Why does Logitech Performance MX mouse hurt my wrist?

Not really a notebook mouse, but hopefully someone on here uses it as a notebook mouse or has a desktop.

I purchased a Logitech Performance MX (the replacement for the Revolution MX) after reading great reviews. I was looking for a hgh-end ergonomic mouse and this seemed like the solution.

I've been using it for a month now and it really messes with my wrist. No matter how I hold it, I start feeling pain if I use it for more than 10 minutes at a time. The pain/strain is in my wrist and palm, especially between the thumb and index finger. I find myself consciously dreading using the mouse. The only way I can use it without too much pain is to use it pointing sideways. Imagine holding a mouse normally in your right hand, now bend your arm at your elbow until the mouse is centered and parallel to your chest. This is the only tolerable way to use it.

Maybe I'm just a Microsoft Hardware person. When my MS Natural 4000 died, I picked up a Logitech Wave keyboard and hated it. Went out and bought a new MS Natural 4000.

I originally wanted a Microsoft Natural Laser Mouse 6000, but it seems pretty much discontinued. With the great reviews, the small wireless receiver, and the many buttons, I figured I couldn't go wrong with the Performance MX.

Am I just holding/using the mouse incorrectly? This is the first time I've ever been conscious to how my mouse feels. Even with the cheapest mice, it just becomes an extension of my hand and I forget it's there.

Thanks!

 

have you ever used contoured mice(mice that are shaped to your palm) before? as far as i know, all the microsoft mice (and cheap mice) are ambidextrous.

ps, go to a doctor...

 

That is unusual. What mouse were you using before?

 

I've only used Microsoft mice. I use a vertical mouse at work provided by our ergo team. The past couple years I have been using a full-size Microsoft bluetooth mouse (MS BT 8000) and have had no problems. Sadly it died on me and is a discontinued product. Before that, I had an IntelliMouse Explorer.

I think my problem with the Logitech is that it tilts my wrist without tilting enough to be actually considered ergonomic. That is why I had to return the Wave keyboard. It was trying to be somewhat ergonomic without going all the way, which ironically puts my wrists in an unnatural position.

I feel pretty inept to be the only person to complain about ergo issues on the Performance MX. The MS Natural 6000 mouse would do a much better job at putting my wrist at a natural angle, so maybe I'll just have to ditch the MX and find a 6000 on eBay.

I work in life science research so repetitive strain is put on my wrists every day as I handle small tubes and pipet small volumes. But that's why we have an ergo team and I've yet to really have any issues. This mouse is the first to cause me strain.

 

I also "intern" part-time in a plant pathology lab and I understand the strain of working with those pipets and test tubes. Anyways, the Logitechs I have used or tried over the past few years has been very comfortable for my very strained right-hand. However, I think Logitech made it too ergonomic for some people that you might not be accustomed to them, considering you are a heavy MS product user. Therefore, I think you have gotten used to the MS ergonomic standards and it is hard for you to adapt to something else well enough to make yourself comfortable.

That being said, the Logitech Wave is pretty terrible ergonomically and I am not a fan for Microsoft's Curved keyboards either.

 

I dislike the "wavy" Microsoft curved keyboards too. The only one I like is the 4000 (full 12-degree split). I've been using Microsoft Natural keyboards since the first edition with the messed up arrow keys.

But you're probably right that I've just grown used to Microsoft products. I need to either buy a 6000 off eBay or buy a MS Wireless Desktop 7000 and just use the mouse. Pricing seems about the same, so might as well go for the whole desktop.

[nerdy lab talk]
As for your time in a plant pathology lab, if you are not using Rainin LTS pipets, SWITCH! It will save your wrist if you plan to stay there. If you already use Rainin but not their LTS line, your sales rep can swap your set for a set of LTS for free. If you have another brand, you can trade them in for $100 or $150 off each LTS. Or just wait for a Buy-2-get-1-free sale. Also switch your Pipet-Aid to a Drummond Pipet-Aid. Those help your arms and shoulders a lot.
[/nerdy lab talk]

 

Hi,

the only solution is to return that mouse and get something that fits your hands better. Perhaps you should consider buying locally, where you can try the mouse before you buy.

Michael

 

Haha well I am just an undergrad researcher, and I got no say in what pipets I want. In fact, I just borrow my grad student supervisor's when I do. I don't really get sore from the pipetter, but actually from how I have to position the pipetter in my hand while using the same hand to hold the test tube cap when transferring in Neurospora from something to something. The sterilization techniques are a pain! Also, I think I use Eppendorf Pipetters (or that is what my grad supervisor uses). Also what is a pain? Serological pipetters lol...

 

Post a pic of you holding the mouse normally. My guess is that you have your hand splayed over the mouse and that is causing you some issues.

Also - manual pipetting? How 20th century

 

I rest my hand on the mouse and pretty much follow the curve of the mouse from the front to the back. This results in the bottom right-hand corner of my hand to be in contact with the desk. Is that not normal? Maybe I've used a vertical mouse for so long that I now use normal mice incorrectly...

And I will never use an electronic pipet! Those things force my thumb to do weird things to press the buttons, they never charge correctly on their bases, and they have a hard time accurately pulling/expelling anything more viscous than water. I'll stick to my manuals, thank you very much.

 

Well, the key is how much of it is how you're splayed over it - whether it's a flatter splay because the mouse of further away from the base of your wrist, or if it's a half-clutch/splay.

 

I hold it as if it were a potato. My entire hand is always in contact with the mouse until I get past the butt-end, which results in my wrist touching the desk surface.

 

Found a pic online that shows how I hold my mouse.
Overclock.net - Overclocking.net - View Single Post - Steelseries XAI: How do you grip this thing?

I rest my index finger and middle finger over left-click and right-click, my ring finger and pinky finger are on the table (with ring finger sort of hovering). When I go to pick up the mouse, I use my thumb and the side of my ring finger to grip it.

I took out my broken Microsoft Bluetooth 8000 mouse to hold it and I noticed the big difference is the distance between the butt-end of the mouse and my wrist. With the MS 8000, there's around 2-3" of space. With the Logitech, because the mouse is taller and more round, there is almost no space between mouse and wrist. With the 8000, the base of my palm is touching the desk. With the Logitech, my wrist is touching the desk.

I never thought I had a mousing defect before...

 

it's not about brand or shape, the mouse is too big for you aka. hand too small.

Performance MX can be considered as full-sized mouse whereas the MS 8000 is not (Smaller but a bit bigger than usual notebook mice)

Find ones that fit your hand.

pic of comparison, MS8000 is the most left, #2 from left is VX Revo,which is smaller than Performance MX,
performance MX's size maybe almost the same with #3

Spoiler

 

Putting the two mice together, they seem the same size. The only difference is the MX is a bit taller and more rounded.

The left-most mouse in that comparison is the "Microsoft Notebook Presenter 8000" while I have the "Microsoft Wireless Laser Mouse 8000"

I have a pretty big hand. I wear a size large glove and don't use notebook mice because they are too small.

Notebook Presenter 8000: Amazon.com: Microsoft Wireless Notebook Presenter Mouse 8000: Electronics
Wireless Laser 8000: Amazon.com: Microsoft Wireless Laser Mouse 8000: Electronics

 

Never heard that one before. I have small hands and can't stand small mice. You would have to have the hands of a small child for the mouse to be physically too big for you. I see it just as preference.

 

well you said "Microsoft bluetooth mouse (MS BT 8000)" and the one with bluetooth is one on pic, so not my bad lol ..

if you hold mouse with only wrist makes contact to desk/mousepad, it's gonna hurt you, especially if the mouse is tall.

 

haha...sorry about that. I call it the BT 8000 because it's Microsoft's only full-size bluetooth mouse. It wasn't sold very long before it was discontinued. I guess people looking for bluetooth mice mostly own laptops and they all want something smaller and more portable than the full size Wireless Laser 8000. So it was in limbo between BT users who found it too bulky and desktop users who would rather have the accuracy of just normal wireless.

Yea, I think I've come to the conclusion that it's just the tallness and how it forces my wrist to be the contact point that is making it painful. It's just a bit strange that nobody else has ever complained about ergo issues with this mouse. Makes me feel like I'm doing something wrong.

I think I'll just have to buy the MS Wireless Desktop 7000 which comes with the MS Natural mouse I wanted. The angle is much more extreme and I think it'll be a lot more similar to my vertical mouse at work. Supposedly the MS Natural 6000 mouse puts your hand in the same position as if you were reaching out for a handshake. That seems pretty strain-free.

 

That sounds like an issue of improperly holding it then. There are definitely bad ways and good ways to hold a mouse. I can't imagine there is a mouse that is so tall that someone with small hands can't keep from resting only on their wrist. My hands are fairly small and I have room to spare with my large logitech mouse. Most of the weight is held by my arm.

 

You need to find the perfect mouse that suits your hand in both size and weight. It took me 5 or 6 different ones before finding the G9X, which I will be using for many years to come regardless of new/tempting mouses

When I used others mouses for example, it gave me daily carpel tunnel syndrome symptoms and I actually went to see a specialist. Since switching to the G9X, I haven't felt any pain at all in my ring hand. G9X = Godly!

 

And this is the reason why everyone needs to try a bunch of different stuff - i.e. one person's ideal really is another person's poison in this case. The G9's cause my index finger pain after a while, and I can't use it. My grip on the G9 tends to be pretty flat, which means that my index finger is lying in a different position to the mice I am comfortable with.

 

UPDATE:

I went out and picked up the Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Desktop 7000 which includes a wireless version of the Natural 4000 keyboard as well as the Natural Wireless Laser Mouse 7000 (same mouse as the 6000, just color difference).

I couldn't be happier with the mouse! The tilt angle is much more natural and the height of the mouse lifts my wrist off the desk. If I relax my arm at my side, then bend my arm at the elbow, and place my hand over the mouse taking care to not move how my hand naturally curls, I end up palming the mouse perfectly. My wrist felt a lot better within the first hour of use and I feel like I have less strain now than I've ever had using any mouse.

I like the Microsoft mouse much more than my vertical mouse at work. The vertical mouse actually over-corrects and and puts wrist at a strange angle.

So I guess I'm just not a Logitech person. Especially their ergonomic designs. Microsoft will own me for life =(

Not sure what to do with the keyboard though. I already have a wired Natural 4000 and I'm not a fan of wireless keyboards. But I can't sell it since the set only includes one wireless receiver. Seems like a waste of a perfectly good keyboard. If someone already has a Microsoft mouse, can they somehow pair their existing receiver to work with the new keyboard?

 

good for you.

I don't know about microsoft, but Logitech has pairing-utility for receiver change,
so I guess microsoft should have the utility program too, so that the keyboard can be used with the same receiver model.

 

Maybe I can just give the keyboard to a friend then. Thanks!