Third-Party Mouse on Mac OS X

Recently I decided to buy a third-party mouse for my MacBook Pro. However I was unsure whether it would allow me to decently use my MacBook Pro, especially if it would allow me to

  • navigate multiple desktops
  • navigate multiple windows
  • replace my favorite other mouse gestures.

Some information I found on the internet has been quite helpful. Still I felt like joining an adventure and not knowing if the new mouse would work or not.

Why not a Magic Mouse?

  • It connects via bluetooth and my connection was unstable.
  • You have to change batteries every now and then. We always have spare rechargeable batteries in the office.
  • The Magic Mouse 2 has no batteries to change. So you must not forget to recharge it since …
  • … the Magic Mouse 2 is not even usable while charging.

When the connectivity problems with my bluetooth-connected Magic Mouse got worse I desired a simple cable–connected mouse.

The alternative: Logitech G402

Today I am very happy with my Logitech G402 HYPERION FURY ULTRA-FAST FPS GAMING MOUSE. It provides 8 buttons, meaning that keeping the left– and right–click you have 6 spare buttons to program. The Logitech Gaming Software runs on Mac and allows to run any keyboard shortcut on a button click.

What makes me happy?

  • The G402 feels really good to the touch – much better than the Magic Mouse.
  • The buttons are much faster to use than gestures.
  • Once configured the mouse works on my colleagues MacBooks as well. The buttons perform the same actions.
  • It is plugged into USB: energy and connectivity are no issues any more.
  • The G402 just looks cool.

What is not so great?

  • The Logitech Gaming Software occasionally crashes. However as you only need it to change the bindings of the buttons that's not a big issue.
  • I had to try a few versions of the software before it would start. On my Mac OS X 10.11.5 now runs Logitech Gaming Software 8.60.313.

Conclusion

After several weeks I am still very happy to use the new mouse. Neither do I regret the switch nor do I miss any feature of the Magic Mouse. The Logitech Game Software provides sufficient support for Mac OS X so I can only recommend it.