Microsoft Wireless Notebook Optical Mouse 3000 - Slate
by Microsoft
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Microsoft Wireless Notebook Optical Mouse 3000 - Slate
Customer Review: Perhaps the Ideal Laptop Mouse!
Summary: 5 Stars
I've had this mouse for a couple of weeks and am very satisfied with it. There was no software installation. I simply plugged the wireless receiver into an available USB port, put a "AA" size battery in the mouse, and turned on the computer. The mouse started working just as Windows XP finished loading.
It may be a little small for really large hands, but it fits my hand (medium-size male) perfectly with my palm resting on a mouse pad for comfort. In fact, it feels better than most I've had in the past (desktop or laptop). And the mouse fits into a side packet of a laptop case very nicely. As others have pointed out, the USB receiver fits into the bottom of the mouse when traveling.
The buttons are shapped well, as are the rubber side grips. The two large buttons feel solid, but the center scroll button is a little noisy and doesn't feel as well made. But, that center button works as well as the other two.
Since I've only had it a couple of weeks, I don't know how long the "AA" battery will last yet. However, I'm using my laptop mainly as a desktop, used many hours each day, and the original battery is still going strong. To insert the battery, press the silver button directly below the "Microsoft" logo and the top pops off (the release button is designed to look decorative). At that point, one will immediately see the battery holder.
The wireless feature works flawlessly. In fact, if one had really good eyes, one could operate the computer from the other side of a room. Yes, I've actually tried that, with the mouse moving the cursor around the screen with no problems.
I just read one of the other reviews where a lag was mentioned. I've seen nothing of this. In fact, after reading that review, I sat here moving the mouse slowly, quickly, tiny movements, short movements, long movements, and so on, with no noticeable lag. The cursor moves exactly as the mouse moves.
All in all, I think anyone would be satisfied with this mouse.
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UPDATE: I wrote the above in February 2005 and have continued to use the mouse since (now Aug 2006). It is still performing well and the battery mentioned in the review above lasted through about 2.5 months of routine everyday use. I have since purchased a second mouse for my desktop computer, which is also working fine after about four months. The following is in response to issues raised by other reviewers.
To Edwin A. Pell III (New York), the mouse fits identically in either a left or right hand. To reverse the buttons, open the "Mouse" control panel and select "other pointing devices" in the drop-down menu listing your laptop's touchpad.
Again, to anyone wanting to ADJUST MOUSE SETTINGS, use the "other pointing devices" selection in the "Mouse" control panel.
To A. Mazakov (Fairfax, VA), the mouse is not sealed shut. The screws are located under the four black adhesive feet on the bottom of the mouse. Pry the feet off with a knife and stick them back on when finished with your modification.
To Denis Dolgachev (Ann Arbor, MI), you do not have to disconnect the mouse each night. The mouse enters a battery saving mode when no movement is detected for some time, allowing batteries to last upwards of two to three months (depending on usage) with a continous connection. In other words, you really only need to disconnect the mouse when you want to move or store the computer.
Those mentioning lags, delays, or choppy movement should check the "Mouse" control panel settings or for things interfering with USB devices. When setup and operating properly, there is no latency behavior whatsoever with this mouse. Movements are fine and precise. The only normal delay is in the split second when the mouse recovers from the battery saving mode after periods of inactivity.
Customer Review: 50/50
Summary: 3 Stars
First let me say this review will address mainly the negatives of this mouse. Microsoft and Amazon do a good job at advertising it's postivies, so I don't feel the need to "beat a dead horse" so to speak.
I did not buy this mouse from amazon, but thought I would share my views on it while in the process of finding a replacement after over two years use. This mouse got used a lot. Every day for at least 2 hours and most days 4+ hours of use. For roughly 6 months it was used extensively to model parts in solidworks (a 3d modeling program which is mouse click intensive). The rest of the time it was used mainly to surf the net. If the scroll wheel had an odometer it would have probably rolled back over to zero more than a couple times (I'm scroll wheel happy on webpages).
Overall it's been a good mouse when the battery isn't dead. Don't worry the battery life is roughly a month, but when the battery approcaches the end of it's life the mouse tends to "spaz" out and the cursor will jump around on the screen.However, stealing the nearest AA remote battery (because I never seem to have new batteries) will fix the problem.
My main complaint is the size. It's too small for my hand, which is 8" from end of palm to end of middle finger for size comparison. I can use the mouse effectively, but my palm normally rest on the desk and only my fingers touch the mouse as opposed to resting my palm on the mouse. After several hours of use I develop a dull ache in my right hand because of this. This gives me a bad fear of early (I'm only 22) arthritis.
Works on just about any surface except black surfaces. Not usually a problem, but as a college student I have found it doesn't like most lab tables due to their black tops. However I have never ran across a situation where I didn't have something (most times a piece of paper) to use as a mouse pad. I have even used it on my bed sheets when they're pulled tight.
The USB (flash drive looking part) sticks out from the bottom of the mouse when in it's storage location under the mouse. This mainly aggravates me because it doesn't sit level on my desk top when not in use. However, it does leave it susceptible to snagging when trying to store in it a back pack/purse/laptop bag or whatever you put your mouse in. The usb also is quite long which takes more caution when moving my laptop or trying to actually use it in my lap (ie another snaging problem). It's roughly the same size as an average jump drive (measures 2.5" actually) so as you might imagine it sticks out just waiting for you to rip it out.
The mouse doesn't have any short-cut buttons. I normally keep two tabs open in my internet browsers and moving the mouse to the top of the screen to alternate between tabs becomes a chore when you net surf like I do.
Finally the reason for replacing this mouse, it craped out on me. It started some time ago not wanting to connect when I plugged it in (no green light). Normally this was remedied by wiggling the usb part. However, after causing the usb ports in my new lap top (couple months old now) to fall out of their socket and as of today stop working all together (the mouse) it's time to move on. I feel that I got my $20 worth of use out of it and it has provided me a new set of criteria for my next mouse.
Just for those curious my new mouse criteria includes...1)Big enough for my hand...2)Rechargeable...3) A small USB connection...4)Short-cut buttons...The rest of course are simple things like fiber-optic, scroll wheel, and wireless....
Customer Review: Works well but buggy (Review from 2010)
Summary: 2 Stars
1st thing that struck me was all the 5 star reviews were from 2005! Most of those users were probable still using XP! I'm usually good at looking up reviews prior to purchase, but I figured, "A wireless mouse is a mouse, right?" WRONG.
The positives are: The mouse works well as a mouse should; pointing is precise, easy clicks, etc. Its plug and play so you can yank it or add it back at any time during your *active* session (more on this later). The battery lasts a REAL long time too. For the actual use of the mouse, I have no complaints.
The negatives are: My laptop never sleeps. Googled the problem and apparently there's lots of people who have the same problem. I have been through every Control Panel setting, my hardware settings, the mouse settings, etc etc. I right click, Properties and go into those boxes and look up advanced settings and have turned off every option I can find that allow the device to wake the laptop... and still my laptop won't sleep or kick in to screensaver. I literally have to remove the adapter every time I walk away. Sounds minor until you come home and realize your screens been burning that static wallpaper image all day because you forgot to remove the adapter. Then, in a magically non-sensical way, there are moments where my laptop (a 2009 Vaio w/ Vista) will go to sleep, but then not the next time. Mind boggling.
2ndly, for the average consumer... who can tell me exactly what wireless tech this mouse uses? Is it bluetooth? Wi-fi? 2.4GHz? I don't know and don't try looking for that detail... its no where to be found. I knew when buying it that it wasn't bluetooth, but for those of you who might want to know that... its not bluetooth.
Had I known this was tech from 2005, I probably would have not been so cheap and went for a more advanced and updated mouse. The adapter is unusually big compared to today's adapters and sticks out pretty far. A few times now I almost knocked it out from carrying my laptop from one room to another.
Then, to add to these complications, if you remove or add the adapter, do so while you are up and active. Do NOT remove the adapter AFTER you've put your device into sleep or hibernate mode. Do NOT add the device back in while the PC is in sleep or hibernate mode... for some reason this locks up my laptop every single time and forces me to reboot. I am not a dunderhead and am rather great at troubleshooting and fixing my own problems, and this is one that I haven't found a solution to.
In comparison, I have another wireless mouse by Rocketfish, and this mouse made me appreciate it more. The Rocketfish mouse is bluetooth, and since most every device now has BT, there's no need for a chintzy adapter. 2nd, the Rocketfish's scrollwheel also has the ability to lean left and lean right, which allows you to scroll left or right using the wheel (and not just up and down like 'regular' mice). The price differece here is about $10, and I would say that it's worth spending an extra $10 for a better mouse than this.
But, if you can't afford the extra $10, then the mouse works, but just realize it's old and buggy and you are going to get what you paid for. The 5 star reviews, again, are from 2005, so keep that in mind. I originally intended to use this mouse with my HTPC but was so frustrated it by it that I now use my rocketfish for the HTPC and this junk for my laptop... and truthfully, I might just go get another mouse soon.
Good luck to the rest of you if you decide to purchase this mouse.
Customer Review: Great in between sized wireless mouse...
Summary: 4 Stars
Having purchased a laptop, I immediately wanted a mouse that could easily travel with me and not be connected by a wire. So, I purchased the MS Wireless 3000.
With XP Media edition installed, the mouse was easily recognized by the system once I plugged in the included USB transmitter/connector. Terrific! Adjusting the settings was easy using the control panel too, no different than any other mouse.
The signal from mouse to transmitter, or visa versa, is magnificent. Not that I would use the wireless mouse anywhere further than a few inches from the laptop, I took the mouse across the room and scrolled it across the textured walls of the hotel I was staying. The signal was still strong and I was able to navigate the entire screen from nearly 15 feet away from the laptop. Not practical, of course, but a nice example showing that if you have a lot of items stacked around the laptop, you'll be sure to have a strong signal to to maintain uninterrupted mouse functions (my only question would be if each unit on the market has a unique signal -- I wonder if someone else owned the same mouse while we were, say, in a coffee shop somewhere, if there would transmitter conflicts).
The cons I could come up with were two, and these are purely subjective. First, if you accidentally knock the USB tranmitter connector, you might lose signal temporarily causing the mouse performance to stagger a bit until the system recognizes the mouse again. The second is the middle wheel button on the mouse. Works great, and rolls well, but when rolling, the graduated clicks of each turn are a little less fluid than, say, the full size Microsoft wireless mouse I also own. Again, purely a subjective comment -- the wheel and the mouse work perfectly.
Summary: The Microsoft Wireless Notebook Optical Mouse 3000 is a good sized compact mouse that is not too small to handle, but convenient enough to tote around. Looks great too, if that matters, but performance is top notch! I recommend it.
P.S. I have the version of the mouse that seems to have a smaller USB transmitter than the one pictured. My box is dated 2005 and also notes "Now with High Definition" on the box. I assume the smaller USB trans is upgraded from the larger version seen here from reviews dating back before this 2005 product version. Just FYI.
Customer Review: Disappointed
Summary: 2 Stars
I needed a wireless mouse to simplify watching online video. For this application, a wireless mouse with good distance capabilities is very helpful. I bought the Microsoft wireless mouse online and did not see any distance limitations in the advertisement details. Unfortunately, a 3' limitation is specified and nicely hidden in the user manual.
The mouse does work properly within its 3' limits but that is not meeting my needs. So, I bought a Logitech Wireless Mouse M305 with the hope that the Logitech might by useable at longer distances. For the remainder of this review, I will compare both products.
My buying experience with the Logitech mouse was similar as I did not see any distance limitations in the advertisement details. I just bought it on hope. When I opened the Logitech packaging, I still could not find specified distance limitations.
My usage experience with the Logitech mouse was great!!!!! My first test was to use it about 8' away and it worked fine. At this point, the Logitech mouse more than meets my needs. I decided to try longer distances. I walked to another room about 30' away and the mouse still functioned properly. I do not know the maximum distance this mouse can handle. So, each mouse works well, but the Microsoft mouse has a sever distance limitation.
Other comparison features:
The Microsoft mouse offers for the USB Receiver under the mouse. Putting the USB Receiver in its storage location also turns off the mouse electronics and saves battery life. There does not appear to be any other off switch, so to turn it off, remove the USB Receiver from the computer and store it. I find this a little inconvenient. For my requirement, I would like to leave the USB Receiver attached to the computer for extended periods. Storing the USB Receiver is as inconvenient as removing the battery would be.
The Logitech mouse has an on/off switch under the mouse. I can leave the USB Receiver attached to the computer for extended periods and still switch the mouse off very easily. Storage for the USB Receiver is available near the battery, under the battery cover.
Overall, the Logitech mouse meets my needs better. The Logitech mouse works at greater distances and has a simple on/off switch. Otherwise, both products function well.