Review on Logitech M557 Bluetooth Mouse – Long-life Wireless Mouse for Apple Mac or Microsoft Windows Computers and Laptops, in Gray - with Side-to-Side Scrolling and Ambidextrous Design by Jennifer Schreier

I bought a Logitech M557 bluetooth mouse for only $13 and it was a total bargain. A BT mouse usually costs more than a wireless mouse, so it wasn't difficult. However, there are many improvements that need to be made for this mouse. Let's go through the first pro. Advantages: - Possibility of connection. The BT mouse is usually connected to a laptop. This saves you the wireless adapter and the need to constantly connect to your laptop. Modern laptops are getting thinner and thinner, and USB ports just don't cut it. While you can, of course, use a USB hub, it's inconvenient. For most users, I expect the mouse will be used very close to their laptop, so connection reliability isn't an issue in most cases. This is true of all the times I've used this mouse. - Back / Forward buttons. Not only does the mouse wheel scroll up and down as expected, but it also includes the ability to left and right click. By default in Windows, this means the back button (left-click) and the forward button (right-click). This is very useful when browsing your browser of choice, as the dedicated back and forward buttons are no longer in an awkward spot like they are on most mice. - Windows key. The dedicated Windows key just below the wheel opens the Start menu by default. I believe you can download the Logitech software to customize what this button can do. I rarely go to the start menu in Windows 10, so I'll definitely change it to something more useful if I can think of anything! - Build quality. The M557 feels very solid and well built for a portable mouse. - No hyper scrolling. This might seem like a downside to many, but I passionately hate Logitech's hyper-scrolling feature! I've had to return a wireless mouse (which I loved) in the past because the center click was extremely frustrating and error-prone. The M557 doesn't have this scroll wheel feature and I'm glad it does. - Absence of light. I'm not sure if this can be considered professional, but it's nice to know there's no optical light underneath the mouse. - Switch. Yes, I'm from the old school. I like the dedicated on/off switch. The mouse has a power saving mode, but nothing beats the power button! Cons: - Weight. Immediately after using the mouse, I realized that this was a bad sign. I use the Logitech M100 as my daily driver (which I think is the best budget wired mouse ever made), and switching to the M557 is a day and night difference. The good news is that the mouse runs on just one AA battery! It has slots for two, but I currently only use it with one battery and haven't encountered any issues so far. Trust me you will want to do this because an extra battery makes a world of difference. That's not a problem, but it's odd that other battery-powered and seemingly large wireless mice are actually a bit lighter than the M557. - ergonomics. The mouse is not that comfortable to use. It's quite boxy, and while there's a small ridge that doubles as a palm rest, it doesn't quite do the trick. I have very small hands so I can't imagine how users with bigger hands than mine would like this. To be fair, this is a 'mobile' mouse first and foremost, so we have to understand that there are some sacrifices to be made. Just understand that using this mouse as a daily driver may be a little inconvenient for you. I have no choice but to use the claw grip with this mouse. This slightly offsets the weight issue, since I won't be lifting the mouse much (a weight disadvantage), and the ergonomic disadvantage, since my palm rests on the table instead. - Click Noise. The noise when pressing the keys is clearly audible. This can be very annoying when used in meetings. When scrolling with the mouse wheel, it's exactly the opposite, because it makes almost no noise. Overall I think this is a pretty good companion mouse for the mobile user. You probably don't want to use it every day, just when needed. You can throw a mouse in your travel bag and be sure you don't have to use that crappy touchpad on your laptop.