Logitech MX Revolution

[Solitario]

Two years, it will have been necessary nearly two years for engineers of Logitech to give to their top-of-the-range mouse, the MX1000, a heiress. MX1000 was essential like reference as regards top-of-the-range mouse. Logitech must thus strike extremely with its MX Revolution to replace in the heart of the users the MX1000.

Apparently not not very proud from its new top-of-the-range mouse, Logitech went there straight to the point for its Christian name. But what thus has this mouse of truly revolutionary? The essence of the work will have concerned, this time, not on the optical sensor, but the caster. Eh yes our good old woman caster, invented by Microsoft in 1996 with its Intellimouse, didn't said its last word yet!

Design:-

For this new mouse, Logitech New Year's gift a design which seems straight inspired of what one usually finds in the automobile world. Logic since the Swiss manufacturer intends to this top-of-the-range mouse for a public rather male follower of beautiful mechanics. Mixing materials skilfully, the MX Revolution has a matt hull and gray anthracite, struck its higher part of the Logitech logo and masking always also skilfully the buttons left and right whereas the serrated roller fits between the two. Placed just in lower part of the serrated roller, one notes a new chrome button which gives access to the function One-Touch Search. But let us return to the shape of the peripheral whose left end obtains a broad recess to the triangular form for the inch. In addition to the black plastic brilliance delimiting the rest-inch, one finds a vast rubber shoe for the best taken in hand of the mulot. Some will say that this one has an air of family with a vague sole of shoe, but the judgement is one nothing severe! Compared to the MX1000, the zone reserved for the inch is much more important and gives access to the buttons preceding page/following page like to the second serrated roller.

Right side of the mouse, one finds a surface very slightly embossed hard which your auricular will probably rest. The lower part of the mouse also evolved/moved and Logitech henceforth proposes broad polytetrafluoroethylene shoes (PTFE) which, if they are not as broad as those of the mice G5 or G7, should all the same cure the problems of separation observed on a number of mice of range MX while guaranteeing good slips, and this, in a greater silence. With two contactors, the back of the mouse is of course equipped with a laser optical sensor and a button of starting: practical for quite simply extinguishing the MX Revolution when you do not make use of it during several days/weeks.

Let us finish this part devoted to the look of the animal by some words on the base of recharging which accompanies it. This one does not evolve/move of an inch compared to the model which is delivered with the MX1000 in version Bluetooth (pack DiNovo). However from the shape even of the new mouse, this base is not, alas, yet perfect. Indeed, it can sometimes happen to put back the mouse on the basis without it not making indeed contact thus preventing the good unfolding of the refill. It will thus be necessary to throw an eye on the diodes, Logitech having renewed the system of diodes on three levels for the refill of the battery. Will know finally that the radio operator receiver is not integrated into the shoe of refill, Logitech delivering a key USB which one connects to the one of the free ports of his PC. The key uses a radio transmission 2,4 GHz and offers a maximum range of nine meters.

[Solitario]

MX Revolution or the Russian roulette

As we announced it in introduction, this year the innovation is not to seek side of the laser sensor of the MX Revolution. This one indeed roughly speaking remains identical to that of the MX1000 and offers, let us recall it, a compatibility with a broader range of surfaces all while being shown more precise and more rapid that a conventional optical sensor. Its resolution remains fixed at 800 cpi. The innovation of this MX Revolution lies primarily in the serrated roller higher than Logitech learnedly baptized MicroGear Precision Scroll Wheel. Until now, the serrated rollers of mouse offer a single mode of run which is not inevitably adapted to the consultation of long documents since it is necessary to still turn, turn and turn for finally reaching the 78e page of your report/ratio of thesis. Admittedly, Logitech had tried to propose an alternative as of the launching of its MX700 with buttons which one maintained inserted for a continuous run, but those were not inevitably precise nor moreover always practical.

With its MicroGear Precision Scroll Wheel, Logitech designed a serrated roller literally having two tape speeds. The first mode is completely traditional since it is about this good old man notched run. The second on the other hand is a really innovator since the caster passes in mode coils free to reach a rate of travel of approximately 2500 lines for an Excel table or 200 pages for a document Word or Acrobat. Made of a metal alloy, the new caster is a machine element of high precision made up of a multitude of elements. The caster being able automatically to change mode of run according to the pace to which to handle it to you, Logitech associated to him a sensor as well as a micro engine with low fuel consumption which activates or decontaminates the mechanism of pawl. Equipped with a very new frame, the caster is as heavier as the conventional casters. To allow the caster to ravel during several seconds without stopping, and this of only one impulse, the manufacturer increased his weight to 14 grams, whereas the caster of a MX1000 weighs only 2,4 grams. With the use, this plumpness does not feel absolutely and in addition to the metal design of the caster, a rubber ribbon surrounds it what contributes to give an impression of solidity while returning its handling of most pleasant.

Turn caster!

In addition to the purely technical aspect of the realization, it should well be admitted that the new caster of Logitech is impressive! Of a simple pressure on this one one rocks of a mode of run to the other, and the mode coils free is shown indeed ideal for navigation in the long documents which it is of Word documents, Excel tables or your base email. Of a flick the caster starts to turn on itself, causing vertical displacement in your document and it is enough to approach its index to stop it almost instantaneously and to find themselves in the good page. Of course the caster is able, in connection with the pilots, automatically to change mode according to the use that you make some, but in this case the installation of SetPoint is obligatory. It is what Logitech calls SmartShift, a function which is also capable automatically to select the mode of the most adequate run according to the application in the course of execution. Under Word the caster functions for example in free wheel whereas while opening the file My Images, the caster passes in mode of notched run. Only difficulty in our eyes the passage of mode of run to the other is sometimes too slow. Difficult to say if the fault falls to the pilots or on the microprocessor of the mouse or on mechanics. However, Logitech announces that the change takes less than 40 ms, but in many cases after a use of the caster in mode coils free, this one remains blocked in this mode until it effleuriez to you again… Will know finally that the caster remains multidirectional to enable you to move horizontally in your documents.

Sectional view of the MicroGear caster, here on Logitech VX Revolution

Other innovations and changes

With its MX Revolution, Logitech changes considerable things on the level of the function keys. Exit thus buttons of run surrounding the serrated roller, those becoming null and void with the fast mode of run. Exit also the click of the reprogrammable serrated roller to carry out a double-click. Indeed, the click from now on is assigned exclusively with the manual change of mode of run of the caster. But it is not all, since the button of change of application of the MX1000 is replaced here by one second caster placed under your inch. Attention, in spite of an identical form, this one is quite different from the higher caster and it acts besides in the facts of a serrated roller with three positions: high, low and central click. By defect, once SetPoint installed, it offers a baptized function Document Flip which makes it possible to be trotted in the list of the applications currently opened to the screen to rock from one document to another of a simple click. Practical, this caster can also be reprogrammed, always via SetPoint, to act as a zoom before/back that it is on documents, Web pages or images.

Another innovation of this MX Revolution: the button silver plated present under the principal caster and struck of a magnifying glass. Baptized One Touch Search, this button makes it possible to launch a Google research after having selected the word, or it your choice, word group in a document Word or an email (or in another application). Naturally, it is possible to change the search engine by defect as well as the language of this one. For the moment, the pilots beta offer a limited choice: Google or Yahoo. If Google research opens a new window of your navigator with all the results, research Yahoo Live Words posts a small rectangle with the results in transparency on your application. It is well seen even if the perenniality of the function is not guaranteed in the direction where the user risks to employ it in an anecdotic way.

[Solitario]

Handling

Of a weight almost identical to the MX1000, the MX Revolution is handled very agreeably. The hand naturally marries contours of the rodent and the site rests inch appears particularly pleasant thanks to its widened form. Sometimes negative consequence of this drawing, the mouse is adapted little to the hands of very small size. Into another register, slips it also seems of very good invoice even if we will not come to a conclusion about the evolution in the time of the Teflon shoes. Specify, swift, the mouse is particularly pleasant and the new fashion of run proves bluffant. Of course, if your documents on average make only three pages length, this new fashion does not have about any interest. On the other hand, if they contain tens of pages, the fast run will quickly become your mode of favorite displacement. One will regret, once again, the small time of passage of a mode of run to the other or impossibility of reprogramming the central click to carry out a double click, but they are there only points of detail.

With applications like Photoshop CS or PaintShop Pro, the MX Revolution gives any satisfaction, the precision during the selections being with go. In the plays, the MX Revolution behaves very well, that it is about play of shot or directed titles strategy like Rise Of Nations or Age Of Empires. We thus could buckle too short Half-Life 2 One Episode with this mouse without noting the least problem and while benefitting from a very high degree of accuracy for the headshots. But attention, the players are not the target first of this mouse! One will regret in the passing the absence of a function allowing to decontaminate the change of mode of run of the serrated roller in the plays. If it is possible to reprogram the horizontal run of the serrated roller to carry out actions of its choice, one cannot alas assign short cuts keyboards to him what could have been useful in the plays.

Conclusion

Innovating the MX Revolution? For sure! Revolutionist? Can be not as much as Logitech would like to make it believe. Admittedly one finds in this MX Revolution all the ingredients of a high level mouse: design to cut the breath, though very virile, very comfortable form and ergonomics, precision of the laser sensor without forgetting the refillable battery. The MicroGear caster constitutes of not to doubt an ahead important step, for as much it does not relate to everyone. If for the first time a serrated roller of mouse seems the fruit of a true work of goldsmith, its principal contribution, the fast run, is far from relating to all one each one. Mister everyone seldom needs to reach a speed of 2500 lines under Excel… On the other hand, for the user exploiting Excel and Word regularly, which is the case of your servant, this serrated roller is almost the Holy Grail!

It would however not have to be believed that the MX Revolution is perfect! One regrets for example the time necessary for the change of mode of run of the caster or the heaviness of the pilots who trail since annéees same the bugs. Some will undoubtedly reproach us for not speaking in praise of the functions QuickFlip or One-Touch Search, but let us regard we them more as software gadgets than like real technological innovations.

Do not mislead you there however, the MX Revolution remains a good mouse with significant projections in spite of its too high price 5,700 INR.

[Earth]

thats a very nice review of the mouse

[Dr.pter]

The Design Of This Mouse Is Wonderful

[Damien25]

i will go for a joystick rather than this mouse to play games

[Silent~Kid]

this mouse is amazing

[Soul Searching]

the screenshots are just amazing

[sivaranjan]

very good review with detailed information

[multiplekeystrokes]

Does anybody know of a way to really reprogram the keys. logitech doesn't really give you a whole lot of customization options. for example, i would love to program the "thumb wheel", However the software only allows you to select two options for the "thumb wheel"; either the 'Document Flip' command or the 'Zoom' command. for some reason logitech gave every other button on the mouse the ability to be a keystroke assignment except the thumb wheel.

The thumb wheel is actually a two way button, (pushing it forward or backward has a springlike resistance which ends at about an 1/8 turn both ways (it cannot make a full rotation).

i would really like to change the forward/back buttons to the document flip command and use the thumb wheel as forward/back.