As far as the boomslang design goes, I find the design to be perfect. One thing I notice with most gamers is they hold mice INCORRECTLY. They play with their thumb on the side, their index finger on the left button, middle finger on the right, and ring finger on the other side, leaving their pinky hanging. The correct way to hold a boomslang is with all 5 fingers, in which it fits like a glove. The thumb and pinky gripping around the mouse fit under the 2 side buttons perfectly, and the wide buttons up top allow you to use the scroll wheel with the middle finger while not cramping your index, middle, and ring fingers all within an inch of each other (very uncomfortable with most mice when you cramp those 3 fingers together while you have you thumb and pinky gripping the outsides). So try it with your thumb on the side, your index finger on the left button, your middle finger on the scroll wheel, your ring finger on the right button, and your pinky on the other side, and see how it works out :)

Gripping your mouse with 5 fingers also allows you to use your palm to control the mouse, rather then your finger tips, which improves performance greatly.

(posted twice so people who dont know take notice :P)

"Gripping your mouse with 5 fingers also allows you to use your palm to control the mouse, rather then your finger tips, which improves performance greatly. "

That is BS. Fingertip control is more precise and faster than using your palm and as such I use my thumb on the left and 2 finger on the right of my mouse.

subjective of course...

gotta agree w/ ten on this one. i have a cheapo computer desk with a hard smelly wrist bar that makes my wrists smell like feet... only reason why i dont take it off is cuz it's the perfect height for my mouse and pad. i control the mouse w/ my fingers and elbow and only use wrist for for flick shots

Of course this is just your personal opinion, but I have to agree that the BS-design is nearly perfect.

I think there are three types of BS-users. They...

1- see the mouse, touch it, play around for 2 days and never again want another mouse (that's me).

2- try it out, think "Well, it's a mouse" and need two months to get used to it.

3- touch it and hate it.

As you said, the only (IMHO comfortable) way to hold a Boomslang is to use your thumb and pinky on the sides. First I tried to hold it like my old Logitech (thumb on the left, ring finger and pinky on the right - this way it's also hard to reach the wheel), noticed that it doesn't fit the shape of the BS and needed two days to get used to the 'right' finger-positions.

As for the "palm control" you mentioned:
I use my thumb and pinky to move the mouse. The palm seldom touches the mouse. I think that's the way of holding it was designed for.

The hand size doesn't matter as much as your personal preferences (I don't have very large hands but like the BS).

Try it before you buy it.

i hold my mouse that way as well but i think its just a matter of opinion. as a cs player the "fingertip" control lets me have a little higher sensitivity when "palm" control actually needs you have a lower sens.

I can't use the right hand button on the boomslang with my 'pinky' must use my Ring finger, & I have never had any trouble, I didn't see any information in the manual suggesting I should hold it differently & I would have dismissed it if I had.

who are you to tell people how to hold their mice?
thats like telling someone how to have a wank, we all do it our own way :)

oh and btw, i just went from a boomslang 2k (which i loved) to a new ms intellimouse optical, version 3, and its about 20492864982469286 times better than the boomslang :)

pity they dont do an optical boomslang :/

Archive.

he's an xsr user ;)

considering its the way the razer was designed/ment to be held :\

If you hold it a different way and like it, thats all good, and if you have another mouse you hold with 4 fingers and dont want to change, thats all good too. Im just saying, thats how the boomslang was designed/ment to be held, so try it like that before you knock it.

thumb is opposable, pinky isn't... Ring Finger > Pinky...

Let's just hope he comes back to the site so he can see your reply ;)

that's not true, seven tells me how to wank all the time and he's usually right

and what if i'm playing for 5 years with middle finger on right button = forward and now you come telling me to use the wheel on that expensive junk. it was the biggest p.o.s. i ever wasted my money on. use an intelli 3.0 optical, or a wingman/pilot if you want a ball mouse, and forget that overpriced geek's tool.

Personal Opinion? mhmmm.

All I am saying is for people to try it the way it was designed/ment to be help before they knock it. If you play with a different style, and/or dont like the boomslang, thats fine.

sorry i wrote that cause i'm still pissed off with that boomslang ;-)
it may have good technology inside (2000 dpi, 6 mips signal processor) but its shape is too different from any other mouse. a mouse should be easy to use, not force the user to adapt. if the mamba has a more playable shape i may get one, but the boomslang's shape scares many gamers away.

i think covert is right about using ring for rightclick and middle finger for scroll. i think it's better, not just for boomslang mice but for all wheel mice. if i could only use my ring finger with enough coordination to push the button i would, but i cant. i'll stick to my MS intellimouse 1.0 ball and use it till it breaks and then i'm sh*t outta luck.

Archive.

that's true if you're using the wheel. but i've playing with a logitech mouseman95 since doom and later with a wingman (the shape is identical, the wingman has usb). with no wheel. the wingman is still fine, but as i got tired with cleaning i got a ms intelli 3.0. it has a wheel, but what could i do with it. scrolling through weapons is bullshit, ok i could bind 2 weapons to up/down, but index finger has been fire and middle forward for years, why change that just because bill thought mice should have a wheel.

second, until 2 years ago i played palming the mouse. then i changed to fingertip control, (a friend's advice) what caused me to almost double the sens. many say lower sens is more accurate, but i improved by using fingers only and wrist on the table . using the palm causes you to move your arm too, not so good since the arm muscles are naturally less precise than those of the forearm. so try which grip works best for you.

You can also use a scrollwheel for scrolling on e.g the internet or with Word. Can't do without it anymore :)

that's practical, sure, but i was considering a mouse for gaming purposes only.

hey i'd like to know how pro gamers are holding their mice.

Archive.

MS are actually quite good.

and logi are better and more comfortable =]

And the moon is blue daily

And wemans can drive cars ... :)

This was pretty biased...
Anyway if you read this and became outraged or just feel bad for the writer, it was only his opinion :-)

P.S.
Ms Intelli Ex 3.0 rox

MS intellimouse Explorer 3.0 is the best mouse I have yet tried...plz dont flame the mouse because you have baby-hands...

But he's got a point here, I think there are many players with rather small hands, me being one of them. I also use the pilot wheel mouse, really nice mouse.

nice work stoney

i had a MS Intel Explorer and liked it a lot... but i tried a boomslang, and switched straight away! i just find it an awesome mouse for games (although admittedly it can get tiring out of games, but who cares? :)

also, iv had my boomslang for 9 months now, and havnt had any problems with it at all (i do however take good care of it)

Being a gaming freak I am; I switched from using the Intellimouse explorer that i used for the past 2 years to a logitech wingman mouse. The wingman increased my kill count, and it was a awesome shape and feel. But i needed the extra buttons that i was used to using the explorer, and the mousewheel. I found the Boomslang 1000 a great compromise, it had a few problems ( like stickiness) but i found a way around them. The boomslang is an awesome mouse if you get used to it, and keep it clean.

btw i have VERY small hands :)

i have giant yeti hands, but boomslang still doesn't feel comfortable :p

it's the most expensive mouse on the market, and it's really hard to adapt to. i spent a lot on a mouse i absolutely can't play with. is that a mouse or a cockroach? and it breaks easy. maybe the mamba will be better, but i won't switch from optical.

I have short stubby fingers (a woodcroppers hand:).
Right now i use a Rotokiller 720, trying to get use to it´s very numb membranbuttons :)
Using the fingertips for the first time :)

MS IE3.0 is best mouse I've ever used yet. Before IE3.0 I used Logitech Wheel Mouse +optical and it was so uncomfortible. After 2 hours using Mouse, gaming or whatever, I got pain in my fingers. Boomslang: No way, Ballmices *urgh* :)

Also IE3.0 is aviable to use on carpets or whatever, it can be used on every underground - I've tested it :p

I had 3 faulty ones in the previous model, when I took the third back they give me the new model :))) Very nice. Old one was a bit bulky.

I dont understand the statement that msi3.0 is bad for making flick shots. Thats exactly what i find it good at.
With this mouse i can flick as fast as i want to, and its still precise. I think those who says its a bad "flick mouse" have gotten used to the way a ballmouse skips when you flick too fast ( not that its a bad thing, just a matter of preference ).

i agree on the points of the shape tho, it feels like it have been made for a certain size of hand.

Another good point are the extremely bad teflon feet. Fortunately you can buy new/extra teflon feed in the shape of teflon tape ( or just normal tape if your cheap ;) )
If you buy a steelpad or an icemat you get teflon tape in the deal, which is pretty good since those surface's tend to be hard on the micefeet.

Oh, and i dont agree on the point that a heavier mouse gives you a more steady aim. When using the dual optical mouse from logitech my hands start to hurt much sooner than with lighter mice. Also the shape of that mouse kinda ruins the feel for me.

As others have said, its all a matter of personal preference :o)

it would be great with its technology if the shape was smaller/better
A small, good shape is better for flickshots, you can move the small mouse faster and without having to move the arm
And rocket jumping with the explorer 3 is a pain in the ass if you play with your wrist

i agree totaly :D

nice write up stony. always found the intelli 3.0 to be too pick.
pilot is purrfik!
pilot with the optical sensors from intelli 3.0 would kick ass

I find the MS Intelliemouse ps/2 very gd

Nicknamed "da cockmaster"

Prob with rollers is the cleaning, but worth it.

Logitech Mini Wheel Mouse - like the pilot but smaller :)

Opticals still feel terrible to me.

how big diffrence there is between MS Explorer (the newest) and boomslang 2k? like, how many DPI:s does MS intellieye explorer have?
i did go to microsofts page, but they only say something about inches and pictures.
eg. MS intellieye Explorer can send was it 6000 pictures in a second.
what in the earth does that mean?

400 dpi, i believe.

ah yep, the ie 3.0 has a resolution of 400 dpi
and youll still find it soo accurate
for a standard low/mid-senser, dpi wont matter, imo

suprised the logitech wingman wasnt mentioned in that review..... or the microsoft intellimouse v3.0 [without the 2-side buttons]

the logitech wingman really has one hell of a kickass shape..

the microsoft intellimouse explorer's teflon pads after a month of usage becomes super smooth...... or u can even remove the pads from all four sides and once used on a cloth mousepad, its even smoother.........

ps, does anybody know any site selling gaming mice overnet? [and no, not ebay]

y not ebay? i just bought a boomslang 2K for around $45 (brand new)

Hi, good column ...

Logi Mini Wheel Mouse or Logi Pilot Wheel Mouse ?
Logi Pilot Wheel Mouse or Logi Mini Wheel Mouse ?

Both are small but Mini Wheel Mouse is smaller. I use a Dexxa MiniWheel Mouse but i will next Week a new Mouse !

Logi Mini Wheel Mouse or Logi Pilot Wheel Mouse ?
Logi Pilot Wheel Mouse or Logi Mini Wheel Mouse ?

What Mouse i buy it next Week ? any ideas ... Hlp plz.

i havent got my hands on the wingman yet
cos its not available anymore
ive tried it on a lan for a few hours, but in that time, i cannot judge if its good or not

about the mini wheel mouse, there are indeed some players that use it (like xl*tresk, who beat sujoy once)
i havent tried it out myself, but i think i should..

/me used a4tech, ms inteli 2.x, logi pilot&pilot+, tryed boomsland, n now is using logi wingman gamming n this is the best one ever had (playing by fingers, no scroll!, high damage res- ehh i love this mouse:)

I also use the Logitech Wingman USB. Took a few weeks to really get used to the shape and movement after my old mouse (I think it was an old Logitech Mouseman, but it had the IBM logo on it), but I love it now. Fingertip control is the only way to go.

gradius

a lot of australians have been using logitech mouseman ballmice-- before the new MS 3.0. now we are all switching over

i love the 3.0 explorers shape, cant go back to the mouseman now, i like the hump on the right side :)

hmm from where do u know with which mice they all play ??

real pro's use this mouse
http://www.rotokiller.com/

NaLiN

I´m no PRO, but I was curious enough to get me one of theese little bastards.
For the moment, You can only take advantage of its funnr driver, with lots of binds, and LED light modes, in W98.

My XP Pro, only recognize it as a 5 button USB mouse, and the drivers do NOT work for me in XP..causes bluescreen, but that is under development by Q and the gang at Rotokiller :)

can you give us your thoughts on the rotokiller, gaston?

Im looking for a new mouse. I have played with the razer boomslang 1k for about a year now with no problems.

"The clear winner here is the Logitech Pilot Wheel Mouse USB. It has all a gamer needs:"

It doesn't have a side button, thats whats keeping me from buying this mouse. Why is it better to not have a side button?

imo the ms intelli explorer is way too big and it forces you to use palm ctrl, which is not so accurate. If you would like to have the technological advantages a ms intelli explorer and fingertip ctrl you should try ms intellimouse optical.It's perfect shaped, alot smaller than ms 3.0, with 5 button and a wheel( the wheel aslo is a button) 2 at sides and 3 on the top. with fingertip ctrl you can use every one of them easily with each finger.

//anch

In its default orientation, the Explorer 3.0 is somewhat "palmy" for people with smaller hands like me. I am still able to use finger control but the size and length of the rear half of the mouse don't leave as much room as I would like for forward-back movement when using finger control. Its still an excellent mouse in default orienation.

I have found though that if you modify the orientation using the "Set Orientation" feature in the drivers, you can considerably reduce the "palminess". A slight rotation counterclock wise results in more room for forward-back movement giving the mouse better freedom of movement with finger control and overall better feel/control.

I would have been nice if MS had provided a way of saving orientation to a file or a way to specify it numerically in the control panel but this was not done. What you can do though is set it manually thru the registry at:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Microsoft Input Devices\Mouse\RotationAngle

I use a value of 0x00000160

am i the only one that doesnt find the ms explorer too big? Maybe the fact my hands are pretty large makes the ms explorer mouse seem just right. In fact i hate in when mice are much smaller than the explorer, as I feel like I have some child's toy in my hand ;/. Already my right hand is nearly twice as big as the explorer as it is.. dont make the mouse smaller... Why dont you diminutive inbred children grow a little more instead?

you've just answered your own question. don't worry about it. If you like it, use it =] I found the logitech shape suits my hands much better, and they're neither big nor small.

haha small hands... sux for u ms ie3 is the best mouse... all other mice... except maybe that double opti looks weird/ feels weird

what u guys think bout the logi double opti?

e3 has a nice ergonomic shape to it = i dont hit fire b4 jump when i rj... thats always a plus...

My logi pilot died the other day and am now trying to get used to the intelli v3. Dunno why on the new logi pilots they've moved the ball further to the rear of the mouse, doesn't feel anywhere near as good. Anyone know why they do that? I would of thought further forward would mean the ball generally would travel more leading to better accuracy.

Anyways, the V3 is ok, bit too big, there really needs to be a smaller version with the same technology. It doesn't skip which is the main thing. Dunno about the side buttons, I can't even reach the furthest forward one without shifting my whole hand position which is a waste of time. As mentioned the mouse was really designed for the "palming" style, shame that isnt my gaming style and never will be.

Will be a lot better when they use the same technology for the smaller style mice tho I think. Dunno why, but the V3 doesn't really feel very good for small movement, long range shots...not sure whats going on there, but I was certainly a LOT more accuracate with a ball mouse for that, with the V3 I feel more accurate close up, probably cos theres no skipping at all.

Gibba...I found that to be the case too. Why are the balls located so far back? I cant stand it. I first started with a basic Intellipoint mouse (ball is further forward) and then used Wingman (ball is postioned futher forward too) all other mice it seems balls are back further and I can't use them at all. Feels weird and aim is gone!

After my old beginner Intellipoint pos died...I compared mice by ball location...ended up with a wingman. Now Logitech dual optical.

Good question...Gibba :)