Apple recently announced a new mouse design. It's being dubbed Mighty Mouse or as I like to call it, gay. While the thing looks great and all, I get bugged by apple's take on the whole mouse thing. They've been adamantly one button mouse for years, forcing people with applications that use a right mouse click to make do without. Now suddenly they come out with a pretty redesign of a mouse that has been available for over 5 years, and Apple makes it sounds like they are the innovative ones.
The scroll button and the touch-sensitivity sound neat but it's essentially old technology being passed off as high design. And is anyone else getting bored with the whole white motif?
Apple's deal is also charging way too much for way too little. The Mighty is retailing for $50. Want a mouse with a horizontal scroll wheel, 11 configurable buttons and is WIRELESS (something the mighty mouse ain't)? Try this. Oh, and it's only 43 bucks.
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Over and over and over again, you PC wonks just don't get it. The point isn't the number of buttons, it isn't the number of recognizeable features that makes a mac device appealing. It's how you use it that counts. The iPod is popular because of how easy it is to operate, Mac OS X is praised because it works well with most users. This mouse is designed to be the most functional regular mouse ever created. If you're excited by a large number of buttons- go buy something else. The goal isn't to appeal to people who really enjoy tinkering and having a billion options all the time. Apple does sell old shoes sometimes. But as many have found in the past, old shoes fit like a dream sometimes.
Obviously you'e free to post what you wish, but at least be fair. Apple hasn't been forcing people to do without a right-mouse click...obviously any Mac with a USB port is able to take advantage of aftermarket mice that will do enable the right-click, as well as several other fatures. Then after bashing Apple for going the 'one-button" approach, you bash the design of the "two-button" mouse. I would write more, but since you're using a PC you're probably due for a restart. Cheers.
OUCH! Easy mac nerds. I too have crossed the forbidden river of PCdom and have now taken bed with Apple. Sure, they had a single mouse, which drove me insane whenever someone had one. Then of course upon getting a mca laptop and sometime having no mouse I learned of the "cntrl" right click. whoopty do.
PC's are good for some things, and Macs are good for other things. But lets face facts here, the Jingle is right, $50 for this mouse is a ripp-off, and has nothing we haven't already seen before and it's not even wireless.
P.S. and where the heck did you anonymi come from? What are you searching for "blogs on macs" to put in your two sense or what? :)
Actually, I think you missed the point. I agree with you that it's a nice-looking mouse. I think it's good that Apple has finally offered a functional and efficient mouse. I just don't like the pretentiousness that comes from Apple and from you, typical Apple-user.
Listen, did you even read their website? They tout themselves as innovative by offering a very old design, with a new skin, and charging an arm and a leg for it. The mighty mouse is essentially a four-button mouse with a scroll wheel. What's so great about that? It's long overdue, as most of the market, as you say, has already adopted the multi-button mouse. I can't imagine living without a scroll wheel now, but if I bought a mac last week, I'd have to buy an additional mouse to get one.
And I don't buy the easier to use argument, I'm sorry. I find Apple products have just as much of a learning curve as any device. If you can learn how to use an Ipod, you can learn how to use a Creative. The only difference is that the Creative costs $200 less.
Regarding innovative or not, this is the best post I've seen describing how some people believe it is. If you just want to write it off as a 4-button mouse too late to the party, fine, but at least recognize the design has merit.
http://www.russellbeattie.com/notebook/1008561.html#1017606
Sorry you might not get to the right comment through that hyperlink. Here is the whole comment:
August 3, 2005 06:26:55 AM
Why did Apple require you to "lift your finger" instead of using two separate buttons?
Because Apple wanted to be backward compatible with the one button design. The point of a one button mouse is that it's so simple even a 3 year old can use it. Apple's Mighty Mouse may be the only 4 button mouse that is still easy to use by a 3 year old.
I haven't been able to put a multi-button mouse on the system my kids use without frequent complaints that it's too hard to use. Finally there's a mouse that can work well for the whole family.
To summarize, I see three innovations: (1) Multibutton design that's also an easy to use single button mouse. (2) 360 degree scroll ball instead of two direction scroll wheel. (3) Built-in audio feedback to enhance the user experience.
What are the downsides? (1) The scroll ball will take some getting used to and may need software support to work smoothly. (2) The capacitance or proximity switches used may be susceptible to false triggering in noisy RF environments (been there, done that).
- Peter Sichel Sustainable Softworks
Posted by Peter Sichel
Homepage: http://www.sustworks.com
(I'm not Peter, just trying to attribute to him)
Ultimately, if people are buying computers or peripherals based on what their 3 year old can do, then apple is definitely the way to go. For me, I want a mouse that has all the functionality I need without costing premium prices.
I don't like that apple is introducing a "new" product in 2005 that should have been released 5 years earlier while simultaneously claiming that it is a breakthrough design.
And I beleive I did say that the design has merit, both in my original post and in my previous comment. But your missing my points which are that a) it's five years too late b) it's too expensive and c) I don't like white plastic.
Oh and personally, I don't want my mouse making noise. That would be the first preference turned off, if I had one of those suckers. There's already too many beeps and whistles associated with electronics that I don't need my mouse to tell me when I pressed a button.
How can you say this isn't innovative? Show me a mouse that doesn't suck which has a scroll ball and pressure sensitive side buttons. The rest of it is simply a mouse, but you can't claim there is no innovation here.
P.S. More buttons is not innovation.
I find it quite ammusing that you call us "mac nerds" when PC users are the ones adding plexi and neon lights to their machines. Let's be realistic. If Apple didn't innovate, then no one else would be able to create a product because there wouldn't be a model to copy. You can use the e-machines knock off of the original iMac, or even Windows Vistas' rip offs of Spotlight. Not to mention that brick that Creative came up with to play music.
I don't speak "nerd" very well so could someone translate??
I never called you "mac nerds." I believe I was called a PC wonk by some British guy in the first comment.
The scroll ball and the touch-sensitivity are neat ideas. I said that before. They are not game-breaking, drop-dead innovations which will change the face of computing. I reiterate that, even with those features, the mighty mouse is essentially a multi-button mouse with a scroll wheel. Which has been around for a very long time for us PC wonks.
And let me address your copycatting point. Apple didn't invent the mp3 player. They just were the first ones to successfully market it. EMachines is merely one producer of PCs, so I don't think your comparison holds any weight. And you picked a third example that is so obscure that I don't even know what it refers to. If those are your 3 best examples of how the PC market has copied Apple, then I say your argument has failed.
And apple ripped off the mouse design 5 years too late.
jingle, i can't disagree with you that apple is quite late on this, and that they've over hyped it. Then again, what else are they going to do? Tell everyone they've been living in the past for a long time? I doubt it. A little marketing hype never hurt anyone. Sure, there's no reason to get overly excited about the mouse, but then there's really no reason to be offended at Apple for promoting what amounts to a drastic about-face from apple. That said, they do employ some elegant techniques for implementing a multi-button scroll mouse, and deserve at least a little credit for that.
Hi Kyle,
Thanks for not posting as anonymous.
I think I just have a problem with Apple in general, and this mouse is just another example of my displeasure. Here are my beefs with Apple
a) they charge too much for their products
b) all of their products are perceived as "cool"
c) they no longer allow third party manufactured products to function with their machines, effectively eliminating any competition which would lower prices
d) I find the mac interface (and Ipods and Itunes and anything with an I in front of it) incredibly counterintuitive despite being repeatedly told they are easy to use
e) (This is similar to c)) they have their own mp3 format so if you buy music from Itunes, you cannot use it on your Creative Jukebox
That's about it. The mighty mouse is an about face for them, as far as functionality goes, but I don't like how this change in policy is perceived as the coolest thing to do by the typical apple consumer. You are all just falling for the marketing scheme, which is apple's truly greatest acheivement in the last ten years.
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