After I received a YOGA Mouse for testing I was inclined to title this review, “If You Give A Mouse A Cookie”, but that one has already been taken so I had to come up with something else. Nevertheless, I’ll do my best to relate my journey with YOGA Mouse on YOGA 900 and ThinkPad Helix – both running Windows 10 Pro.
First of all, the specs:
Supports either Bluetooth 4.0 or 2.4GHz wireless connection
Adaptive touch display in flat mode to provide additional control for presentation and entertainment
Multilayer adaptive touchpad
1 month battery life from 2 hours charge
Ultra slim, 13.5mm design
180 degree rotatable hinge 4 colors options
Additional information and current pricing: http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/itemdetails/GX30K69565/460/0E80436C80A748E6AA76791FC42C9CA3
When the YOGA Mouse arrived in its beautiful presentation box, it was easy to notice how nicely it would coordinate with my champagne gold YOGA ultrabook.
It took me a few minutes to figure out how to free the device from its packaging though, but once that was accomplished the mouse was ready for charging. One plus for the mouse is that no batteries are needed. According to instructions provided in the Quick Start Guide, the Yoga Mouse can be charged using the included USB charging cable. However, for the new user it is not clear exactly how to accomplish this. One assumes that it is to be connected to a computer. All of my USB ports were occupied at the time, so I experimented with using the regular wall charger/adapter provided with my Yoga 900 ultrabook. That seemed to work. Charging took about an hour.
After charging and pressing the ON button, I had several options: Wifi mode, Bluetooth Mode, PC Mode, and Presentation Mode. I tried Wifi mode to make sure the receiver was working. Worked like a charm! However, I feel that for traveling, for many users Bluetooth is the most convenient. I replaced the receiver back to its notch inside the mouse and got busy pairing YOGA 900 and YOGA Mouse. I worked for an hour or so on the initial charge, but re-charged in order to be ready for the next day.
The following day, I decided to try my hand at creating some November-December theme watchfaces for the Moto 360 watch.
That went well for about an hour, but the mouse stopped responding before I was finished. I am not sure whether that was because of the online Facer application, or whether there was a disconnect between mouse and computer. Since then I have had a mouse disconnect while using Facebook chat. On the other hand, when in Wifi mode with the receiver (as opposed to Bluetooth), the YOGA mouse was quite quick and responsive. I’ve been using it in that mode for my artwork and fast-moving chat since then.
When I used the mouse on my ThinkPad Helix in both Wifi and Bluetooth modes for hours there were no disconnects. YOGA Mouse seemed to fly along with a rapid response to whatever the task at hand.
Pros
Great presentation
Beautiful color
Receiver conveniently “lives” safely inside the mouse for traveling so it won’t be lost
Bluetooth compatible
Rechargeable – Batteries not necessary
Stays on task for documents, forum and social media
Cons
Lack of detailed charging instructions in Quick Start Guide. There is mention of what to do, but the “how” is missing.
Bluetooth Mode had trouble staying connected when used with YOGA 900 / Windows 10 Pro.
Conclusion
The fact that the YOGA Mouse can be recharged, is an outstanding feature. That combined with the fact that it is compact and light makes it a good choice for business travelers and casual users.