Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Anycom BTM-100 Bluetooth Mini Mouse mini review
As a regular laptop user, I have always kept an eye out for what I consider to be the perfect travel mouse solution. While a cable mouse is always going to be reliable, I like the idea of a cordless unit you can just pull out and get up and running quickly without the need to untangle cables etc. The trouble with a cordless mouse is it requires batteries and I’m firmly in the camp of portable devices that can be recharged without the need to purchase replacement batteries. So a cordless, rechargeable travel mouse seems like a challenge but the majority of wireless mice on the market require a separate USB dongle to allow communication between the mouse and computer to take place which means another small item to carry around and quite likely lose. Since a lot of laptops nowadays have Bluetooth built in, this should allow a Bluetooth mouse to connect without the need for any other hardware. Now that my list of requirements has been very much refined, Anycom very kindly offered to send me their BTM-100 mini mouse which just happens to tick all the boxes!
Included in the package along with the mouse are a USB charging cradle, user manual, carry bag and rechargeable two AAA batteries. The first thing you will notice about this mouse is it is small. Not tiny like some of the mice I have seen but certainly noticeably smaller than a normal mouse. The shape provides a long, slender profile meaning it doesn’t feel as cramped as many of these travel mice however because of the narrow width, it still takes a bit of getting used to.
Setting up the mouse is very straight forward; you simply turn it on and press the discoverable button on the bottom. Searching for devices on your laptop should show the device up and selecting it for use creates a bond. There is no passkey needed for connection and once set up, the device will not be discoverable by other computers unless you push the button again. The standard HID profile is used so no other software needs to be installed, your computers Bluetooth stack should be sufficient.
At a relatively standard dpi of 800, the precision on offer from the optical sensor should be up to expectations and performance during testing was very good. There was no discernable lag during a week of using this as my main mouse and the only time there was a pause was when the device was not used for a few minutes and the power save feature kicked in. Moving the mouse slightly wakens the device up and it is back working within about a second. There is an on/off switch on the bottom to save the batteries for long periods of inactivity but should you run low on batteries, you can simply replace them with a fresh pair or if you are using the supplied rechargeables, connect up the USB charging cradle. A full charge via USB is stated as 7.5 hours giving up to 60 hours of use or 2000 hours of standby. The USB cradle is an excellent concept and well designed as it allows you to use the mouse while it is charging and also makes it feel more like a desktop size of mouse in the hand. The only downside to this is there are two components that you will typically need to carry with you so you won’t be saving yourself any storage space in your laptop bag. While the mouse is connected through the USB cradle, it is only being powered and charged; Bluetooth is still being used as the connection for controlling the pointer however given there were no issues with Bluetooth performance, I couldn’t see anything negative in this.
Trying to determine who this mouse is ideally suited to isn’t straight forward. One of the main reasons for a smaller sized mouse for a laptop is the reduced size when travelling however to get the rechargeable benefit of the BTM-100, you really need to carry the cradle as well increasing the overall size. That being said, this cradle not only offers you the ability to charge the mouse during use but is also an option to make the mouse feel bigger and perhaps more comfortable for extended periods of use so might be handy for a family or work pool laptop where there is more than one user and the flexible usage options come into play. An alternative is for people that use both a desktop and laptop at work and use the mouse connected during the day and then take the mouse only component away in the evening for use on the laptop. Either way, this is still a great performing Bluetooth mouse with the ability to recharge meaning you will never be caught short of power.
Retailing for around the £30 mark, more details can be found at the Anycom website.
Included in the package along with the mouse are a USB charging cradle, user manual, carry bag and rechargeable two AAA batteries. The first thing you will notice about this mouse is it is small. Not tiny like some of the mice I have seen but certainly noticeably smaller than a normal mouse. The shape provides a long, slender profile meaning it doesn’t feel as cramped as many of these travel mice however because of the narrow width, it still takes a bit of getting used to.
Setting up the mouse is very straight forward; you simply turn it on and press the discoverable button on the bottom. Searching for devices on your laptop should show the device up and selecting it for use creates a bond. There is no passkey needed for connection and once set up, the device will not be discoverable by other computers unless you push the button again. The standard HID profile is used so no other software needs to be installed, your computers Bluetooth stack should be sufficient.
At a relatively standard dpi of 800, the precision on offer from the optical sensor should be up to expectations and performance during testing was very good. There was no discernable lag during a week of using this as my main mouse and the only time there was a pause was when the device was not used for a few minutes and the power save feature kicked in. Moving the mouse slightly wakens the device up and it is back working within about a second. There is an on/off switch on the bottom to save the batteries for long periods of inactivity but should you run low on batteries, you can simply replace them with a fresh pair or if you are using the supplied rechargeables, connect up the USB charging cradle. A full charge via USB is stated as 7.5 hours giving up to 60 hours of use or 2000 hours of standby. The USB cradle is an excellent concept and well designed as it allows you to use the mouse while it is charging and also makes it feel more like a desktop size of mouse in the hand. The only downside to this is there are two components that you will typically need to carry with you so you won’t be saving yourself any storage space in your laptop bag. While the mouse is connected through the USB cradle, it is only being powered and charged; Bluetooth is still being used as the connection for controlling the pointer however given there were no issues with Bluetooth performance, I couldn’t see anything negative in this.
Trying to determine who this mouse is ideally suited to isn’t straight forward. One of the main reasons for a smaller sized mouse for a laptop is the reduced size when travelling however to get the rechargeable benefit of the BTM-100, you really need to carry the cradle as well increasing the overall size. That being said, this cradle not only offers you the ability to charge the mouse during use but is also an option to make the mouse feel bigger and perhaps more comfortable for extended periods of use so might be handy for a family or work pool laptop where there is more than one user and the flexible usage options come into play. An alternative is for people that use both a desktop and laptop at work and use the mouse connected during the day and then take the mouse only component away in the evening for use on the laptop. Either way, this is still a great performing Bluetooth mouse with the ability to recharge meaning you will never be caught short of power.
Retailing for around the £30 mark, more details can be found at the Anycom website.
