A legend reborn: Microsoft brings back the iconic Classic IntelliMouse
blogs.windows.com
blogs.windows.com
I suppose it's hard for companies to recognise when they're at "peak function" and to just stop changing things but it's encouraging to see MS recognise that all of their "innovations" might have actually been making things worse, and just go back to the old design. Hope it's the start of a trend. MS mice used to be my hands down favourite.
It's not a choice between leaving things alone and change for change's sake.
Once the molds are worked out, getting new ones made is simple and cheap.
"It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends on his not understanding it", as Upton Sinclair famously wrote. Product managers (or rather product-people in general, including designers and so on) don't get bonuses for saying "the product is perfect as it is, we'll just keep paying a full team to fix bugs and do basic maintenance, forever".
Actually, isn't that basically how companies that produce one-off software work? Like game studios, for example. You've got a central pool of "design talent" that doesn't stay on past release, and then you've got "live teams" for each release.
This is so true and really becoming a problem in tech. Another good example is Google Maps. The browser version used to be great. And then they went and “improved” it and in the process actually made it harder to use, in my opinion.
I would rather write "was homeless" into my resume for those years as a UI/UX-Designer then admit i worked on that team.
I think there is a market for a mouse that can be either wired or Bluetooth. You could charge it and use it as a normal mouse if plugged in. Or you could use it in Bluetooth mode if not plugged in. This would save on AA batteries plus it would mean you could still use it on a PC where you have just installed the OS and don't have the Bluetooth setup yet.
Such a mouse could also work as a reasonable USB power brick for when your phone has no juice on the commute home.
Add in a small bit of flash storage and such a mouse would be perfect for all kinds of clever things.
Undoubtedly such a mouse would be niche but it could be the de-facto mouse for IT support people.
I can use it as a Bluetooth mouse, while charging from my USB port, but I can't use it as a USB mouse.
>hands down favourite
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Natural_Keyboard
Just take the 1994 version and remake it in USB, with no other changes whatsoever. Thanks.
It is pretty hard for to work in the same room as anyone using anything prior to the 4000, due to the loud spacebar, and even the 4000's spacebar is pretty loud. I do slightly prefer the larger hump of the early keyboards.
The Sculpt Ergonomic is a departure from the large-bodied models of the past, but for those pining for the past, give the present/future a try :).
Microsoft's HID hardware has, in my experience, always been great. Thank you, everyone who has made these tools possible.
I wish MS made a wired version of it. At least on MacOS, the dongle seems to be a perennial problem when new OS versions emerge.
[0]: https://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Ergonomic-Wireless-Desktop-...
The only ergonomic/split layout mechanical keyboards I can find so far are top-end niche products well beyond my price range.
In contrast, in the old Natural keyboard, all the keys for the left hand inhabited the same plane, and all the keys for the right hand inhabited a second plane -- excepting the arrow keys and the keys above it, which inhabited a third plane. (And when pressed a key would always travel perpendicular to this plane.)
Consequently, once I determined where one key is, it was easier to know where its neighbors are because they are all in the same plane. Ergo I need to remember only 2 quantities, namely how far to the left or the right it is and how many rows forward or back, as opposed to 3 quantities -- or 5 quantities if the keys point in different directions like they do on the Kinesis Advantage and IIRC the 4000.
(And within each plane, the layout of the keys followed very closely to standard layout introduced by IBM with the PS/2, which also helped me keep things memorized.)
The locations of the keys on a Kinesis Advantage are even more impossible for me to memorize to the accuracy I require to avoid RSI!
Now might be a good time to describe my cynical explanation for the many reports that switching from an ordinary keyboard to an "wave" or "bowl-shaped" keyboard helped with recovery from RSI: the massive change in the layout forces the coder to play closer attention to where the keys are, which keeps stress on the coder's hands low. If my cynical explanation is correct, then coders who develop RSI while using a "wave" keyboard would improve if they switch to a standard keyboard (because again the large change in keyboard format would force the coder to play closer attention to the locations of the keys).
But one does not need to switch keyboard formats to pay closer attention to the precise location (and orientation -- the direction the key will move when pressed -- if you are unlucky enough to use a keyboard in which the orientation of each key is different) of each key.
How do you avoid stubbing a toe when you walk around your apartment without shoes? Well, I devote a tiny fraction of my attention to where my feet and all the obstacles are. And I do the same to avoid RSI while typing.
But seriously, I know left handers are only 10% of the population, but I'm sick of being left behind, no pun intended. I've been using the Razer Deathadder for years and it's served me well. Well, the ergonomics for that matter anyway. Some of the choices with the structure are questionable at best.
On the inside the mouse is split into two circuit boards and soldered with the cheapest ribbon cable available. The shaft on the scroll wheel is made out of acrylic and while it lets light through for the underlighting pretty well, it's complete crap when durability comes into play. I admittedly get a little heated when playing, but I swear that thing will break just by looking at it. Additionally the switches on the mouse are acceptable at best. After about a year the switches wear out and become squishy.
At this point I'm possibly looking at re-engineering the internals. I have to buy one nearly every year just because they wear out.
Keyboard hotkeys are just made to be driven with the left hand while the right hand is free to use a mouse. It would take far too much customization (which not all applications even support) to rebind everything up support left hand mouse usage.
I'm at the point where hotkeying isn't a huge issue. The only one that really bothers me is copy paste, but I'm slowly learning to use shift + insert, ctrl + insert, and shift + delete
https://zowie.benq.com/en/product/mouse.html
The new Intellimouse preserves the old shape, but ignores the thing that made it legendary in the first place - the MLT04 sensor, which was (entirely accidentally) perfect for FPS gaming. Microsoft don't even mention their choice of sensor for this new mouse, which bodes badly.
The Deathadder was once a legendary good mouse but Razer no longer delivers the quality for the price I'd appreciate. And they seem to focus too much on their disco light BS (Chroma) which I don't need. Their mechanical keyboards are in my experience lousy (Anansi also didn't suit my needs): noisy and cheap key caps. I do like that my BlackWidow has USB passthrough on the right side. Works very well together with YubiKey and/or fingerprint reader.
FWIW, I'm in the market for a new keyboard which can be used for (but not primarily) gaming (don't need dedicated arrow keys, home/end/del/etc nor keypad) but has to be a silent, mechanical keyboard with USB passthrough on the right.
it's grotty as hell, but works like a charm.
Just adding this here as I've read a lot of complaints about Razer over the years, but I know complaints are louder and more frequent than quiet appreciation.
/anecdotage
I've unfortunately heard that the build quality has dropped in the interim. Don't know how much truth this is, currently debating my next mouse. I would straight drop 1-200$ if I could get a DA form factor/weight but with a better middle button and a handful of more function buttons along the mid-line/sides, _and know that it would last_ but all the options I see nowadays seem to be "From that list, choose ~2 things". If anyone has opinions, I'd be curious to hear, since god knows I trust here more than Amazon/Newegg reviews.
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=microsoft%20trackball%2...
Question for the lefties: what kind of pointing device do you prefer? Mouse? Touchpad? Do you prefer to swap L&R clicks when you use other people's computers?
It's great having the mouse to the left of the keyboard - so much less distance to move my hand when I switch from the keyboard to the mouse!
(I used to just use a mouse right-handed, but then RSI/OOS kicked in and I switched over. I wish I'd done it sooner!)
Probably can't effectively play fast-twitch games with my left hand, but only took a couple weeks to get up to speed for normal PC work when I started using my left hand.
Amusingly, I switched to trackball with my right hand from mouse after I'd already been using trackball with my left hand for a while - the muscle memory didn't transfer over, so I was more adept with my left hand for a few weeks until my right caught up.
My last two trackballs have been imports from Japan. Apparently somebody claims a patent on the trackball, and sued Logitech, who have since ceased production of them.
Huh? I'm confused.
Thumb: https://www.logitech.com/en-us/product/wireless-trackball-m5...
Finger: https://www.logitech.com/en-us/product/trackman-marble?crid=...
Apparently they won, but decided to drop the product anyway?
Nowadays I just use the touchpad on my MBP.
https://www.kensington.com/us/us/4493/trackballs
And for those who loved the old Microspeed trackballs:
When they were discontinued I bought 2 spares to ensure I could continue to use one. They all still work.
To translate them into useful mouse/keyboard events requires a driver. Most programs would ignore a "I just pressed button 6 of 3" event otherwise.
I do no longer use it for gaming since its now outclassed but it is now being use in my office and may one day die in peace after such a long life span.
I wish they would upgrade the internals and keep the same design which is honestly reliable and comfortable, I have never owned a mouse which fits my hand like this one does.
In the early days of OS X everyone gnashed their teeth because of Steve Jobs and his stupid obsession with the one button mouse (I love you Steve, but you have never been more wrong in your entire career and should have let it go). I don't think they realized that the mouse wheel Logitech mice worked just fine straight out of the box (no extra drivers for right click or scrolling).
I thought the verdict of the Classic IntelliMouse was dead on arrival by the gaming community just because the sensor was subpar. It really seemed as if MS was exceptionally tone deaf to the community in this case (which is weird since they explicitly mention the sensor as a selling point in the article).
I really hope MS will make hardware again. Recently it has only been niche wireless stuff and I can't find anything else that comes close in comfort to their wired mice.
I was competitive gamer during that era (played for CS clan The Speakeasy Offensive, or TSO). Only the first release had a sub-par sensor (think 100 dpi?), but everything afterwards dominated traditional trackball mice. By the time my favorite mouse of all time was released in 2002 (Logitech MX500), I don't know of a single serious gamer that wasn't using optical.
Still I'm glad Microsoft realised there was a lot of demand for this.
Plus the thing failed to initialize in a few EFI because it takes way too many seconds to start and show up on USB bus.
The replacement Logitech G905 works much better, though it has one fewer usable button.
Its a shame there aren't more left-handed mouses developed, but the market isn't nearly as big as right handed mouses.
Really clean looks, simple, no extra buttons that I never use.
The supposed successor, the Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Mouse [1], doesn't quite feel the same.
[0] https://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Natural-Wireless-Laser-Mous... [1] https://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Sculpt-Ergonomic-Mouse-L6V-...
https://www.microsoft.com/accessories/en-us/products/mice/mi...
5 buttons (3 customizable * ) * Customization not available on devices running Windows 10 S.
Hadn't heard of Windows 10 S before this. Looks like an attempt to convince people to give MS iOS-like control over their PC in the name of security.
The plastic has turned brown from age, so I might buy one of these to tide me over while I apply some Retr0bright gel to the original.
I wish they'd brought back the 1.1a. There wouldn't be any complaints from lefties, and the side buttons are large enough to not be missed by your thumb/pinkie finger.
Oh, and impressive Rube Goldberg video introduction. Loved the "Portal" reference.
I'd like to say a belated thank you to the Silicon Valley VCs that enabled me to keep an extra $30 or $40 in my pocket way back when.
That said, I would never have guessed the classic IntelliMouse wasn't around - they still seem to be everywhere.
I use both the receiver and the Bluetooth support, and the three receiver function daily.
I love the shape of the mouse, truly the best mouse I've owned.
Accurate, fast, and ergonomics that makes five buttons work. Plus the corded version is very * light * this makes flicking a mouse around all day so much less of a strain.
Lately though the switch quality seems to have suffered.
However, this one is only compatible with Windows. C'mon Microsoft.
The movement is precise and snappy, but I'm no gamer so I cannot speak to that. For SysAdmin work, it is a joy to use, WAAAY more fun to use than the provided el cheapo computer mice that register your movement just after you stop moving them.
To Microsoft: please make a good ergonomic wireless mouse. The Sculpt Ergonomic mouse is OK, but it's kind of old now, and it's too bulky. There is a lot to improve.
Reliability.