Ahhh... that feels better...

[Therac-25]

Finally replaced my annoying MX Revolution with a $30 Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer 3.0 (the most widely recommended gaming mouse by professional gamers, FWIW).

It's so nice to have a working middle mouse button again, and not worry about a mouse that doesn't fit in the charger.

[wheel83]

This has always been my favorite mouse as well.  For 7+ years now.

[karlito]

too bad they fall apart in a few months o_O. at least the 3 that i bought did.

[outofideas]

I still have 2 "original" IE 3.0s, one from 2002, the other from 2004.  I've had them open for switch replacement surgery 2 or 3 times each.  In the past I swapped one of the side buttons, that I never used, since my KVM switches don't support them, with the failing button.

But a few months back, I had run out of side button replacments, and I managed to source replacements from Digikey.  They're Omron part number d2f-01f, digikey part number SW502-ND, and can be found here.  In theory they have the same operating force(75 grams/0.74 newtons) as the original switch, Omron part number d2fc-f-7n.

So far, the failure has always been the same, the failed button starts creating double clicks when you only click once, and as time goes by it happens more frequently.  Most likely the weakening of the springs allows the switch to bounce and make/break contact twice before rebounding, when released.  It's almost always the left mouse button that fails first, I think I had replaced the left one twice, before a middle or right button failed.

After replacing all 5 switches, the mouse felt odd for a few days.  At the time I thought it was because they weren't exact replacements, but in retrospect it was probably just the greater force required to click the brand new switches.

I looked into the "new" IE 3.0s but from everything I've read they are much more cheaply made than the originals.  The main complaints are that the switches fail in months instead of years, and that the scroll wheel is harder to operate.  If you have an old IE 3.0 that is failing, keep it and replace the switches.  Unfortunately quite a few people I know had trashed their mouse, before I figured out how to bring them back to life.

Lately I've been feeling the urge to try something new, so I have a Logitech G9 and a Razor "Deathadder", gotta love that name, on the way.  The G9 will probably be quite different, I'm not sure I'll like it, though I don't use a palm grip on mice, so it might suit me.

The Deathadder is supposed to be nearly a clone of the original IE 3.0, with a slightly better sensor, so I'm almost certain I'll like it.  It's currently on sale at gogamer.com for $30 + ~$3 shipping, but unfortunately they appear to be sold out.

[ch_123]

I'd recommend taking a look at the Steelseries Ikari. Theyre a very nice mouse

[karlito]

I'd recommend taking a look at the Steelseries Ikari. Theyre a very nice mouse

i have the ikari optical. i would not recommend it. the tracking speed is just not good enough. i think the laser would be perfect though.

[Eclairz]

I use the death adder myself, but i'm usually use it at a fairly highspeed "1600dpi" so I probably ain't the best person to judge if you like slow tracking mice like the explorer 3.0 which i used to own. Basically once you make the jump to high speed smooth tracking you never usually look back unless you need to e.g. sniping or precision photoshopping.

The feel however is not the same as the explorer 3.0 which is a more flatter mouse, the "death adder" is more rounded and sculpted to your hand but the buttons are just as bad as the rest of the explorer 3.0 mice which is to say quite bad, these are a little better. The deathadder is also covered with rubber so alot less sweat on your mouse during heavy gaming sessions ewe, hehe, and the mouse cord feels much better than the explorer 3.0 which slowly fell out of my old one.

Overall its a good improvement, but you still need a good mouse matt like the explorer 3.0 to get the most out of it. I think the MS Habu felt more like an explorer 3.0, but had much better side buttons than the deathadder and the explorer 3.0, but very poor slow tracking compared to them far too jerky at slow speeds.

[ch_123]

i have the ikari optical. i would not recommend it. the tracking speed is just not good enough. i think the laser would be perfect though.

Aye, I have the laser one myself. The sensitivity/tracking speed is excellent.