Filed under: Hardware, Cult of Mac, Apple
Apple Mouse evolution

John Ward's 'The Evolution of the Apple Mouse,' has been around for awhile, but today was the first day that I had come across it. John gives us all a guided tour into the history of Apple's mouse with pictures of almost every variant of mouse that Apple has produced.
What's your favorite mouse that Apple has produced? I must admit that I have a soft spot for the Apple Desktop Mouse II.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
jon said 9:21PM on 2-02-2007
too bad this mouse is a overly engineered piece of crap that does cool things, looks nice and completely fails the user due to several ergonomic basics that were completely overlooked.
Would it kill Apple to give us a real frickin' mouse??!! You know, with actual honest to goodness separate buttons that work without thinking about it and are properly positioned so that you finger click (trigger motion) versus finger push (that uses more muscles all the way back to your wrist). It's subtle but very important lesson that all other mice makers have figured out; theirs even work better and are cheaper. I expect more from Apple in this area, they usually don't completely toss out function in the pursuit of form.
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Mxsix said 9:38PM on 2-02-2007
My favorite mouse is the Pro Mouse (Black). I love the clear and black.
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ClunkClunk said 11:14PM on 2-02-2007
Too bad the site's author called optical mice "laser mice" and didn't give any mention of the dimpled hockey puck mouse.
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Simon Arch said 2:19AM on 2-03-2007
I've always been partial to the ADB Mouse II myself. I've got three or four of them here, too. Now if only I had an ADB/USB adaptor...
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homemadefading said 4:35AM on 2-03-2007
I just love the Pro Mouse. I does look beautiful, but my main reason is its projection. When you lift it up from the surface, the laser projects a bunny. And not just any bunny. The cutest darn bunny I´ve ever seen... Who´s with me?
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Lars said 6:27AM on 2-03-2007
I got tired from the Mighty Mouse (it's too small for hand) and it's constant need for cleaning. So I bought an IntelliMouse Explorer 4 which does not colour coordinate with my iMac, but it's a damn good mouse.
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Clark said 10:22AM on 2-03-2007
I have sworn off Mac mice since I have started to get early signs of RSI. Mac mice seem to have no thought with regards to ergonomics in their design.
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Galley said 8:38AM on 2-03-2007
Wireless Mighty Mouse, FTW!
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sjmills said 3:55PM on 2-03-2007
I've always liked the original ADB mice for what they were. But for today's usage, I'd go with the Mighty Mouse if I absolutely had to pick an Apple mouse. Love the scrollball, but not much else about it. Using the left and right buttons takes the better part of a day to get used to, and the side squeezers just plain suck.
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Reg Muffet said 6:02PM on 2-03-2007
People's preferences for mice vary greatly.
Personally, although it was disliked by many, I thought the dimpled hockey puck mouse that came with bubblegum iMacs was a very precise little input device. Even when i had an optical non-Apple replacement, I sometimes plugged the puck in when I had precise pixel editing to do.
But apart from the nipple on the Mighty, I can't say I like the current generation of Apple mice much.
My mouse du jour is...
The Logitech MX Revolution. Has to be the finest mouse ever created. (The free-spinning scroll wheel is ideal for blog reading: one spin sends you sailing past all the guff to the meat!)
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andrej said 6:29PM on 2-03-2007
Don't use a mouse, i prefer a wacom graphire tablet.
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Dave said 4:15AM on 2-04-2007
Apple Mice: Simple to use first, looks and apparant simplicity of design second. If you want an ergonmic mouse, better buy the one that suits you, as every ones hands are different, and what suits you might not suit everyone else.
I like the pro mice, no cracks or grooves on the top for junk to get in.
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iamdigitalman said 2:45AM on 2-04-2007
I have mice spanning the whole series, minus the black pro mouse and hockey puck mouse.
I have the old boxen one on my Plus, a few ADB I mice on my collector macs, a spare ADB II which came with my B&W (though i do use the ADB AppleDesign KB that it came with), and I bought a white pro mouse, a show floor model from CompUSA when they were blowing them out. last one for $20. not bad, but the little white rung on the bottom borke off, and the guts spilled everywhere, so now i'm using a logitech USB optical mouse. it's better than I though, never thought I would use the right button so much, as I am used to contextual menus, but it is nicer. and the scroll wheel is killer. I may just end up buying a mighty mouse now.
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