Logitech MX Master Review

Last week we reported about the unveiling of the Logitech MX Master mouse, the new upgraded version of the much loved Performance MX mouse. Of course it is hard for us to review products without getting our hands on them so a big thanks to Diarmaid Walsh of Murray Consultants who reached out and offered to send one my way following our review of the Performance MX.

Over the past number of years there has been a surge in the popularity of Trackpads, for some people they have seen the mouse as a peripheral which is soon to be obsolete in the future, however it doesn’t have to be that way and this is where Logitech comes in.

The mouse is still an important peripheral for those who are keen computer gamers or for people like myself who spend a lot of time working from a computer and use multiple displays, screens and tabs to get work done. I can’t tell you the difference in comfort there is in using a mouse instead of a trackpad for several hours each day.

The MX Master builds on the solid foundations set out by its predecessor, the Performance MX. It has buttons. Lots and lots of buttons. The mouse can also be synced via Bluetooth or the supplied Logitech dongle over three different computers. This means that you can be controlling one computer, hit a button on the bottom of the mouse and then all of a sudden you are controlling a completely different computer in your workspace.

A handy addition for those who may have a laptop, desktop and tablet setup in the one workspace. The existing features of the Performance MX are all there such as the button on top of the mouse which allows you to alter the scroll wheel from a ‘free flowing’ setup where it will continue to scroll with a flick or a ‘click-to-click’ setup which will give you the more traditional feel of a scroll wheel.

The mouse site perfectly in your hand, in fact it feels a bit better then the Performance MX, the rear of the mouse feels slightly higher meaning it cradles into your hand a bit better. The other buttons on the mouse are the same as before for the most part, you have your left and right click, two buttons on the side which can be used to navigate forwards or back and a button under where your thumb rests on the mouse which can be used to control features such as Mission Control on the Mac.

All of these buttons are programmable and their features can be changed using Logitech’s Software for both Mac and PC. In addition to all of these buttons there is a second scroll wheel on the side of the mouse which can be used to scroll horizontally on the screen in documents like Excel or programs like Tweetdeck.

The Master MX uses Logitech’s Darkfield sensor technology. Apart from sounding like it is straight out of a Star Wars movie, the Darkfield sensor basically means that it will track on most objects. Wood, glass and even my leather couch at home all seemed to be a breeze for this sensor. The mouse precision is spot on and the sensors seem to work really well.

The only real criticism I have of this mouse is that the button under your thumb feels very stiff. Much more so than the same button on the Performance MX and it seems to have a more defined “sweet spot” that you need to hit. I found that same button on the Performance MX to be a bit more responsive and clickable.

 

The back/forward buttons on the side have also been made smaller on the Master MX, much smaller and while that is not a huge deal as such I am a big man with big thumbs which felt slightly more at ease on the larger Performance MX buttons.

However these issues are me being very critical of the mouse and they may be things that some people could like about it. A few years ago this would have felt like a mouse ahead of its time, however now we are swiping, clicking and scrolling in a variety of different ways and this mouse turns out to be perfect for its time.

If you are looking to get a top end mouse for the first time then this is without doubt the one to invest in. Logitech have shown yet again what the top standard is when it comes to the world of wireless mousing and this will be without doubt the best when it hits the market. However if you recently invested in the Performance MX and are wondering about an upgrade, there is not a huge amount that you are missing out on. The Master MX is a solid and a great upgrade from the Performance MX however there is nothing massively ground breaking from it that you should be craving as such.

The Master MX will be available this April and will have a recommended retail price of €103.99

About The Author

Mark is the founder of 60 Second Social media where he provides social media news and digital marketing analysis. You can follow him on Twitter here. You can also follow 60 Second Social on Twitter here. Or you can drop Mark an email at, daltomark@me.com