It looks as if Microsoft has been watching my Google searches for a “bluetooth laser mouse” the past few months—and noting that no purchase had followed.
How else can I explain the perfection, from the mere specifications, of the Microsoft Wireless Laser Mouse 8000? It appears to be so close to my buying criteria that they may very well have crawled inside my head to develop its feature set.
Aluminum, though? Seems like it will be one cold mouse in winter. Still, the expectation that its aluminum shell should be more durable than my older Wireless IntellMouse Explorer for Bluetooth (say that ten times, fast!) is a great bonus.
Actually, all that needs to be more durable are the buttons (so that they don’t lock into the “on” position after toting it around with a laptop for a year, grumble grumble) and the battery compartment. But with a rechargeable battery, that last point is probably moot. Update: Having seen a floor model of this mouse in person at the local CompUSA, I can confirm that the battery compartment is about as flimsy as my previous Microsoft Bluetooth mouse, but you’ll need to open it less because the battery can be charged in the mouse, and there is a power button. (I used to turn off my older mouse by removing a battery.)
Somewhere, I saw that the new mouse has an “off” button. That would be an excellent addition—nay, a necessary one, and potentially a deal stopper that must be weighed against the rechargeability and the quoted battery life. You’d recognize that if you’ve consulted my Epinions review of that first Microsoft Bluetooth mouse. Update: Having seen a floor model of this mouse in person at the local CompUSA, I can confirm that it has a sliding on/off power button on the bottom.
The earliest review on it states that, like previous Microsoft Bluetooth mice, the special software features are only enabled by using the Microsoft Bluetooth adapter—at least on Windows. So, caveat emptor. Even though the device is debuting with a Vista-ready Bluetooth keyboard (see the Microsoft Wireless Entertainment Desktop 8000 bundle), I’d be using the mouse on Mac OS X Tiger today.
Sigh. I resent paying $80-$90 for a mouse, though.
