this post was submitted on 17 Mar 2026
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i guess some people are too young to remember wired mouses
I was a fan of wireless keyboards. But between still requiring a wired one for the rare bios visit, connectivity issues, if the dongle is not in front of the PC, and the last one just dying, they are banned now.
Most mice are still ok in wireless. A Razer one was too power hungry. But it's wire-optionally design was great, except that the wire was too rigid.
I only use wired. Batteries and charging suck.
Wireless has gotten pretty good over the past few years. I have a super cheap wireless mouse from Aliexpress that I use to control my PC while I'm on my couch (I have the PC plugged into my TV to watch Youtube videos and play the occasional game) and I only have to charge that thing every 2 months or so for like 20mins. The much bigger problem is the annoying latency and random connection breaks, but that might just be a factor of the mouse being super cheap.
My keyboard does both wired and 2.4ghz wireless with a physical toggle and it's super reliable, but I have no idea how long the battery would last because I use it wired for my work Laptop during the day and wireless on my couch at night, so it's basically always at full charge.
It only works well because you have a super cheap wireless mouse from Ali. I have a fairly expensive wireless mouse from Logitech and I have to use it in Bluetooth mode to get less stutter because the USB port on my display, literally 10-20 cm from the mouse, is angled the wrong way and apparently the Logitech unifying receiver is DIRECTIONAL but not by design.
I use one on my main computer. It still works while charging, and even on Linux I get a notification when the battery goes under 10%. I plug it and use as a wired mouse for the day, and maybe leave it charging overnight and unplug it in the morning. Had it for 8 years now, never an issue.
This is the way.
I still use them exclusively lol
Same. The mouse is always something I’m going to use on the desk next to the computer. I don’t understand the advantage of making it wireless, that’d just be one more battery for me to keep charged. Honestly, if I had a wireless mouse I’d probably just leave it plugged in to the charger as I use it. (And don’t get me started on Apple’s mouse charge port on the bottom.)
I switch mine (and my keyboard) between private PC (located under my desk because it's cramped enough atop it, to the right) and company-issue laptop (placed atop it, to the left) when working from home. Like hell am I pulling the cable(s) out of my cable management to move it (them) over and move it (them) back, sometimes multiple times within the same day.
I've got my private headphones and my controller wired, but mouse + kb are keyed to the same dongle, which I proceed to move as needed. It's a concession to convenience.
They're also very efficient - I chronically forget to turn them off, but they still last so long that I was genuinely puzzled when the mouse started acting up and turning off until I noticed the blinking signal to indicate low battery. They're not rechargeable, unfortunately, but I probably should see about getting rechargeable batteries.
I have a KVM switch for that.
When you get rechargeable batteries, get yourself some good ones! Usually it doesn't matter, but input devices are the one big exception because weak batteries can cause lags and sluggishness. VR controllers run on batteries too and some games turn into motion sickness hell if you have bad batteries, so a lot of people in the VR community have strong opinions on what rechargeable battery brands are good (iirc, the consensus is Eneloops and Eneloop Pros are a good choice, but that might have changed in recent years)
I'll save that comment for when I actually follow through on that resolution. Thanks for the advice!
These generations of wireless mouses are fine. The advantage, as small as it is, is less drag from the wire and not having to juggle with wires when working with a laptop. Given the batteries these days I’m fine with wireless.
Now I do not have the same view on wireless keyboards as these are pretty much stationary by default.
If you complain about the wire dragging, you should also shave your arms because the hairs on them drag even more than a cable would.
The batteries are my main issue.
12 hour battery? I charge every night.
4 day battery life? I forget to charge until it dies, and then it dies in the middle of using it.
The mouse I have is only wireless for the "less drag while gaming" aspect but the cable is actually super nice, so I dont even mind the cable... I just leave it plugged in now.
The batts last around a year
https://cherryxtrfy.com/mice/mz1-wireless/
This mouse is designed to be extremely light weight. So the battery is small (500 mAh is less than half a AAA battery).
And it's designed to handle up to 50g of acceleration (ie, fast FPS twitch movements), so it has to be doing a lot of tracking.
So between higher power consumption than normal mice and a smaller battery than normal mice, it only advertises 75* hours of use (
* Depending on Hz, lighting on/off and playstyle).I could absolutely get a mouse that lasts much longer. But not one that meets all the other criteria I have for a performance gaming mouse. I wasn't attempting to come in hot about "wireless bad" or anything, just sharing my experience.
I've been using a wireless mouse at work now for over 12 years and can count on one hand the number of times I've had to change the batteries
Just to join the poll, my logitech mouse will do about 2 months per charge. When the battery is low, it wil indicate with a red LED, but it will keep going for several days (thoigh I've never had the issue with not finding a charger within that time, so I don't know how long it could run after the LED lights up).
My laptop's wireless mouse has used the same AAA battery for months, and it gets used regularly. It's not daily, but it's at least a few times a week for an hour, and usually a lot more.
My wired mouse on my PC gets used about the same amount, but the cable occasionally catches under the corner of the keyboard. It's not helped by the fact that I move the keyboard around depending on what I'm doing. That's also the reason I'm considering a wireless keyboard as well though.
I had a wireless keyboard where the internal battery was total crap, had to keep it plugged in because it would drain within an hour. Got one with replace batteries, plenty of those available. Might be safer bet for you as well.
Mine lasts several weeks. Also, it has a little light that turns red when it's low (as in, needs charging within a few days). It can also be used while charging without much issue. When I see the red light, I just plug it in while I'm not using it or doing something like watching media. It's really convenient. I have a mouse bungee, from when I had wired, and the cable just sits there waiting until it's needed.
My logitech wireless mice will run on a single AA for like ... 2 years of daily use, I wanna say? At least 18 months.
Great, and my wired mice will run on no battery for eternity, no matter how much it gets used.
It's running on your laptop battery
This is what I do. The mouse is plugged in most of the time but if I'm playing a game or working in like Photoshop, it comes off for the freedom of movement.
On the keyboard side it's nice if your setup has you moving the keyboard to store it when not using the computer, eating when watching media, etc.
I think the main selling point was less the mobility and more that the cord didn't get caught on things. Still not a huge concern, imo.
I used to live with a cat that chewed on cables. Other devices could have protective sleeves on the cables, but for the mouse that wasn't readonable. So that's the only reason I know for having a wireless mouse.
I work tech support. And I'm often working in weird or cramped places on site with my laptop.
I hate using the touchpad! So I always bring a wireless mouse.
It's a lot more convenient than a wired one.
Also, I can connect the laptop to a TV and watch movies from streaming sites, using the mouse as a remote while I'm on the couch.
I bet you still have a mousepad and have to clean your balls on occasion
Wired vs. wireless is whatever works for you, but no one misses balled mice. No one.
I miss balled mice. They worked better, IMO.
There are people who swear to trackballs though
Whoops! Big mistake buddy, you said something on the internet. Now we’re gonna fight! I miss balled mice. How ‘bout them apples? Nothing is as satisfying as cleaning the lint out of those things was
Stealing all the balls from the computer lab at school was fun.
You’re a monster. And also my type of people.
Like they said, nobody.
Now days sure, but I'd take one of later really good ball mice over many of the shitty cheap mice you get packed in with stuff now. The first few optical mice that I owned were legit worse than ball mice, while being much more expensive. I kept going back to the ball mice and regretting my wasteful purchases. The first one good enough to really kill them off was probably the MS InteliMouse 3.0.
Get a naked mole rat if you like bald mice. 😌
I will concede only in the fact that it made me look like a miracle worker to my parents when I "fixed" their mouse that had stopped working with my magic.
On the other hand, the Christmas I gave them an LED mouse was peak level for all of us.
I miss the weighty rubberized balls IN the balled mice! Talk about a free fidget toy!
However, do trackballs count as balled mice? Because I got one for my laptop recently and I LOVE it. Wish there was more of a market for nice trackballs, with an assortment of ball materials for different inertias and whatnot. Lol
No, trackballs are a separate thing. And their design is usually better at keeping debris out of the ball meaning less maintenance even though it's exposed literally all of the time.
Less debris on the ball, but in my experience there's more dust on the rollers. So it's the same maintenance anyways.
Relying on batteries is for suckas