The Bottom Line: Even though some things are better than previous Apple mice, the goodness is short-lived. The scroll wheel malfunctions, the side buttons have minds of their own and mine died young.

I've owned and worked on Macs for over 10 years, both professionally and personally. As such, I have experienced all sorts of Apple mice, including the horrible "hockey puck" mouse on the first G4s. In fact, I've still got it hanging around somewhere. Honestly, even though I love Macs (and Apple products in general), I've never been a big fan of Apple mice. I've also used PCs for over 10 years, and I've always preferred the mice available for them much more. Not only are they often more ergonomic, but they always have right-click and usually have scroll wheel functions.

So, I was very excited when Apple announced the Mighty Mouse. However, my excitement fizzled when I first saw the product (and it's price), and even more so after a few months of use.

I'm having a hard time deciding on the correct rating for this product. You see, compared to all of it's Apple predecessors, the Mighty Mouse is a lot cooler/better. However, compared to a lot of other mice on the market, the Mighty Mouse is really a sub-standard product. So, I'm going to rate it right in the middle of the scale at 3 stars and try to explain below.

Let me first go into why I was originally disappointed in the Mighty Mouse. When I first saw it, it looked just like the regular Apple mouse I was already using, only with a little teeny scroll wheel. There's absolutely nothing more ergonomic about it than previous Apple mice, and I couldn't see how it offered a right-click function as advertised because there are no top buttons. At $49, I wasn't planning on buying the Mighty Mouse, but it was purchased for me as a gift.

Upon first use, I was actually quite pleasantly surprised. Even though there are no top buttons on the Mighty Mouse, it senses when you press down on either the left or right side of the mouse and treats it as a left- or right-click respectively. Also, the scroll wheel wasn't as awkward or hard to get used to as I'd imagined. As a bonus, not only does it scroll up and down, but also side to side if need be. For about a month or so, the Mighty Mouse and I had a good relationship.

However, after about a month, the scroll wheel started to act up. Some days it would only scroll up, but not scroll down. Other days, it would scroll down, but not up. However, if I fiddled with it long enough, I could fix it to scroll like how I wanted.

The Mighty Mouse also comes with 2 side buttons. You can set those to just about whatever function you desire, including Expose, Dashboard, Application Switcher, Spotlight or any application of your choice. I don't have much need for the side buttons, so I have them set to "Off." However, after about a month, I was working in Photoshop, and I guess I squeezed the sides of the mouse a little hard, activating Expose. Since then, this has happened numerous times, and each time is more annoying than the last. There's nothing like doing a clipping path and then finding yourself unexpectedly in Expose view. Two things can be noted from this story: (1) the side buttons are overly sensitive and (2) they work even when you have them set to "Off." Not cool.

Even with it's flaws, the Mighty Mouse and I continued to have a relationship. I really love the right-click function, and when the scroll wheel worked, it was awesome. I also enjoy the fact that it uses optical technology instead of roller balls, so it never needs to be cleaned, and mouse pads are unnecessary.

I've had the mouse for about six months now, and this weekend, it just went completely haywire. The scroll button no longer works, except that occasionally it might scroll up if it feels like it. Its point-and-click accuracy has also diminished, almost out of the blue. Working in Photoshop yesterday, I would draw a selection box and it would show up several pixels off from where I had intended it. So, I promptly went out and bought a replacement mouse.

FYI, almost any USB mouse will work with a Mac, not just Apple products. Logitech, and even Microsoft, make Mac-compatible mice now.

So at $49, the Mighty Mouse, in my opinion, is not worth the price paid if it malfunctions regularly and doesn't last longer than six months. Sure, you may not find another mouse that scrolls side-to-side, but is that a function most people really need on a daily basis anyway? Nope! You may like it better than other Apple mice (for a little while), but I recommend saving yourself some grief and just buying a Logitech.