TRAP A BETTER MOUSE
Most of the world looks to build a better mousetrap, but Microsoft continues to build a better mouse. Their newest species offers several improvements but of most interest is the scroll wheel. As one who uses a mouse with a scroll wheel, I have to tell you that it's become a necessity. That became most apparent when I had to use a mouse without a scroll wheel on someone else's computer. I find my index finger constantly reaching for the wheel and it most certainly eats into my productivity when I don't have one.
Granted that there have been plenty of new innovations with the computer mouse, most noticeably the wireless and optical variety. Using a mouse with a friction ball or one that's tethered to a computer makes me feel like I'm operating a prehistoric rodent.
 What with optical, wireless, extra buttons and the like, Microsoft's new Tilt Wheel technology is the first major improvement to a mouse that's come along in quite some time and it's very innovative. Basically, the scroll wheel adds a new dimension to scrolling. The ordinary scroll wheel lets you scroll up and down. The new one does that plus it lets you scroll left and right as well. To scroll up and down, you move the scroll wheel forward and back as you would with the ordinary kind. To move left and right, you tilt the wheel left and right. What could be more natural?
My first try using the tilt wheel was flawless. I navigated to a window that could scroll both ways and gave it a try. Since the tilt wheel doesn't really rotate left and right in the same manner that the wheel scrolls up and down, I thought there would be some adjustment necessary on my part. But I had it down on the first try. Tilting the wheel to the left panned the window in the respective direction, tilting it to the right moved me back the other way. Using the control panel, I was able to adjust the sensitivity just a bit more to my liking but that was about all I had to do. The wheel has a smooth scrolling ability that yields a more accurate result without the ratchet feeling that's incorporated in other scroll wheel mice.
Microsoft has added other enhancements to this generation of tilt wheel mice. The accelerated scrolling ability that moves a greater distance based upon how fast you move the wheel for example, has been enhanced to be even more accurate, plus you can move the cursor to the next open window on the screen by pushing down on the scroll wheel. You no longer have to locate a program on the toolbar or type a keyboard shortcut. The new mice have also been enhanced to yield a longer battery life. Microsoft claims that up to six months of use may go by before you have to change the batteries. That's a very important enhancement since the one major objection given by those who continue to resist going cordless is that they have to change the batteries frequently. It seems like Microsoft has removed that objection with this next generation of cordless mouse.
Microsoft has incorporated the Tilt Wheel into their Wireless IntelliMouse Explorer, IntelliMouse Explorer, Wireless Optical Mouse and Wireless Optical Desktop Elite products. The new mouse comes in several new exotic colors that include periwinkle, Blue Moon and black leather.
If you're ready for the next new thing in a computer mouse, then you should go for this one full tilt.
www.microsoft.com/hardware |
