Introduction
Whether you’re into first person shooters, real time strategies or even delve into occasional graphics design, you should know that a good mouse is an essential tool in your daily computing activities. In this review we are going to look at the Logitech MX-510 optical wired 8-button mouse.
Back before I became addicted to Counter Strike I used basic £2 mice from ebuyer which back then served their purpose fine when I played things like Diablo 2 and Freelancer. But then I started to play Half Life WW2 mod Day of Defeat. I then started to notice the major faults with my mouse. It just loved to jump my cursor around the screen, which while trying to shoot a German in the head, frankly doesn’t help. I eventually came to my gaming senses and decided to get a “decent” mouse. After chatting with my other gaming associates I discovered the Logitech MX-510 seemed to be a trend among them, they all had it and highly recommended it.
At this moment I knew it was the mouse for me.
About Logitech
I can imagine most people have heard of Logitech from the days of the Playstation 1 and Logitech’s reputation for making cheap memory cards and controllers as apposed to Sony official products. Well after the downfall of the Playstation 1 I hadn’t really heard much more of Logitech until I went searching for a new mouse. It seems they have dominated the mouse and keyboard market as well as having a substantial part in other peripherals such as webcams and headsets.
Taken from Logitech Wesbite
Logitech designs, manufactures and markets personal peripherals that enable people to effectively work, play, and communicate in the digital world. The company’s products combine essential core technologies, continuing innovation, award-winning industrial design and excellent price performance.
I do actually consider these statements to be very truthful, I think most of their products are of very high quality and are well-priced in comparison to their competition.
Features / Specifications
- Award-winning Logitech MX Optical Engine – The Logitech MX optical engine is now even better. High resolution is combined with high frame rates to deliver superior performance. This revolutionary 800-dpi sensor now captures an incredible 5.8 megapixels every second. Able to track up to 15 G’s of acceleration, you get instant response to your fastest movements.
- A total of eight pre-programmed button functions – You can also customize the buttons yourself.
- Gaming-tuned software drivers – Logitech MouseWare software puts you in control of all eight buttons. A game detection setting enables button programming in games.
- Quick Switch program selector – At the touch of a button you can switch views between active programs and documents.
- Fast Net navigation – Two thumb buttons let you easily move forward or back through pages on the Internet.
- High-precision scrolling – Never use scroll bars again. Improve your searching speed by using the scroll wheel to quickly move through documents.
- Cruise Control scrolling system – Two Cruise Control buttons provide continuous scrolling (up and down) through long documents or web sites.
- Right-hand control grip – Designed by experts to combine form and function. The result is maximum comfort and complete control.
- Reflex finish – Holographic effect provides a stunning color depth and random effect. Every mouse is unique.
- Three-year warranty
Package Contents
- Logitech MX510 Performance Optical Mouse
- CD with MouseWare software
- Quick start guide
- USB to PS/2 adapter
Technical Specifications
- Image Processing: 5.8 megapixels/sec
- Resolution: 800 dpi
- Acceleration: 15g
- Speed: 40 inches/sec
System Requirements for PC
- IBM-compatible PC
- Windows 98, 2000, Me, XP
- USB or PS/2 port (USB requires Windows 98, 2000, Me, or XP)
- CD-ROM drive
System Requirements for Macintosh
- Macintosh OS X
- USB port
- CD-ROM drive
Installation
Installation involves just plugging the mouse in either a free USB slot or using the supplied USB to PS2 adaptor to plug into a free PS2 port. Then installing the included software which handles the mouses settings including the customisation of the extra buttons.
Build
As you can see the mouse has a nice glittery ripple effect which looks very impressive as you tilt the mouse. The coloured central section is just suited to rest your palm on, good smooth surface and comfortable shape. Your thumb fits perfectly down the left hand side into the groove and can be easily moved up to reach the 2 buttons without any obstacles. As for your 3rd and 4th finger they rest over the right edge, one moan in my use of the mouse is the position of a ridge on the right edge of the right mouse button. I rest my 3rd finger just here, which against this ridge isn’t particularly comfortable.
I can see the design Logitech were going for, your 3rd finger along the edge of the right mouse button and your 4th finger hanging under the ridge. But speaking as a Counter Strike regular having my 3rd finger here tends to interfere with my middle finger and its use of the right mouse button.
Extra Details
I thought it would worth including a little tip I learnt using WinXP. If you are using the mouse with the PS2 adaptor, so the mouse is plugged into a PS2 port this applies to you.
Open control panel, then go in the mouse options, then onto the motion tab. At the bottom of this menu there is a section called “Advanced Features”, in that is a slider with the title “PS2 report rate”. At default it is set to 100 reports per second. Move this to 200, the max, then apply. You should notice a jump in the smoothness of the mouses movement.
Testing
I thought I should give some feedback of how the mouse feels and reacts under, I think the most stressful thing a mouse can endure, First person shooters.
I had a good 1 hour session on my favourite first person shooter, Counter Strike Source, the recent update of the original Counter Strike built on Half Life 2’s Source Engine
Throughout the mouse seemed alot more fluid in its motion then ones I have used before. From spinning 180 degress to thwart an incoming enemy or precision aiming accross the map this mouse never let me down. I was shocked at one moment when I spun round and it didn’t seem to register the whole movement, but not to worry it was human error on my part by lifting the mouse off the surface as I turned. This was a relief of course.
The mouse easily made my playing the game alot more enjoyable. I quickly found uses for the very nicely positioned side buttons.
Moving away from gaming, the mouse is great for general windows tasks and browsing, but gaming and graphics are were this mouse excel.
Conclusion
My thoughts on the MX-510 are overall are very good. The quality of this mouse is nothing but superb, the responsivness and movement are top notch. I genuinally can’t wait to try this mouse out on Battlefield 2.
Also I like the fact it doesent try to impress with flashy lights or gamer tag or approvals, Logitech have made a great mouse and they know it!
Pros | Cons |
Good weight | Not built for left handed users |
Great visual impact | Price isn’t too great |
Great ergonomic design | |
Superb fluid movement |
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