Time for a new mouse?

[Black Panther]

I had bought this no-name mouse some years ago, and it was quite nice because it had a high DPI.
However now the scroll wheel isn't functioning correctly and whenever I use it the page scrolls up or down randomly... it's like there's a gear-wheel inside and its teeth went smooth.
Otherwise the mouse is fine for gaming since I barely use the scroll wheel.
It's only a PITA while browsing.
Can it be fixed? Here's a pic:

You can see how weathered it is after 3-4 years. The white spots aren't dirt, they're the absence of paint.

Some history:

I know that this is a cheap imitation of some brand. I had always used office-type mice before, however when I bought a 2560x1440 monitor I needed a higher DPI (or an entire desk to move an office mouse on) and obviously I chose the former.

My first purchase was a Laser Lachesis which was very expensive for me. A couple of weeks before the warranty expired its outer material started becoming all sticky and peeling. Then right after the warranty expired the wheel quit working and it rolled like in empty space with no response at all.

However I was more satisfied with my current mouse which was less than a fifth of the price of the Lachesis, since it lasted me twice as much and its performance was on par.

So...

I'm open for suggestions!

 

[jsfitz54]

The internals might be dirty, full of dust and other things. You could try opening it up and cleaning it, if you are so inclined.

I'll leave a new mouse recommendation to others as I have an older Logitech G9.

 

[TheLostSwede]

If you can still get one where you live, I'd suggest the Logitech G500s, but they're no longer made.
Not a fan of Logitech's new mice, they don't feel like quality products any more and they look cheap.
That said, I have a hard time using other mouse wheels, as they feel stiff compared to Logitech's.

 

[neatfeatguy]

If you do go for a new mouse - no Razer.
I had a handful of issues with the Razer Naga 2014 over the course of about 49 months I owned it, not to mention a few irritating issues with the Razer Synapse software.

I've been using a Logitec G502 for the past 1.5 years or so and zero issues with it.

 

[P4-630]

I also vote for Logitech if cleaning the insides of your mouse doesn't help.

 

[R00kie]

I also vote for Logitech. Words cannot describe how happy I am with my peripherals.

 

[dirtyferret]

just because your handle is black panther does not mean you are supposed to chew on mice

My personal take on the top three mice out there (I've used them all for at least one month)

Razer death-adder - best if you have large hands
Logitech G502 - very comfortable but I constantly clicked the right mouse button by mistake on two G502
Corsair M65 - best if you smaller hands but side buttons are small

 

[silentbogo]

Can it be fixed?

Yes it can. Those cheap rodents have a regular mechanical encoder on the scroll wheel. It gets wobbly or worn off over time, so cleaning usually does not help.
What you can do, is to disassemble the mouse, pull out the PCB and gently squeeze the encoder with pliers. Alternatively you may use a small screwdriver to adjust two metal sliders inside the encoder.
If neither method helps, then it's gone. If you are skilled with soldering iron, you can transplant an encoder from another mouse (they are all the same, just differ in length by a few mm).

 

[Black Panther]

I got an Asus ROG Sica. (I'm quite old-school and never used the side-buttons of any mouse that had them, left and right buttons and scroll-wheel are fine by me). What's important is the high dpi otherwise with a 1440p monitor I'd risk dislocating a shoulder swiping the mouse from left to right

And the dpi of this mouse is high enough. I put it on max 5000 dpi and it was too fast for me (my previous mouse's max was 4000 dpi) so I had to set it on 4000 to feel at home.

The only disadvantage of the Asus ROG Sica is that it's way too light to what I'm used to, but I'll get accustomed.

Considering it's a good brand, it's a very affordable price (€27.95 with one year warranty).
I'd rather spend this much and it lasts me 12 months, rather than spending over €85 (current price of Logitech G502 in my country) and risk having it quit before the warranty's up as had happened with the Razer Lachesis.

________________________________________________________________________________________

Now for the post-mortem. I want to open my previous mouse but have no clue where to start. The last time I opened one up it had a roller-ball!

Should I just pry the plastic? I feel uncomfortable using force to open something which has no screws, I nearly crap myself whenever I need to open up a cell phone, which is quite often...
Anyway this time I'm not worrying much since I could either leave it as it is and throw it away, or open it up, ruin it, and throw it away, or open it up and manage to fix it.

 

[peche]

Got late to this party i guess...
Glad you just replaced your mouse, there are several "Cheap" options from several "big Brands" out there, but since you just purchased one its no that important,

Last time i did took apart a mouse, when done with it, got the mouse assembled back working and pile of pieces left in my other hand,


Regards,

 

[INSTG8R]

Sadly most of the time the screws are underneath the feet so you end up killing the feet to get it apart. Happy G502 owner after my trusty G500 finally gave up the left click.

 

[silentbogo]

I got an Asus ROG Sica. (I'm quite old-school and never used the side-buttons of any mouse that had them, left and right buttons and scroll-wheel are fine by me). What's important is the high dpi otherwise with a 1440p monitor I'd risk dislocating a shoulder swiping the mouse from left to right

And the dpi of this mouse is high enough. I put it on max 5000 dpi and it was too fast for me (my previous mouse's max was 4000 dpi) so I had to set it on 4000 to feel at home.

The only disadvantage of the Asus ROG Sica is that it's way too light to what I'm used to, but I'll get accustomed.

Considering it's a good brand, it's a very affordable price (€27.95 with one year warranty).
I'd rather spend this much and it lasts me 12 months, rather than spending over €85 (current price of Logitech G502 in my country) and risk having it quit before the warranty's up as had happened with the Razer Lachesis.

________________________________________________________________________________________

Now for the post-mortem. I want to open my previous mouse but have no clue where to start. The last time I opened one up it had a roller-ball!

Should I just pry the plastic? I feel uncomfortable using force to open something which has no screws, I nearly crap myself whenever I need to open up a cell phone, which is quite often...
Anyway this time I'm not worrying much since I could either leave it as it is and throw it away, or open it up, ruin it, and throw it away, or open it up and manage to fix it.

Man, I wish you lived somewhere a bit closer. I just got a sh#tton of kind-of "defective" A4Tech Bloody mice (mouses?.. ) and keyboards. Mostly with user-related defects
Already sold most of the wireless ones, and kept a few wired models with PMW3310 sensor. I'm actually considering to retire my very-very-very-old modded Logitech G5 with new and shiny Bloody TL70.

 

[jboydgolfer]

the Azio 3500dpi USB Gaming Mouse (EXO1-K) is a decent mouse....i see this threads issue seems resolved, but just fwiw sake,sometimes these can be found for as little as $7.00 , i got a few at that price about a year ago, and they are actually really decent optical mice, with Red lighting, they even have a weight installed inside the body.

 

[Black Panther]

$7.00? for a 3500 dpi mouse? I wish I lived in the US. For that price here we only get office mice... this type ... max 800 dpi..