Author Topic: Advice on Mice (Mac user)  (Read 4452 times)

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Offline ADFX_Pixy

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Advice on Mice (Mac user)
« on: Sat, 04 October 2014, 01:40:35 »
So as I get more involved into the PC (well, computer gaming) gaming, I've been looking into good peripherals, such as my Ducky Shine 3. Now to complete my arsenal I need a good mouse. My tracking options are the Magic Mouse that came with my iMac and the Magic Trackpad that I got this past June. I've been looking into getting a gaming mouse sometime later because the Magic Mouse doesn't cut it when it comes to gaming. I got three mice (list might expand in the future) that I think are decent mice. I play some CoD 4 and I'm starting to play a little League of Legends (might get into CS:GO and Gary's Mod). Multiple buttons are nice, but I'm not too enthusiastic on having too many buttons on my mouse (like the Razer Naga).

1. Logitech G402- From what I'm seeing from Amazon and a video from Linus Tech Tips, it's a good mouse especially as an FPS mouse. Although being a stripped-down version of its older brother: the G502, the G402 seems to be a good mice that suits my needs. It's excellent optical sensor paired with an accelerometer and pyrometer interests me a lot, but I don't think I have enough speed when I move my mouse to make it useful for me.
Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Hyperion-Gaming-Fusion-910-004069/dp/B00LZVNWIA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1412403726&sr=8-1&keywords=Logitech+g402

2. Logitech G502- The older and more advanced brother to the G402, this mouse has many features such as the adjustable scroll wheel (horizontal scrolling, ability to switch between notched and free-wheel scrolling), weighted system, and more buttons than the G402. Although this mouse has a list of extra features that the G402 doesn't, it's $20 more expensive.
Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Proteus-Tunable-Customizable-910-004074/dp/B00IRHE892/ref=pd_sim_pc_4?ie=UTF8&refRID=1ZBZEQV4CW8EKZD2BZTW

3. Razer Deathadder- This mouse has a lot of praise (mouse of the year for CNET) and a lot of criticism (build quality, double clicking, buttons too sensitive) for what it is. But nevertheless it's very popular and is recommended a lot as a gaming mouse or for general use. I'm not too worried about Synapse 2.0 and being connected all the time since my mouse will stay at home with my desktop. I'm very interested in its simple aesthetics and ergonomics.
Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/Razer-DeathAdder-Ergonomic-Gaming-Mouse/dp/B00AAS888S/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1412404256&sr=1-1&keywords=Deathadder

Obviously all three mice are decked out with unique features and I could easily watch a large amount of YouTube videos for all three. But after being here on Geekhack for a week I would like to see how you guys would help me. If there are other mice that you recommend that aren't on the list, feel free to do so.

P.S: I am also looking into a mousepad, especially an extended mousepad that fits my keyboard. But I'm worried that since it will take up a majority of my desk space, I won't have enough room to do my homework on. Can you guys also recommend a nice extended mouse pad that's thin enough for me to write on?
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Offline munch

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Re: Advice on Mice (Mac user)
« Reply #1 on: Sat, 04 October 2014, 05:09:48 »
G402 out of those IMO, it's lighter than the G502 which is really nice, and super nice and snappy.
the deathadder may be praised but it's not a great option anymore for the price.
g502 has a better sensor but it's bulkier and heavier than the G402 and since you're a bit concerned about $20 more - I find it's not worth the extra for most people wanting a solid simple mouse.

for deskpads, I don't think there are any thin enough ones, they're all way too soft to put any paper on. you could get one of those wooden planky things made for putting paper on... don't know what they're called atm, just woke up!

if you do that, look for a nice single-coloured, preferrably black one, mice track better on those.

Offline Boozebreath

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Re: Advice on Mice (Mac user)
« Reply #2 on: Sat, 04 October 2014, 05:27:54 »
Not sure how helpful I can be but I myself recently was looking for an ideal mouse.  If you feel lucky you could try a Razer Deathadder.  I was recently looking for mice almost considered getting a deathadder before coming to geekhack.  All the stories about poor build quality and quality control on top of needing an account for their cloud based software to change mouse settings was enough to steer me away from it.  Otherwise I liked the size and feel of it.  I have bad luck to begin with last thing I want to do is dealing with returning something or dealing with customer service.  Either way I think your taking a chance when getting a Razer product.

From what I have read and heard, the Logitech G502, although much heavier, is supposedly the better choice than the G402 as long as money isn't an issue.  If you like the shape and the amount of buttons its probably one of the best choices considering it has a 3 year warranty.  It was one of the mice I was considering but then I realized it had way too many buttons than I would actually use.

As for other mice I will list some that I came across and the ones people on here suggested.  Wouldn't hurt to check these brands out for their other mice.  Most of them have the 3310 optical sensor, but you should be able to easily find them on amazon for all the details on what sensors they have and what not.  Also not sure how MAC friendly these mice are so I apologize in advance if I listed any that are not compatible.


Roccat Kone Pure Military:  I hear a lot of good things about this mouse, in fact it's the one I chose to get and I can't wait for it to arrive next week!  It appears to be a medium sized mouse,  I just
                                        hope it doesn't end up being way too small for my bigger sized hands.  They also have the Kone XTD which is a bigger mouse with weights and a laser sensor.  The XTD also
                                        comes in optical if you are lucky enough to live somewhere you can get one, it is the mouse I originally wanted but wasn't paying $150 to get it to where I live.


Zowie FK/FK1:  An ambidextrous mouse that is plug n play with no software to deal with.  If I liked ambidextrous shaped mice, it would probably be the one I would get.


Mionix Naos 7000:  Another mouse I considered, it is big full palm grip mouse.  Crossed it off my list cause I was worried it would be too short.


Corsair M45:  The one I almost got, it's practically a cheaper optical version of the M65 without the FPS side button and aluminum frame.  Good build quality according to what I read and was told about it. 
                     Changed my mind cause of it's shape, didn't want to order one and find out whether I would like the back end of the mouse.  Also seems built more for claw grip so decided against it
                     considering I like to palm grip my mouse a little sometimes.                     


SteelSeries Rival:  Figure I should mention this one since I bought it a month ago.  Got it on sale and thought it was decent, sadly I had to return mine because of a faulty mouse wheel.  Not sure how good
                           the Rival's build quality is overall but I didn't want to give it another go cause it involved going to another store since I had the last one from where I got it.  It was probably just a bad
                           experience in my case. I liked everything else about the mouse except maybe how far forward the size buttons are, but that is a pretty minor issue.


Don't really have any first hand experience using any of these mice, either way I hope this helps a little.  Overall I think the best way to choose is to figure out what shape and size you need for you hands and grip style then go from there.  The input I got on here definitely helped me choose mine. :thumb:
« Last Edit: Sat, 04 October 2014, 05:41:34 by Boozebreath »

Offline ADFX_Pixy

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Re: Advice on Mice (Mac user)
« Reply #3 on: Sat, 04 October 2014, 14:39:15 »
Not sure how helpful I can be but I myself recently was looking for an ideal mouse.  If you feel lucky you could try a Razer Deathadder.  I was recently looking for mice almost considered getting a deathadder before coming to geekhack.  All the stories about poor build quality and quality control on top of needing an account for their cloud based software to change mouse settings was enough to steer me away from it.  Otherwise I liked the size and feel of it.  I have bad luck to begin with last thing I want to do is dealing with returning something or dealing with customer service.  Either way I think your taking a chance when getting a Razer product.

From what I have read and heard, the Logitech G502, although much heavier, is supposedly the better choice than the G402 as long as money isn't an issue.  If you like the shape and the amount of buttons its probably one of the best choices considering it has a 3 year warranty.  It was one of the mice I was considering but then I realized it had way too many buttons than I would actually use.

As for other mice I will list some that I came across and the ones people on here suggested.  Wouldn't hurt to check these brands out for their other mice.  Most of them have the 3310 optical sensor, but you should be able to easily find them on amazon for all the details on what sensors they have and what not.  Also not sure how MAC friendly these mice are so I apologize in advance if I listed any that are not compatible.


Roccat Kone Pure Military:  I hear a lot of good things about this mouse, in fact it's the one I chose to get and I can't wait for it to arrive next week!  It appears to be a medium sized mouse,  I just
                                        hope it doesn't end up being way too small for my bigger sized hands.  They also have the Kone XTD which is a bigger mouse with weights and a laser sensor.  The XTD also
                                        comes in optical if you are lucky enough to live somewhere you can get one, it is the mouse I originally wanted but wasn't paying $150 to get it to where I live.


Zowie FK/FK1:  An ambidextrous mouse that is plug n play with no software to deal with.  If I liked ambidextrous shaped mice, it would probably be the one I would get.


Mionix Naos 7000:  Another mouse I considered, it is big full palm grip mouse.  Crossed it off my list cause I was worried it would be too short.


Corsair M45:  The one I almost got, it's practically a cheaper optical version of the M65 without the FPS side button and aluminum frame.  Good build quality according to what I read and was told about it. 
                     Changed my mind cause of it's shape, didn't want to order one and find out whether I would like the back end of the mouse.  Also seems built more for claw grip so decided against it
                     considering I like to palm grip my mouse a little sometimes.                     


SteelSeries Rival:  Figure I should mention this one since I bought it a month ago.  Got it on sale and thought it was decent, sadly I had to return mine because of a faulty mouse wheel.  Not sure how good
                           the Rival's build quality is overall but I didn't want to give it another go cause it involved going to another store since I had the last one from where I got it.  It was probably just a bad
                           experience in my case. I liked everything else about the mouse except maybe how far forward the size buttons are, but that is a pretty minor issue.


Don't really have any first hand experience using any of these mice, either way I hope this helps a little.  Overall I think the best way to choose is to figure out what shape and size you need for you hands and grip style then go from there.  The input I got on here definitely helped me choose mine. :thumb:

Thanks for your extensive input. I am also considering the Steelseries Rival, don't know why I forgot to include it in the list. I was also considering the Zowie Gear Mice but not he FK/FK1. I was leaning towards their EC series mice since they are ergonomically shaped. But I'm not sure if they have the same sensor that makes the FK1 an amazing mouse. I was considering the Corsair 45 and even the 65 but they aren't Mac Compatible. The Roccat is also not Mac Compatible unfortunately. It looks like a nice mouse to use.
« Last Edit: Sat, 04 October 2014, 14:41:44 by ADFX_Pixy »
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Offline ADFX_Pixy

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Re: Advice on Mice (Mac user)
« Reply #4 on: Sat, 04 October 2014, 14:42:43 »
G402 out of those IMO, it's lighter than the G502 which is really nice, and super nice and snappy.
the deathadder may be praised but it's not a great option anymore for the price.
g502 has a better sensor but it's bulkier and heavier than the G402 and since you're a bit concerned about $20 more - I find it's not worth the extra for most people wanting a solid simple mouse.

for deskpads, I don't think there are any thin enough ones, they're all way too soft to put any paper on. you could get one of those wooden planky things made for putting paper on... don't know what they're called atm, just woke up!

if you do that, look for a nice single-coloured, preferrably black one, mice track better on those.

Really? That's disappointing. I guess I'm asking a bit too much when it comes to an extended mouse pad that I can use for schoolwork.
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Offline saturnotaku

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Re: Advice on Mice (Mac user)
« Reply #5 on: Tue, 07 October 2014, 14:59:36 »
Most any USB mouse is going to be "Mac compatible" in the sense that you plug it into a Mac's USB port and you'll get the basics, eg the cursor moves, the scroll wheel works, and the left/right/middle buttons work. Unlocking full functionality, especially with gaming mice, requires external software. That's where things get tricky as far as OS X is concerned, and it eliminates all but the Steelseries from the list Boozebreath posted. The aforementioned build-quality issue of the Rival would keep me away from it. While the Zowie doesn't technically need drivers, the side buttons don't function the same way in OS X that they do in Windows.

As functional as the DeathAdder's design is, Razer's Synapse software is bad in Windows and outright unusable in OS X. I would stay away from it.

That leaves Logitech. While they have had OS X compatible drivers for their gaming mice for a while now, only with the most recent update from July of this year, has it actually been worthwhile to use. I have a G602 wireless mouse, and for the longest time I had to use 3rd-party Mac drivers to get the most out of the hardware. Now I use Logitech's software without issue. I don't know much about the G402/502, but either should suit you well given your usage criteria.

Offline davkol

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Re: Advice on Mice (Mac user)
« Reply #6 on: Thu, 09 October 2014, 03:44:41 »
All Roccat mice store button remapping (including macros, if supported) and tracking settings in an on-board memory. It can be configured with open-source GNU/Linux drivers (i.e. you can run some popular distro in something like VirtualBox w/ extensions).