Microsoft Wireless Notebook Optical Mouse

By Lara Luepke, CNET.com on 01 February 2005

A worthy alternative to a laptop's built-in pointing device, this downsized mouse is convenient for travel, but it sacrifices some comfort for its compact size.

User rating:6.9
  • Good: Receiver stows nicely into the bottom • Compact size • Easy setup
  • Bad: Less comfortable than a full-size mouse
  • Specs: Mouse • Scrolling wheel, Programmable buttons • See more specifications
  • RRP: AU$70.00
Just slightly larger than the actual animal, the Microsoft Wireless Notebook Optical Mouse is a great USB-enabled companion for your laptop, or even your desktop -- Macs included. For around AU$70, notebook users can forget about built-in touch pads or old-school pointing sticks and have a fully functional programmable mouse -- and no worries about cords.

With basically no setup, your mouse will be up and running. Just plug in the receiver to your USB port and start using it. Then configure the buttons as you like from your control panel, just as you would with any mouse.

The sheer tininess of this mouse and its portable design elements make it perfect for travel. It will easily fit into your laptop bag or a pocket, and the receiver conveniently snaps into the bottom of the mouse, conserving the battery and ensuring that you don't misplace the receiver, which is about the size of key fob. According to Microsoft, the receiver will sense your mouse up to a metre away, but in tests with a fresh battery, it still was fully functional at a distance of more than a metre and a half. There's no recharging this pint-size pointer. It runs off of one AA battery which Microsoft claims can last up to three months (assuming you're careful about replacing the receiver when the mouse isn't in use).

The optical nature of the mouse and its standard two-button/one-scrollwheel design add accuracy and usability for the majority of laptop users coping with uncomfortable touch pads and the lack of a scrollwheel. The small yet stylish design is ergonomic and fits both left-handed and right-handed users, but it's less comfortable than most full-size mice and is perhaps better suited to a child's hand size.

At 90 grams (with battery), the Microsoft Wireless Notebook Optical Mouse is only slightly lighter than similar full-size wireless mice. Their dimensions vary, but they usually come in at less than 150 grams and use two AA batteries.

Topics: laptop, wireless, notebook, mouse, ms, optical, receiver, battery, microsoft, size

Comments (12)

  • blessediam03 gave 3/10 on 23/09/2008 12:36 Report abuse

    • Good: Convience and I love the size.
    • Bad: The connector does not work as long as it should

    Microsoft it is time for a recall for a product so many people are having the same problem with

  • mousekateer gave 2/10 on 16/06/2008 11:25 Report abuse

    • Good: when it worked it was great, lightweight, stows nicely. nice wheel, comfortable.
    • Bad: suddenly stops working , this is heard ALOT on the web.

    suddenly stopped working. I suspect a conflict with a Logitec driver for my webcam.

  • Kevin gave 6/10 on 20/12/2007 02:38 Report abuse

    • Good: wireless, accurate.
    • Bad: No idications that the batter needs replacing until it just stops working. Optical light will remain on and bright which makes you believe that the batter must still be good. This is not the case.

    Suddenly stopped working. Initially thought that it was defective after reading similar comments on the web. I finally just replaced the battery and now it works fine.

  • anyone.anywhere gave 3/10 on 28/11/2007 00:56 Report abuse

    • Good: Small, light, dongle clips to it for safe transportation. No problems with installation, worked perfectly for the first two months.
    • Bad: Stopped working suddenly (as I was using it). Very disappointed. Had to go out to buy another one, and I won't be buying one of these again!

    Good while it works..

  • Fatih Sahin gave 3/10 on 14/08/2007 20:44 Report abuse

    • Good: Nice mouse. Cool looking
    • Bad: Suddenly stops working

    I have this mouse. I had exactly the same problem. One day, it suddenly stopped working. I am suspicious of Microsoft because as i searched through the internet, a lot of people exactly the same problem.

  • DannyLoco gave 3/10 on 31/03/2007 06:23 Report abuse

    • Good: small, wireless, accurate
    • Bad: when plugged into the usb slot, it says that the device it not recognized and refuses to work. When I do get it to work, it will work for about 10 minutes before spontaneously dying again. it worked flawlessly for about 4 months...

    Nice Mouse but built NOT to last

  • pissoff gave 2/10 on 17/03/2007 05:10 Report abuse

    • Good: Receiver stows nicely into the bottom and turns mouse off
    • Bad: The dongle rotation should not go all the way around, 5 small wires just twist up until some break, making it useless

    Was a great mouse

  • Robert Barruga gave 4/10 on 29/09/2006 09:24 Report abuse

    • Good: No cable is a big plus. Great feel and precise. The weight of the mouse gives confort that it will not fall apart.
    • Bad: The USB sender has a mechanical disadvantage(it can be damaged). The store where I purchased the mouse replaced my first mouse, and Microsoft replaced the second mouse with their 3000 version of this wireless notebook optical mouse which does not have a movable part to break.

    I've had two that lasted about a month and a half

    The two mice are exactly the same in form, feel, and shape. The only difference is the USB attachment.

  • Madame.O gave 9/10 on 22/08/2006 17:43 Report abuse

    • Good: I've had this mouse with my laptop for about 18 months and it's absolutely ideal - light and portable (I can carry it anywhere in my handbag), the battery lasts for ages, no cables...
    • Bad: ...BUT it has just spontaneously stopped working, for no particular reason and with no solution (it randomly stops working and when unplugged/replugged says the hardware is not recognised or is corrupted, and only works again for a short time after a couple of tries) and being out of warranty, I'm just going to have to buy another one. The limited lifespan is a built-in feature of all Microsoft products, I fear.

    Great but not for long

  • Anonymous gave 1/10 on 29/11/2005 10:29 Report abuse

    Best mouse ever used - small size suits me!

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