Pros & Cons
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- Shape and hand orientation more ergonomic; many software features; side-to-side scrolling; firm, grippable thumb area.
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- Pricey; requires AA batteries; side buttons a bit far from thumb; no clicky scroll wheel; slight wrist bend; lefties need not apply.
Once upon a time, a Microsoft mouse was just a mouse—about as basic as a bar of soap with two buttons. Although these mice were common in the home, work, and your local library, they weren't too popular with enthusiasts and gamers. This changed after the company released the Habu Gaming Mouse. Developed in cooperation with niche gaming hardware maker Razer, the Habu became one of our favorite gaming mice.
But the standout feature of the 6000 is its unusual ergonomic shape—unusual in the sense that we're not used to seeing such a round mouse. Most mice are comparatively flat, while the 6000's elevated and rounded shape resembles something like a baseball. In fact, gripping the mouse with your two forefingers on the left- and right-click buttons is like preparing to throw a fastball. Although its shape is unfamiliar, resting your hand on top of it feels quite natural; it's clearly been designed to fit the hand without difficulty. But not for lefties, however, as its shape is clearly intended for the right-handed.
The Microsoft Natural Wireless Laser Mouse 6000 supports Windows 2000 and later, including Vista, and Mac OS X v10.2–10.4 (excluding Mac OS X v10.0–10.1). The unit's wireless receiver (which ironically looks more like a mouse than the 6000) has a cord that plugs into your computer's USB port and has a signal range of up to six feet—even when obscured or out of sight. It does, however, seem to pick up some interference when we set the receiver directly on top of our PC. Despite being within a foot of the mouse, we consistently received "weak signal strength" messages. Moving the receiver on top of the desk eliminated this problem.
One potential point of confusion is that, given its tail and its flatter shape, an unsuspecting user could initially make the mistake of grabbing the wireless receiver instead of the mouse, but most folks would probably want to keep receiver out of the way anyway to avoid desktop clutter.
Below the short and pudgy mouse is a battery compartment that holds two AA batteries. With the mouse still flipped over, we also spied its 1000 DPI laser eye and a connect button to synchronize with the receiver. Three Teflon feet ensure smooth movement across your tracking surface.—
Ergonomics, Surface Area and Software
We've made references to the shape of the 6000 a few times by now, so now it's time to dig a little deeper regarding its ergonomics and surface area. Its large sculpted thumb groove and curved right- and left-click buttons help guide the right hand into a diagonal position. We say "diagonal" because the hand is neither completely flat upon the mouse nor vertical. Non-ergonomic mice force the user to operate a mouse with the hand in a horizontal or pronated position, in which we unnaturally twist our forearms with our palms facing down. Some doctors and ergonomic experts consider this unnatural and unhealthy, adding extra pressure on the carpal tunnel.
The 6000's elevated shape, we feel, doesn't suggest this same ergonomic benefit. Since your hand reaches higher to grip the mouse, there's more of a bend at the wrist. We eyeballed our hands when comparing the differences between the 6000 and a flatter mouse only to detect a small, but noticeable, bend at the wrist. This small crick might not be anything major to worry about in the short run, but we do question its ergonomics in the long run.
In fact, this was our biggest complaint. Whether the mouse was on top of a desk, or down lower on an ergonomic keyboard tray, the wrist would consistently become tired, either from the awkward bend (on the desktop) or hovering above the surface, not quite at rest (on the keyboard tray). The awkward bend can be minimized if there's a gel wrist pad to rest on, or a beanbag.
The mouse's sides are coated with a rubber-like surface for an added grip, while its rubber thumb scoop is softer and even sticky-like for extra grip. The main click buttons are sculpted a bit, requiring no effort to keep your fingers in place, despite the hand orientation. In the middle of these buttons is that beloved scroll wheel, which is also coated in rubber and can be clicked from side to side for horizontal scrolling. The scroll wheel has seamless scrolling capability without clicky detents when scrolling up and down.
Above the thumb groove, yet closer to the left-click button, are two buttons of different length. Given that there's a more elevated shape to the mouse, there's more distance between these buttons and the thumb, perhaps taking away the threat of accidental clicks.
About a couple of inches below the scroll wheel is a little battery indicator light, which lights up when it's time to replace the batteries. There's also a means to check the battery status in Microsoft's IntelliPoint software.
So now that we have an idea what the 6000 looks and feels like, let's discuss some of its features and software. Two standouts worthy of discussion are the Magnifier Tool and Instant Viewer. To use the Magnifier Tool, you click the front side button and a display box attaches to your cursor and enlarges anything you hover over. The mouse also comes with a feature called the Instant Viewer, which we first saw in the IntelliMouse Explorer 3.0. When Instant Viewer is activated, your current window minimizes and your screen is suddenly filled with small windows of each active program you're using. Hovering over a window magnifies it, and selecting it, obviously, maximizes it.
The IntelliPoint Mouse Software has the familiar and intuitive interface seen in Window's own Mouse Properties box—with a little extra pop to host the mouse's extra features. You'll want to install this software to enjoy all of the features and the capability to reassign commands to other buttons. For instance, clicking on the scroll wheel brings up the Instant Viewer. Many of us have grown to use the scroll wheel as a middle-click button, which can be used for auto scrolling or opening new tabs in your favorite web browser. This can be an opportunity to relocate that command elsewhere, say as the back side button—or you can disable it completely. You get the point. —
Final Thoughts
While we've noted positives and negatives regarding the 6000's ergonomics (healthier diagonal hand vs. not-as-healthy wrist bend), we've walked away liking how the 6000 feels in the hand. This is only after a week, however, and the effect of a mouse's ergonomics is years, not weeks, in the making. Bigger hands will gobble up the mouse and appreciate it, while those with smaller hands notice more difference in its funny shape. If you find yourself bending your wrist, then we recommend a gel wrist rest or beanbag.
We're not thrilled that it requires two AA batteries, as a rechargeable battery pack and charger would be more appealing. It comes with two alkaline batteries to get you started.
Microsoft's IntelliPoint software includes hidden gems that can enhance the mouse's capabilities, such as a precision booster that acts like on-the-fly DPI switching, a macro function for recording a set of commands, and even a keystroke function, among many others. The software has the familiar interface seen with Window's default settings, but obviously with extra options to accommodate the 6000.
The mouse retails for a cool $80, a bit pricey for a non-gaming mouse. Tack on the extra cost of batteries later, or a one-time premium price of rechargables, and this mouse can put you over a hundred dollars in the long run.
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Final Thoughts
Microsoft Natural Wireless Laser Mouse 6000
The main draw to the 6000 is its unconventional yet comfortable shape, as well as a few interesting features. Like many specialized mice these days, the 6000 is pricey; just be sure that you'll appreciate its features to justify the cost.