The small mouse for your laptop: what actually matters
Contents4
Trackpads have become genuinely good over the past few years. Even so, most people reach for a mouse the moment a spreadsheet is open or photos need cropping. On the move the question is a different one than at a desk: not which mouse is best, but which one gets in the way least.
Bluetooth or dongle
Bluetooth needs no port. On a laptop with two USB-C sockets that is the decisive advantage, since one of them is on the charger. The downside: after opening the lid the connection sometimes takes a second or two, and in very busy radio environments the pointer can stutter briefly.
A 2.4 GHz dongle connects instantly and stays stable, but costs a USB port. Mice that offer both let you decide per situation. One thing matters with dongles: a slot inside the mouse to hold it during transport. Lost dongles are the most common reason a working mouse ends up in the bin.
| Bluetooth | 2.4 GHz dongle | |
|---|---|---|
| USB port needed | no | yes |
| Connection after wake | one to two seconds | instant |
| Usable on a tablet | usually yes | only with an adapter |
| Several devices | often switchable | one dongle, one device |
How small is too small
Travel mice are often advertised on how tiny they are. Below roughly ten centimetres in length, though, your hand no longer rests on the mouse but grips it from above, and that gets tiring after half an hour. Ten to eleven centimetres is the range where a mouse still fits the laptop bag and an hour of work stays comfortable.
A second point often overlooked: height. Flat mice disappear into a sleeve but force the wrist into a straighter posture than a domed one.
Quiet buttons are not a luxury
In an open-plan office, on a train or in a library, a clicking mouse button stands out. Mice with damped switches cost barely more and make an audible difference. Look for words like quiet or silent in the description.
Resolution, power, surface
- DPI: 1000 to 1600 is enough for everything except very high-resolution screens. Higher numbers are mostly a marketing argument.
- Power: An AA battery often lasts a year; a built-in cell has to be recharged over USB-C. Both are fine, they are simply not the same.
- Surface: Simple sensors fail on glass and high gloss. On a train a magazine or a thin mouse pad solves it.
Most of our mice come from rapoo, with individual models from Hoco, Logitech and Apple.