This article is more than 1 year old

2P Slim-Mouse

Freakish or functional: is this credit card-sized mouse worth its cheese?

You'll need to make sure the optical unit is positioned for your finger size, but once you've got it right, the Slim-Mouse is surprisingly comfortable to use, given it doesn't have a single curve on it. The metal construction gives it a little weight to push against. 'Ergonomic' is an easy word to toss around, and 2P does so with abandon. We're not sure it really applies here, but then most small notebook mice, even more curvacious ones than this, aren't as comfortable as a big, palm-filling Logitech MX1000, for example.

P2 Slim-Mouse

The central scroll panel's sensitivity can be adjusted using the host's standard mouse control software. The buttons don't have much in the way of movement, but then neither do most mice on the market, and as long as you've placed the optical unit correctly, they're comfortable to use.

The mouse feels well engineered and while we're sure that, if you push hard enough, you can break the central hinge joint, it's not going to snap easily.

Our main concern was the optical pick up, which worked a treat on the bundled mini mouse mat, but suffered badly on our wooden desktop - not a problem we've experience with any other optical mouse. The Beech surface caused the unit to mis-read movement leading to very jerky tracking. Weird desk surface incompatibilities can occur with any optical mouse you buy, of course, and at least the Slim-Mouse comes with a mousemat.

Our other worry was the USB cable, which is only fractionally more than a millimetre in diameter. How securely it's anchored at the USB connector and mouse ends only time will tell, but our gut feeling is that it'll need careful handling to avoid breaking the wire within. We found it was particularly easy to knot, without even really trying.

2P wants €52/$70 (£35) for the Slim-Mouse, which you can buy direct from the company's website. That's around 15 of your hard-earned less expensive than the Mogo BT, but then you don't get wireless connectivity. You can get plenty of much cheaper optical and non-optical mice from the likes of Logitech that will work just as well as the Slim-Mouse, if not better. When they're all going to get shoved in your backpack or briefcase, you have to ask how much extra you really want to pay for an unusual look and tidy-away completeness.

Verdict

2P's Slim-Mouse is an engineering marvel that folds from an iPod Nano-sized slice into an eminently usable optical input device. Its clever construction could only be improved by adding wireless. Yet do you really have so little space you haven't room for a standard-sized mouse? We suspect not, leaving the Slim-Mouse more a design curiosity than a must-have.

75%

2P Slim-Mouse

Smart engineering and a bizarre design make this pack-away mouse a real curiosity...
Price: €52/$70 (£35) RRP

More about

More about

More about

TIP US OFF

Send us news


Other stories you might like