A4 Tech NB-30 Battery Free Wireless Optical Mouse Review - PAGE 1

A4 Tech NB-30 BatteryFree Wireless Optical Mouse Review

Introduction

Is there much left in terms of innovation as far as mice go? Logitech's MX-700 allowed for nearly lag free gaming from a wireless mouse and the recently released MX-1000 replaces the LED in regular optical mice with a laser for more precise tracking. Razer is making a comeback of sorts with mice aimed at gamers but in terms of innovation, there have not been too many substantial changes in the mousing industry for a while now. A few weeks ago, a local company, A4 Tech, got in touch with us regarding a new product of theirs, a mouse that does not require any batteries. Of course, since half of us get a bit annoyed by the fact the MX 700 needs recharging twice a week if you don't put it back in the cradle, this seemed like a godsend to us. So obviously we accepted their generous offer.

The Package

Two weeks later, we received a very small package. You can see what the package looks like below:

Besides the mouse, there's a mouse pad and a foldout instruction sheet, if you can even call it that. There is no driver CD, nor is there a driver floppy. Of course, this means the mouse is plug and play as long as you're not using something ancient like Windows 95, in which case you better hope you have generic mouse drivers. In any case, this mouse/mouse pad set is standard plug and play - no fancy hardware or drivers needed.

This is basically all you get. So what's the mouse pad for? Well, since the mouse itself does not require batteries, it has to draw power from somewhere. In this case, the mouse pad is connected via USB, and generates an electric field around the pad to power the mouse wirelessly. The only major issue here is that you are forced to use the mouse pad, unless you are content with using a mouse with the pad perched on top of the mouse itself. There are advantages and disadvantages with such a design - we'll explore this in more detail in a bit.

Competition

Firstly, we'll compare the mouse to competitors.

Here you see the NB-30 next to a classic Microsoft IntelliMouse as well as the Logitech MX 700. While I would like to compare physical dimensions and especially weight, I currently lack a ruler and a scale. Nor does Microsoft or Logitech post the dimensions on their respective websites. However, from comparing it side by side, the height difference is about half an inch, and the length is about an inch shorter than the MX 700.

You don't really notice it if you are used to it, but the MX 700 is heavy. Compared to the Microsoft Intellimouse, the difference in weight is approximately 50%. Between the MX 700 and the A4Tech mouse, the lack of a battery bay really shows the difference. Whereas the Logitech mouse would take a little strength to move around, the A4Tech mouse can be flicked around like it's weightless.

Between the Microsoft mouse and the A4Tech, while the actual weight is similar, I would give the nod to the A4 Tech mouse as the cable on the Microsoft mouse restrains movement to a certain extent. Due to the design of the set, this isn't ever a problem as only the mouse pad is connected to the computer - the mouse itself is only confined by the surface area of the mouse pad.