON THE FUNDAMENTALS

Carlsbad, Calif. – Nov. 10, 2009 - Razer™, the world's leading manufacturer of high-end precision gaming and lifestyle peripherals, today launched the Razer Abyssus™ gaming mouse. By combining simplicity with a state-of-the-art 3.5G 3500dpi infrared sensor, the Razer Abyssus stands ready to frag.

"Less is more," said Robert "Razerguy" Krakoff, president, Razer. "We've taken our ambidextrous three-button mouse design and loaded it with our industry-leading technology without the added cost of too many bells and whistles. Our goal with the Razer Abyssus is to give competitive gamers access to gaming grade hardware without breaking the bank."

About the Razer Abyssus
The Razer Abyssus mouse is designed for gamers that demand reliability and functionality under the fiercest gameplay conditions. The Razer Abyssus is armed with two large non-slip buttons tuned for maximum tactile feedback and features Razer's built-in Hyperesponse™ technology. Underneath, Razer has placed two easily accessible mechanical switches — one on-the-fly dpi switch giving the user their choice of 450, 1800, or 3500dpi; and one polling rate switch allowing instant adjustment from a standard 125hz to 1000hz Ultrapolling™.

Razer Abyssus
COST: US $49.99, Europe €39.99

AVAILABILITY:
Razerzone.com – Available Now
China – In Stores Now
Worldwide –Late December 2009

Product Features:
3500dpi Razer Precision™ 3.5G infrared sensor
1000Hz Ultrapolling™ / 1ms response time
Mechanical dpi/polling rate switches
On-The-Fly Sensitivity™ adjustment
Always-On™ mode
Ultra-large non-slip buttons
16-bit ultra-wide data path
60-120 inches per second and 15g of acceleration
Three independently programmable Hyperesponse™ buttons
Ambidextrous design
Scroll wheel with 24 individual click positions
Zero-acoustic Ultraslick™ Teflon feet
Seven-foot, lightweight, non-tangle cord
Approx. size in mm 115(L) x 63(W) x 40(H)

[Razer]

Sure, it's not that attractive looking and it's probably awkward as all hell to use, but the prospect of programming all those buttons has me giddy. While the guy who designed the mouse thinks it'd be great for World of Warcraft or OpenOffice tasks, I know I won't be wasting a single button for either of those things. Anyone got better suggestions? [Open Office Mouse—Thanks, Joel!]

The strange thing about the Magic Mouse is not how it works. It is that you have different gestures than on a standard Macbook Pro trackpad.

One obvious example: Since you move the cursor by moving the whole mouse with your hand, there's no point in also using one finger to move the cursor, like on the trackpad. Moving your finger on the surface of the Magic Mouse allows you to scroll in all directions, 360 degrees around.

You can also scroll with two or three fingers, if you move them up and down. But if you swipe them from side to side while using a web browser, your browsing history moves forward or back.

Physically, the mouse is beautiful, and feels nice. The top is made of white polycarbonate that matches the keys on Apple's keyboards. It is one seamless touch surface, and, logically, there is no Mighty Mouse scroll nipple.

The surface can also simulate the left and right buttons. Unlike in previous Apple's mice, the two buttons work perfectly. This time they also added physical feedback, so when you click the buttons, you actually get the entire surface to click—like the original clear Apple mouse.

The mouse runs on AA batteries, and Apple claims 4 months of use per set. You can get it with the new iMac or pay $69 separately.

There was a small thing I noticed, though: the mouse would sometimes move when I tried to scroll — I can maybe get used to this, but it was a thing that happened to me and my presenter who definitely had more time with the mouse. The other reason why Apple went with fewer fingers for swipe and scroll gestures, besides the issue of pointing already being taken care of by the mouse's table action, was because you need your ring finger to hold the mouse properly or the thing slides on your desk.

Also, the mouse will be software configurable for lefties.

Apple Introduces Magic Mouse — The World's First Multi-Touch Mouse

CUPERTINO, Calif., Oct. 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Apple® today introduced the new wireless Magic Mouse, the first mouse to use Apple's revolutionary Multi-Touch™ technology. Pioneered on iPhone®, iPod touch® and Mac® notebook trackpads, Multi-Touch allows customers to navigate using intuitive finger gestures. Instead of mechanical buttons, scroll wheels or scroll balls, the entire top of the Magic Mouse is a seamless Multi-Touch surface. Magic Mouse comes standard with the new iMac® and will be available as a Mac accessory at just $69.

"Apple is the Multi-Touch leader, pioneering the use of this innovative technology in iPhone, iPod touch and Mac notebook trackpads," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "Apple's Multi-Touch technology allows us to offer an easy to use mouse in a simple and elegant design."

Magic Mouse features a seamless touch-sensitive enclosure that allows it to be a single or multi-button mouse with advanced gesture support. Using intuitive gestures, users can easily scroll through long documents, pan across large images or swipe to move forward or backward through a collection of web pages or photos. Magic Mouse works for left or right handed users and multi-button or gesture commands can be easily configured from within System Preferences.

The Magic Mouse laser tracking engine provides a smooth, consistent experience across more surfaces than a traditional optical tracking system. Magic Mouse uses Bluetooth wireless capabilities to create a clean, cable-free desk top and its secure wireless connection works from up to 10 meters away. To extend battery performance, Magic Mouse includes an advanced power management system that works with Mac OS® X to automatically switch to low power modes during periods of inactivity. The wireless Magic Mouse is powered by two AA batteries which are included.

Pricing & Availability
Magic Mouse comes standard with the new iMac and is available at the end of October through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), at Apple's retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers for a suggested retail price of $69 (US). Magic Mouse requires Mac OS X Leopard® version 10.5.8 or later.

Price(y)

Orochi is $80, which is steep for a Bluetooth mouse, even one that travels well. It's especially painful considering the sensor's finickiness means it doesn't live up to its raison d'tre, even if the mouse does feel great for a portable and you get gamery things like onboard storage of macros.

It feels good, mostly

Orochi pulls off that rare trick where it manages to feel almost ergonomic when you grip it, despite being a symmetric mouse, because the side grooves cradle both your thumb and your ring finger. The rubberized texture is classic Razer—smooth but sticky at the same time, designed for your hand to sweat on and still maintain a grip. In the end though, it is a small mouse—so while it works great in a pinch for a couple hours at a time, the squee size makes sure it's not exactly the comfy La-Z-Boy of gaming mice.

Track this

For a mouse that you're meant to take anywhere, it should have a less picky sensor. While it tracks perfectly on my wood desk and on regular mousepads, it was pretty damn spotty on the faux leathery surfaces covering the desks at the Gawker offices, though they've never been a problem for other mice I've used on them from Microsoft or Logitech (I always considered them to be nearly perfect mousing surfaces, actually). It's unfortunate, too, because the bottom of the mouse itself glides on top of anything like Brian Boitano.

Software and configuratorator

Orochi uses a pretty standard Razer configurator that lets you adjust DPI, program buttons, assign macros, switch the mouse's lighting on or off. There's even a Mac version now. The catch is that you can't configure the mouse when it's connected via Bluetooth, you have to plug it in via USB. But the Bluetooth pairing process itself is painless, and worked perfectly. I didn't get to fully test Razer's claim of 1-3 months of battery life under "normal usage" for obvious reasons, but I haven't managed to kill it with a couple days of what I'd call heavy usage. If the battery does drop, you can always plug it in via breakaway USB though.

If it was cheaper and the sensor could handle more roughage, it'd be a solid pick for fragging in a Starbucks, but it's a kinda risky buy for that much money, as is.

Ergonomics are solid

Yay Bluetooth

No configuring while using Bluetooth

The 4000dpi sensor is a little too picky about surfaces

$80!

The Price

$98.50 $70 on Newegg

The Verdict

Too expensive to be worth it.

The Cyber Sport Orbita Mouse is an interesting anomaly in that it looks and behaves totally different from any other mouse on the market now, but actually does exactly the same things as what you've got in front of you. There's the standard right and left click, then you can twist the mouse to scroll up, down, left or right. If you're familiar with the PowerMate, it's that, plus a right click button.

Despite what the site says, it's not an ergonomic mouse—not when compared to an actual ergonomic mouse—but it does scroll satisfyingly when you twist. Its most annoying factor is the first few minutes or hours when you start using it, thanks to the fact that you actually have to calibrate the mouse. The instructions aren't clear enough to get it done right on the first try, so you may have some bad luck before you finally get the thing to work properly.

If you don't really care about ergonomics, this is a reasonable enough mouse that basically has $45 worth of PowerMate built in, but without the customizability of the Griffin suite. Those of you who have hands that are worried about RSI, a standard ergonomic mouse plus a PowerMate will turn out to be about the same price. But on the same note, why does the PowerMate still cost $45 after so many years? [Newegg and Orbita]

Scrolling by turning is satisfying

Requires calibration

Not very ergonomic

Takes a while to get used to

Costs $70

A Brief History Lesson

The original MX500 is the sliced bread of mousing ergonomics: The form factor is so good Logitech won't fuck with it more than six years and countless iterations later. The perfectly balanced ergonomic arch and thumb groove precisely straddle the line between suggestive and aggressive, so it feels just right, like Zach Morris.

The MX500 evolved into gamier, glossiers variants with boosted tracking engines, the MX 510 and still available MX518. That, in turn, gave us the original laser-based G5, which saw the loss of a thumb button through leprosy, and had a janky scroll wheel. Logitech fixed it with another take on the G5, adding back the missing thumb button and giving us a scroll wheel that worked, making the mouse great again. That brings us to the G500.

Let's Start with the Good

Like I said, there's a reason Logitech has kept the basic MX500 silhouette around for so long, through at least six other mice: It just works. There are some minor tweaks with the G500, which actually feels slightly more symmetrical, with a wider but less pronounced thumb groove that flows more smoothly into the body of the mouse, but it's basically the same. It's a little more texturally vivid than I'd prefer, with sides that feel like rubberized sandpaper for gripping, but I got used to it fast enough.

The laser engine inside now pushes 5700dpi, or exactly 100dpi more than Razer's latest laser engine. Logitech peeing on the pissing match, in other words. It also polls at 1000Hz, the same speed as Razer's sytem. (FWIW, I couldn't discern any difference between Microsoft's 500Hz polling and Razer's 1000Hz in actual gaming sessions.) The G500's tracking and accuracy is excellent, both on cloth pads and my fake wood desk.

Crippling Flaws

The reason I dragged you through a brief tour of Logitech mouse history is because Logitech repeats it with the G500. The original G5 screwed up on the thumb buttons and scroll wheel, and the G500 manages to screw that up spectacularly too.

It's the first gaming mouse MX500 descendant Logitech has graced with the hyper-scroll tech that's been in its high-end consumer mice for a while—it's got a toggle button that lets you pick between regular clicky (but still speedy) scrolling or the hyper-infinite scroll, where one flick of your finger spins the scroll wheel almost forever, shooting you down a million lines in Excel in half a second. Which is great, if you spend a lot of time in Excel or zipping through web pages—not so great if you're flicking through a handful of weapons in Left 4 Dead. Even when it's not in hyper mode, the scroll wheel's still pretty fast and loose—though that's something that you can mitigate with careful scrolling.

What really murders the scroll wheel, though, is that middle-clicking is an act requiring damn near surgical skill. Half the time you attempt to middle click, and you think you have, you've actually just left- or right-scroll clicked. Which is not the same command. Meaning, if you've mapped middle click as a lightning fast shortcut to get back to your main gun after you've tossed out a proxy mine, you're gonna get shot in the face trying to pull out your gun.

The thumb buttons are almost as bad. Instead of two clearly distinguishable buttons, we've now got a nearly seamless button strip that actually contains three buttons for you to press. And, just like the scroll wheel, you'll go to click one button, and wind up hitting a different one, particularly the new "middle" thumb button. You don't know how many people got backstabbed by Spies in Team Fortress 2 after I tried to hit the forward button to yell at them via voice chat but tapped the wrong button.

Don't Buy

Gaming gear, in theory, should be all about precision. That's why Logitech tells us the dots per inch the mouse's sensor can handle and how fast and how often the mouse gets data from the laser sensor. That's why I can adjust the dpi rating on the fly. That's why Logitech includes weights with the mouse, so you can even adjust how much it weighs, down to the gram. Yet two buttons that people use a lot are huge failures in precision. Whole buttons. That negates basically everything else that's good about the mouse, which is a lot, like the heavy braided cable, or built-in profile storage, so you don't have to redo your settings everytime you take it to a different computer.

So, my advice? If you're dedicated to Logitech, wait for the next G500, or the surely inevitable wireless variant. Logitech will probably fix the problems in the revision, just like they did before. Or, just stick with the actually good G5, which is $20 cheaper, at $50. You don't really need 5700dpi anyway. If you're open to other mousemakers, in the same price range, I'd suggest Razer's DeathAdder, which recently got beefed up with Razer's newer tracking engine and a less flimsy cable, Microsoft's wireless SideWinder X8, or SteelSeries' relatively frill-free Ikari.

Classic Logitech ergonomics still great

Crazy fast sensor tracks really well

Scroll wheel design is not great for games

Thumb buttons completely screwed up

So what exactly did those crazy scientists do? They bred mice with the "gene that produces the protein S6 kinase 1 (S6K1)" disabled. The effects of this are a bit extreme:

The change mimicked the effect of keeping the mice on a calorie-restricted diet. Severely restricting the diets of yeast, bacteria, mice and primates have granted these animals unnaturally long lives. For humans, however, maintaining a diet of near starvation would be difficult at best

That last part's the bad news so far, but researchers are conducting further studies particularly targeting the S6K1 protein as it seems to have a direct link to longevity in mice. There are hopes that the benefits will one day be reproduced with drugs so that we don't have to starve ourselves for longer lives and prettier looks.

I do hope that the boys reading aren't too obsessed about anti-aging though, because the last bit of bad news is that "only the female mice benefited" in the study. Sorry, guys. [Discover]

According to AppleInsider, the mouse's nipple—the ball in the middle that gets useless after a while thanks to dirt and sweat—is going away. Instead, the mightier mouse will use a multitouch solution to replace it, likely integrated with the housing itself.

Their sources also say that it will likely at last abandon the white polycarbonate look in favor of an aluminum finish. I would certainly like a metal mouse, but I will not hold my breath about any rumors anymore. [AppleInsider]

Hand-painted mousetraps dress up that rodent-infested crap shack with bright colors and sassy styles. It's kind of like a death row inmate going to an electric chair shaped like a throne. Classy. [Etsy via Trendhunter]

The aluminum "feel" body is loaded with both jog and scroll wheels, meaning you can just as easily scroll through a spreadsheet as complete that Miley Cyrus/Styx mash-up sure to land you on the fast track to the Big Promotion. And yes, that big SCRATCH button actually allows you to scratch MP3s in real time (using bundled software).

The DJ Mouse is available now for $79. Of course, those of us who make sound effects with our mouths really frown upon this sort of thing. [DJ Mouse via Everything USB via OhGizmo!]

Not only can you program macros to Naga's 17 buttons however you want, but the mouse works with custom software extensions, called Add Ons, that actually add new interfaces to the game and allow you have to unlimited character profiles. Update: Oh boo, they're actually in-game, so you can't program 'em outside of WoW or Warhammer for now:

Otherwise, it uses Razer's now standard laser engine—5600dpi, 1ms response time—and goes for $80. Oh, and if you're in the market for a $50 glowing mousepad, they've got you covered there too with the Megasoma mat. [Razer, Razer]

The Price: $80 for the Anywhere Mouse, $100 for the Performance Mouse

The Technology: A new lasering scheme called "Darkfield Laser Tracking", which gives the mouse enough fidelity to illuminate even glass (as long as it's more than 4mm thick). The laser (or standard optical) illuminates the different terrains on a surface, which the mouse can then track to see which direction you're moving your hand in. The more differences the mouse can "see", the more fine-grained the movement. The Darkfield tech works by blocking out light from the central area, then allowing light to enter at an angle, which is more refined in seeing abnormalities. Both these mice use two lasers to help track dust, scratches and other identifying features.

The Verdict: It works! It works so well that it tracks just fine on a glass sliding door. And using it on regular mousepads, like the MacPadd aluminum mousepad, works even better than last-generation Logitech mice at providing a smooth, uninterrupted mousing experience.

The Big One: The Performance Mouse MX is similar to the MX Revolution and the MX 1100 in that it's fully loaded, meant for the hardcore mouse user and only really usable for right-handed people. But there are some slight differences. The Performance mouse has its forward and back thumb buttons have moved slightly higher to make room for a zoom button underneath. It's also slightly narrower and smaller, pushing your hand further back on the mouse instead of firmly in your palm area.

To us, that's a slight step backwards in design. We prefer the fatter mice that fits in your hand like a comfortable pebble, but this should probably be fine for people with smaller hands that complain about the size of the previous two MX devices. So, great for Chinese children forced to farm gold in World of Warcraft all day.

The Performance MX takes one AA battery and comes with one rechargeable Eneloop, which is great. Other than that, it's basically the mouse you loved before but with increased tracking capability with the Darkfield laser.

The Small One: The Anywhere Mouse is like a travel mouse with benefits. It has the two forward and back thumb buttons, a separate middle click/app switcher button and the same Darkfield laser. It's also slightly larger than usual travel mice, but still small enough to fit easily in bags without bulging out too much.

It takes two AAs and actually has a slot inside the mouse for the Logitech Unifying adapter, preventing it from being lost in the bowels of your briefcase. It's definitely one of the best travel mice we've used, and the fact that it has better trackability with Darkfield means you won't need to bring a mousepad along with you—you can just mouse anywhere.

Final Thoughts: Although the Performance Mouse MX is slightly smaller than we'd like, it's still one of the best-tracking mice we've ever used. If you've got a glass table, or if you just like slightly better fidelity with your input devices, Logitech's new Darkfield is probably as big a step forward as the jump from optical to laser.

Launching just days behind the similarly-designed piggybacking headset for BlackBerry, the Mogo mouse for netbooks brings its own slot, in the form of a mountable charging holster. The 5mm-thick mouse connects via Bluetooth, and will do your hand's bidding for around 10 hours on a 30-minute charge.

Mogo for netbooks is available as part of a $100 kit, which includes one (1) tiny mouse, a docking connector and a charging cable. [Mogo via Slippery Brick]

Original 1967 mouse patent? Check. Crazy virtual reality input methods? Ditto. In addition to abandoned pyramid-shaped and Timex clock mice, highlights include a mouse that has a telephone built into it, and another that's built-into a telephone. [Technologizer]

The Gaming Mouse G500 has a "battle worn finish" and dual-mode scroll wheel that either can click through weapon selection, or be made frictionless when scrolling Web pages. Like the G5, you can also add extra weight (up to 27 grams). The G500 will cost $70 when it ships in September.

For its part, the Gaming Headset G330 has a behind-the-head design, volume control on its cord, and provides basic noise canceling for $50. Though it can connect to your PC via 3.5mm mini-jack, using it over USB enables optimized EQ. [Logitech]

Logitech Gaming Mouse G500 Refreshes Popular Logitech G5 Laser Mouse with Latest Gaming-Grade Laser Engine, Logitech Gaming Headset G330 Delivers Comfort That Won't Quit

FREMONT, Calif. - Aug. 6, 2009 - When there's sweat on your brow, and it's way too late to turn back, it's time to choose wisely. To help you make the right choice when victory is on the line, Logitech (SIX: LOGN) (NASDAQ: LOGI) today unveiled extensions to its award-winning G-series line of gaming peripherals: the Logitech® Gaming Mouse G500 and the Logitech® Gaming Headset G330. The Gaming Mouse G500 refreshes the popular Logitech® G5 Laser Mouse with the latest gaming-grade laser engine and a battle-worn appearance, while the Gaming Headset G330 delivers comfort that won't quit – even after long hours of battle.

"As more and more people make gaming with family and friends the new night out, Logitech continues to push the envelope with the Logitech G-series." said Ruben Mookerjee, Logitech's director of product marketing for gaming. "If you're getting serious about gaming – or have already seen the light – then the best way to dive ever deeper into the game is by putting the G500 mouse in your good hand and the G330 headset on your head. Victory is up to you."

For gamers, especially the more than 11 million people playing World of Warcraft® or the millions on a tour of Call of Duty®, the Gaming Mouse G500 and the Gaming Headset G330 help ensure that every late-night gaming session is victorious.

Logitech Gaming Mouse G500
The successor to the classic Logitech® G5 Laser Mouse, the Logitech Gaming Mouse G500 delivers game-changing precision at any hand speed. With its gaming-grade laser engine you can rev up your intensity – reaching a maximum hand speed of 165 inches per second (ips) and a maximum acceleration force of 30 gs. An on-the-fly adjustable-dpi gives you the right level of precision – from pixel-precise targeting (200 dpi) to lightning-fast maneuvers (up to 5700 dpi) – for whatever game you're playing. (The dpi can be adjusted, after installing the Logitech® Gaming Software, in increments of 100 dpi). Plus, full-speed USB helps ensure that the G500 mouse is smooth and responsive.

But the G500 mouse offers much more than precision. A rugged finish offers a battle-worn accent to your gear. And an updated shape – with a broader thumb rest and a smoothed-out pinkie ledge – makes the new Logitech gaming mouse more comfortable when you're in the heat of competition.

When you're ready to battle, the onboard memory lets you save and take the settings for your favorite title with you – no software required. If you're sensitive to weight, the G500 mouse offers weight tuning, including up to 27 grams of extra weight for personalized feel and control. The additional weights fit into a removable chassis and, when not in use, can be stored in the accompanying case. A dual-mode scroll wheel – with hyper-fast scrolling for those times that you have to work – provides click-to-click scrolling that's perfect for weapon selection. And ten programmable buttons put valuable macros in your hand (software required).

Logitech Gaming Headset G330
Even when gaming casualties are heavy, your Logitech Gaming Headset G330 isn't. The lightweight G330 headset combats fatigue with its adjustable, behind-the-head design – the first of its kind for gaming headsets – that slides for a personalized fit. To further relieve common pressure points on your head, the G330 headset features a soft silicone-lined headband and pivoting ear pads. And with durable steel spring at its core, the flexible headband is designed to withstand the wear and tear of furious battle.

A noise-canceling microphone reduces annoying background noise and rotates out of the way when you're not using it. The in-line audio controls let you adjust the volume or mute the microphone without pausing the action. An included USB adapter lets you choose to connect digitally to any USB port for enhanced audio or directly to your PC sound card via 3.5 mm jacks.

Pricing and Availability
The Logitech Gaming Mouse G500 is expected to be available in the U.S. and Europe in September for a suggested retail price of $69.99 (U.S.). The Logitech Gaming Headset G330 is expected to be available in the U.S. and Europe in August for a suggested retail price of $49.99 (U.S.).