Wired vs. Wireless vs. Charging Mats
We’ve come a long way from Xerox’s three-button box with wheels on the bottom, but while there’s a lot more to choose from, the importance of the mouse hasn’t diminished. So, which to choose? We’re smashing the three pillars of mousing against each other: the traditional, standard wired mouse; the pretty-much-standard wireless mouse; and the new kid on the block, the wireless charging mouse. Should you stay with what works, pick freedom over tethering, or empty your wallet in pursuit of a mouse that charges itself? Let’s find out….
ROUND 1
Convenience
As with any attempt at making comparisons between competing standards, a great many of these categories will be highly subjective— and here’s the first. A wired mouse is fundamentally less convenient than a wireless one, right? By virtue of the fact that you can’t up and leave your desk with it, or pick it up and hurl it at a wall, without it pinging back on its own umbilical cord? Well, yes, and there are also less stupid reasons to appreciate wireless mice. Some are Bluetooth compatible, and can interact with your smartphone or tablet, as well as your PC. The lack of a cord means you’ll never get tangled or snagged at the worst moment. Wireless mice are pretty awesome, both more and less so when a charging pad enters the fray. More, because you never run the risk of running out of battery power at the worst moment, and less because that expensive mat becomes an essential part of your mousing activities. But there’s a reason that wired mice still exist: You can plug them in, and they enable you to point at things without any further fuss. That counts for something, at least.
Winner Wireless
ROUND 2
Latency
The obvious, and actual, winner of the low-latency wars is the good ol’ wired mouse. The speed at which signals can travel along a wire from your mouse to your PC, and subsequently be interpreted into movements, is fundamentally faster than any wireless solution. But not by much, in real terms. Contain your rage, but we’re going to say it: Bluetooth’s lag is only just perceptible. Most traditional RF wireless solutions manage a speed that, to the untrained eye, is completely instantaneous. And new technologies are arriving that drop the interpretation interval even further—Logitech’s Lightspeed wireless communication, for example, purports to offer a 1ms latency. We’ve tested it, and we believe it; essentially, any reason you might have had to avoid wireless based on its sluggishness is dissipating quickly, even if you’re a gamer with lightning reactions. Since we ought to mention it, wireless charging makes no difference to latency, or at least it shouldn’t. Logitech’s own charge pad, the Powerplay, includes a pass-through for a Lightspeed receiver, although not every charging solution will incorporate such tech. Winner
Wired
ROUND 3
Reliability
Time for a bit of a tenuous argument? Why not. But let us begin with the truth: Wireless mice are the least reliable option. While interference is rarely an issue, and most broadcast systems can cope with a decent distance between mouse and receiver, the threat of disconnection is there. Worse: Sometimes batteries run out, and usually this happens at the absolute worst moment. If you’re using a mouse with AA cells, you can switch them out quickly; with an internal lithium battery, you can generally plug in and switch to wired mode while charging. Both solutions are quick, but neither situation is ideal. Wired mice are far more reliable. Until something happens to the cable. Most wired devices are hard-wired, so unless you’re adept with a soldering iron and a multimeter, a shredded cable means a new mouse. That infrequent, unlikely situation is why wireless charging wins this category for us. There’s no risk of a flat battery, a natural encouragement to keep your mouse close to the receiver, and no cable to get eaten by your dog. A wirelessly charged mouse is always ready to go.
Winner Wireless Charging
ROUND 4
Cool Factor
Most wireless charging solutions are subtle enough that people won’t ask you about them until you tell them about them. And, let’s face it, you probably will. And they won’t care. But your fancy, expensive mouse mat certainly means something to you: Charging your devices constantly and automatically is, while not flashy, damn cool. The freedom of wireless mice has its own intrinsic appeal, and a practical one, too, particularly because they enable you to move away from the desk, and get comfy elsewhere. Design-wise, wireless mice don’t tend to differ too much from their wired cousins, at least in terms of shape, but in the world of PC peripherals, “cool factor” generally has to mean “covered head to toe in RGB LEDs.” Wired, therefore, takes this category hands down; wireless devices, desperate to maximize battery life, tend to shun pretty lights, although charged mice are likely to get brighter as time goes on. With a wire, there are heaps of gaudy, customizable options, tons more mice with extra buttons and gimmicks, and just much more choice. That sounds pretty cool to us. Winner
Wired
ROUND 5
Value
Wireless charging, at least right now, is exorbitantly expensive. Far too expensive, if we’re being honest, but as the tech matures and its adoption increases, we expect the price will drop down. Whether it will ever dip low enough to win a price comparison contest, though, is highly unlikely, particularly given the affordability of standard wireless and wired mice. Value is another subjective subject—does the usability and flexibility of wireless make its dollar price irrelevant? Should we be looking at the bottom end of the market, where you can pick up a convincinglooking (but probably absolute garbage) 2.4GHz wireless mouse for $3 and change, or a functional wired mouse for a buck? No. That’s not what we’re about. Looking at quality peripherals highlights a slight premium in the price of wireless mice, particularly where they have wired counterparts sporting much the same tech. You won’t have to replace batteries often—depending on your usage and the particular mouse, it could be anywhere from three months to a year—but that’s an additional running cost that wired, our winner, just doesn’t have. Winner
Wired