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| Kensington PilotMouse Optical Wireless Review by Jonathan Trevisani,Computer Games Online  Wireless freedom. Optical precision. Rubber gripping. The Kensington PilotMouse Optical Wireless has some strong features that should appeal to many users. It falls short without some of the more advanced features of gaming mice, but this entry-level mouse performs well for its bracket. The design of the PilotMouse is very robust with stylish patterns and glossy plastic covering some of the mouse. It has a good deal of weight on it so it doesn't feel too light to fly off the desk. What sets it apart from the competition is the rubber grips that are in all the right places for comfortable hand placement. Thumbs and pinkies have a solid grip on the rubber matting and prevent any possible slippage that may occur during use. There is also rubber on the two buttons for added comfort. The rubber grips and buttons give a great feel to the mouse and puts to rest any worries of sweaty palms getting in the way of mousing.The rubber-coated buttons are very comfortable and would have been complemented with side buttons, but the mouse does not include any extra programmable buttons. With many applications that require forward and back functions, the addition of program buttons are almost essential to today's computing. It does have a scroll wheel, but does not include the new side-scrolling feature. The lack of options takes away from the solid performance of the mouse. The PilotMouse should really have included this feature to become a fully-equipped mouse. DiamondEye optical tracking works well for the mouse and delivers precise accuracy. Mouse movement is smooth and tracks well for all applications. The optical beam has an auto-off feature that will prevent the batteries from being drained unnecessarily. Response time is quick and never felt lacking during the review. The wireless functionality of the mouse performs very well. It has a long range of about 6 feet and doesn't falter with interference. The wireless receiver was even placed underneath the desk and still worked great. The battery life is long for the two AA batteries and don't need to be changed that often. It would have been beneficial to have a rechargeable battery setup, but the AAs work well enough for several weeks. Overall, the Kensington PilotMouse Wireless Optical performs well and has the feel of a solid mouse. The rubber grips and solid weight to the mouse really give it a robust design. Most of the negatives for the mouse involve the lack of features such as additional buttons or rechargeable batteries. The features included with the PilotMouse live up to expectations should please standard users. For $39.99, the mouse gives the benefits of wireless freedom and a comfortable grip. For users not looking for a lot of bells and whistles, this mouse should work out quite well. 3.5 out of 5 write your comments about the article :: © 2006 Computing News :: home page |