Microsoft Wireless Notebook Optical Mouse 3000

Towards the back of the mouse, is a button that pops the top off, to allow insertion of the battery.

The final noteable feature is the bottom. It’s indented to allow for easy carrying of the receiver. Although, when the receiver is plugged in here, it’s not flush with the rest of the mouse.

I primarily use Linux on my laptop, so that is where I tested the mouse first. Surprisingly, Linux picked up on it instantly. The very second after plugging the receiver into the back, I was able to use the mouse. This was using Gentoo with the latest 2.6.16-r9 stable kernel. Windows was a different story, of course. First came the “USB Device detected”, and then about two minutes later, I was prompted to install a driver. The mouse does not include a CD-Rom, so I allowed it to go online to search for one. A minute later, I was good to go.

I was impressed by the preciseness of the cursor right off the bat… it’s one of the best I have used. I don’t say this lightly either. I tested the mouse on three surfaces: The laptop itself, wood desk and a mousepad. Each surface provided superb control… I was quite impressed.

To test it out with some light gaming, I loaded up two games: Nexuiz and Neverball. These were both tested under Linux, but have Windows counterparts.

Both games were a blast to play, and the precision was so good. For Neverball especially, it’s perfect. That’s a rather simple game that requires only the mouse to play, including the two mouse buttons. Nexuiz on the other hand though, is a FPS, so the mouse may not be best suited here. Though, for a notebook mouse, it works decently for gaming when you need a quick fix.

There is not too much to dislike about this mouse.. at all. It delivers all you would expect from a notebook mouse, and more. It’s comfortable to use, though it’s small. Granted, notebook mice should be small, but I am someone who could never get used to using them full time. For all of your tasks though, even including gaming, the mouse is a joy to use. It’s extremely precise, which is one of the biggest pluses overall.

I was quite pleased to have the mouse work so seamlessly in Linux also. I didn’t expect to have problems per se, but it worked in Linux immediately, whereas Windows had to connect to Windows Update to download the driver for it. In both OS’ though, the mouse functions perfectly. In Windows, you are able to download the Microsoft IntelliPoint software, which will allow you to customize the buttons for specific tasks, such as Copy/Paste.

So how much can you pick up one of these for? Personally, I was surprised to see that e-tailers all over stock the mouse for under $30. For a wireless notebook mouse with utmost precision, that’s a fantastic asking price. Overall, I am awarding the Wireless Notebook 3000 an 8 out of 10.

Pros
• Wireless!
• 6 months battery life
• Small, but comfortable for short periods of time
• Incredibly precise
• Linux & Mac friendly
• Priced right

Cons
• Had to connect to Windows Update to install driver
• Driver not included with mouse?
• USB receiver, when placed in mouse, sticks out

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