Logitech Performance MX Mouse Review

In my opinion, one of the most under estimated pieces of equipment in a good desk is the mouse. Most people seem to either opt for a cheap mouse, a gaming mouse or just go with the infamous Apple Magic Mouse.

Just a few years back, I needed to purchase my dad a father’s day gift. He, being very fed up with his cheap, corded mouse, was the perfect target to test mice on. So, after a few hours of research, I decided to head out to my local Staples and buy him a Logitech MX Performance Mouse. Now my dad needed an everyday use kind of mouse, and frankly so do I. The MX Performance sounded perfect; and after a few months of use, he validated my guess. Unfortunately, later that month, my dad had some wrist problems and had to use an even more ergonomic mouse. This left me with the mouse to use freely and so I did. In this article I’d like to do a quick review of this mouse and why I favorite this mouse over any other’s I’ve tried.

Let’s start with what’s in the box. Look at how much Logitech puts in this box that they didn’t have to.

1. A house current (two-prong) to USB 2.0 adapter
2. A USB 2.0 extender cord with a weighted end for desktop use
3. A USB 2.0 to (what I think is) a proprietary charging jack
4. A small zippered pouch that can hold all the cords, but not the mouse itself
5. The chicklet-sized USB 2.0 receiver
6. The mouse itself

In my opinion, for a $100 mouse, this is what all companies should include, but I really appreciated all that Logitech did.

Design
I really like the design of this mouse. Even after using it for hours in a row, I’ve never gotten a cramp, thanks to thoughtful ergonomics. Your hand sits over the mouse in a relaxing way: your thumb in a dedicated recess, your pointer and middle fingers stretched over the right and left mouse buttons, and your lateral two fingers on the far side at a comfortable angle. The mouse buttons are firm enough to support your fingers’ weight without inadvertent clicking, and they span the entire top of the mouse allowing you to click with any part of your finger. There are also four programmable buttons, including one placed very cleverly right in the thumb recess. The scroll wheel is fairly standard for an expensive mouse, four-way directional (forward, back, left, right) with options for notched scrolling or a free spinning wheel. This feature is controlled by another button, placed right behind the scroll wheel.

Looks
I don’t really care what my mouse looks like. But if you are one of those people who does care, I’d give this mouse an eight out of ten for looks. The matte black and charcoal grey plastic with metallic trim all work well together. However, I couldn’t say that this comes close to the Magic Mouse in terms of a clean sleek appearance.

Tracking
This mouse tracks really well. The Performance MX is one of two mice that use Logitech’s “Darkfield” tracking mechanism. Instead of the standard one laser pointing straight down, it has two pointing diagonally toward each other. This allows it to track well on shiny, reflective and clear surfaces. While my work surface is wood, I have tested the mouse on glass, and it works flawlessly. The laser is very nice and works quite well with the smooth, glider pads on the bottom of this device. The receptor extremely small and fits into your standard USB 2.0 port. I wish that they had used Bluetooth for the reception technology, considering other mice of it’s price do. Nonetheless, it works quite well. Overall this gives us a super smooth easy to function, tracking experience, which is quite hard to achieve with mice of this size.

In the end, I think this mouse is one of the best out there. It provides the perfect features for anyone from an average web-surfer to a graphic designer. I think that if you are considering getting a new mouse, definitely head over to Staples and check this mouse out. Also, if you’re seriously considering buying this mouse, look at Amazon.com first, because recently the price on this mouse has been as low as $70.

The Logitech MX Performance Mouse get’s an almost perfect nine and a half out of ten.