MICE (from my blog)
note-I use a large 14" x 18" mousepad, as my desktop is glass. The pad is a black cloth covered pad-I think it's made byHandStands.
the first multibutton mouse that I got for gaming was a Logitech M-BA47. I used this early on for Quake, Unreal, then Unreal Tournament 99, etc. I can't remember much about it, but I eventually replaced it with a cordlessLogitech MX 700. Since these are legacy mice, I don't have much to say other than the comfort of the MX 700 is probably the basis for where I am now. The MX 700 was a bit heavy due to the batteries, but the overall balance felt pretty good for the weight.
Razer Copperhead
I wanted to replace the cordless mouse for a corded mouse, so I picked up a Razer Copperhead. I gave this a try for a few days, and found it uncomfortable in my hand as compared to the Logitech body. I have long fingers, so the curved shape and height of the Logitech feels comfortable. The Razer felt too flat, and I missed having a place to rest my thumb on and and for my pinky to rest against. The button placement seemed awkward too, forcing my fingers closer together so I returned it.
Logitech MX518
I then picked up a Logitech MX 518. The familiar feel was welcome, and the bonus of the dpi adjustment worked well. The programming of it works easily too. The scroll wheel sits at a comfortable height, and the wheel button has just the right amount of resistance. The sensitivity increase and decrease buttons took some getting used to, as they are small and being located in front of and behind the wheel. The weight of the mouse is just right. There are 5 small feet which allow the mouse to glide easily, no hangups. Being an optical mouse, it has a hollowed out area for the light, which I found scooped up cat hair, although I don't think it ever effected the beam.
Microsoft Sidewinder
I read a review of the Microsoft Sidewinder mouse, and based on it's size and shape, as well as the placement of the thumb buttons, I thought i would check it out. (Unfortunately, there wasn't a display model.) The button placement didn't take much getting used to and seemed to work well. The weight was also decent. The feet seemed to work OK. What I didn't like was the ledge that my pinky rested on; I felt like I was pulling the mouse back into my hand. The scroll wheel felt loose and didn't seem to click in a nice precise manner. So back it went.
Logitech G5
I decided to give the Logitech G5 (new 2 thumb button) a try. Very similar to the MX 518, but with a different texture, and a scroll wheel with left and right button movement, and laser instead of optical. I thought I would like the rubberized texture, but it really didn't seem to have the same grip that the sides of the 518 does. A bit disappointed there, but not too hard to get used to. The scroll wheel sits up a bit higher probably due to the fact that it clicks left and right. Being higher, I found myself clicking the scroll wheel's down button too easily-not good when you don't need it. The left and right click of the scroll wheel was too easy to activate too. I didn't get to play with the resolution settings much to see if they make any noticeable difference. Also, the laser would not have played cat hair scoop either! The other thing I didn't like was the braided cable. It seemed stiff and hung up on the edge of the mousepad, unlike the standard cabling and flexibility of the others. The larger feet seemed to work just as well as the small 5 feet on the MX 518.
Final
Anyway I'm back to using the MX 518 and am happy to have given some other mice a try. It always comes down to personal preference, but it never hurts to see what other options are around if you have the opportunity.
Note where the 2020 lands in the mouse benchmarking.
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