Source: Tom's Guide | Keywords: Logitech, Kensington, Mouse | Themes: Business Notebooks, Laptops and Notebooks
- 4. Shortest Receiver, Longest Battery
- 5. Conclusion
4. Shortest Receiver, Longest Battery
Receiver
Each mouse comes with an extremely short wireless USB receiver. Kensington’s “Deep Wine” receiver extends less than an inch out of the USB port, making it pretty inconspicuous. But Logitech’s receiver takes the cake: it extends only 0.2” from the USB port, making it practically invisible. You can leave it in all the time and it will not impede your ability to put your laptop into even the most snug of cases and bags. If you must take it out, there is a place to store it inside the mouse—though it hardly needs much room there.
Kensington’s receiver—though a bit longer—also manages to fit inside the mouse when not in use. An impressive feat! Though you might not want to leave the Kensington receiver in your computer at all times, it does have a safe home to go to when you remove it from the computer. The bottom of the mouse snaps off to reveal the battery compartment and a perfect hidey-hole for the receiver. This compartment is more useful on the Kensington than the Logitech since you can’t leave the Kensington receiver in your computer at all times.
Receiver score: Logitech: 5 Kensington: 4.5
Battery
Each mouse has a special trick for preserving and extending battery power. The Logitech V550 knows to turn itself off as soon as you snap the mouse onto its dock atop the laptop lid. It turns on when you yank it out of the dock.
The Kensington SlimBlade knows to go into sleep mode whenever your laptop enters sleep mode; it then wakes up when your computer does. It also promises to turn an indicator light from green to red when the battery is nearly exhausted.
Which battery lasts longer? We’ve been using each mouse exclusively for about a month and neither has shown signs of battery fatigue. However, Kensington advertises that its mouse’s battery will last about six months, while Logitech claims an 18-month lifespan for the V550’s batteries.
Battery Score: Logitech: 4.5 Kensington: 4
- Previous page Ease of Use
- Next page Conclusion
"But Kensington receiver?though a bit longer?has an ace up its sleeve as well. Though you might not want to leave the Kensington receiver in your computer at all times, it does have a safe home to go to when you remove it from the computer. The bottom of the mouse snaps off to reveal the battery compartment and a perfect hidey-hole for the receiver. Just don?t forget where it is..."
I think the Logitech mouse also has space to store the receiver in the battery compartment also (http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,2845,2327551,00.asp).
You should update the review to mention this. Its misleading to praise the Kensington mouse for having it but omit to mention the Logitech mouse has the same feature...
J
"But Kensington receiver?though a bit longer?has an ace up its sleeve as well. Though you might not want to leave the Kensington receiver in your computer at all times, it does have a safe home to go to when you remove it from the computer. The bottom of the mouse snaps off to reveal the battery compartment and a perfect hidey-hole for the receiver. Just don?t forget where it is..."I think the Logitech mouse also has space to store the receiver in the battery compartment also (http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,2845,2327551,00.asp).You should update the review to mention this. Its misleading to praise the Kensington mouse for having it but omit to mention the Logitech mouse has the same feature...J
Thanks Jon, you make a good point. I've changed the review to reflect the fact that the Logitech mouse also has a receiver compartment built in, however, this compartment is not as useful in the Logitech mouse and because it is so small, not nearly as impressive to me as the Kensington receiver's compartment.
Thanks for reading.
Rachel Rosmarin, Editor, Tom's Guide
Nice review.
I just wish there were mice that werent such a strain to use over time.
features and software and looks are great - but if my hand hurts After using said mouse for an hour or 2 (airplane flights, long meetings, etc), then the mouse quickly becomes a paperweight or a suprise gift to little brother (Thus was the fate of my Logitec G9).
You should mention the Logitech will last 5 years while the Kensington 5 months. All jokes aside, Logitech have better quality than any other manufacture.
Trackball on my Kensington Media mouse quits working within three months. I'm still trying to figure out how to get a replacement from Kensington.
Hey, if you're testing a presenter, then test the distance it can actually work from. I've seen huge discrpencies in this from different manufacturers. How about a whole article on presenters! I'd love to read that.
That self adhesive hook is like getting a *n00b* tattoo on your forehead. Only a complete oaf/geek would glue stuff to the outside of their notebook.