Apple's Magic Mouse charging port design has never been a big deal
by William Gallagher · AppleInsiderThe newly updated Apple Magic Mouse now has a USB-C charging port, but it's still on the bottom — and that still doesn't matter.
It's nine years since the Magic Mouse was first redesigned to be rechargeable instead of having removable batteries. And at the time, Apple's design and attention to detail were commended — for the sound of the mouse.
From that day to this, though, the Magic Mouse design has been criticized and mocked for how apparently appalling it is that the charging port is on the bottom. It is seemingly an existential threat to mankind that you have to turn the mouse over for a minute.
Because that's the thing. It's a minute. If the mouse battery is so low that you cannot use it, just sticking that cable into the port for a minute or two will get it going again.
Go have a coffee and when you're back, the mouse will have been charged up enough to use for at least, at the very least, the rest of the day. Then leave it charging overnight and you can forget all of this for at least a month.
And that's the other thing. A month. The charge lasts for at least a month.
It does of course depend on how much you use the Magic Mouse. So maybe you are a very heavy user of it, maybe your work is genuinely so time-critical that you literally cannot spare two minutes to charge the mouse up.
If that's the case, the port on the bottom could be genuinely bad and inconvenient — except for one thing.
The Magic Mouse battery does not die suddenly or quietly. If you are complaining that it's died just when you were on an absolutely crucial job, it's your fault for ignoring all the low battery warnings you have been getting for days and days.
Having that charging point on the bottom is not Apple's disastrously bad design, it's trivial. Keeping it on the bottom after changing the port is a shrug — and USB-C might even speed up charging
Now, the iMac hockey-puck mouse, that really was Apple design at its worst.
44 Comments
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Fidonet127 581 comments · 5 Years
About 2 days ago
Can anybody tell me how many rechargeable mice are left plugged in all the time? I think the old mouse with AA batteries had to be put in more frequently than a month. You can check the battery level and you get the low battery notifications. Why not put a calendar event to remind to charge every so often? How about putting it on charge before you leave for your weekend? I don't understand why all the hate for the port where it is.
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NEO_STEPHENS 11 comments · 2 Years
About 2 days ago
The Apple Apologist in full effect. If that was ANY other company that did that, you'd be talking about how bad of a design it was and who in the world would put the charging port on the bottom of a mouse so that you can't use it while it's charging.
Doesn't matter how often or not it needs charging, still an awful way to do that!!
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collinsg@icloud.com 1 comment · New User
About 2 days ago
William, thank you, thank you! I use a Magic Mouse at home and a MX Master at work. I have NEVER used the MX Master while plugged in. If it needs to be charged, I do it when I leave the office/desk for the day and let it charge over night. Part of Apple's "brand" is the aesthetics, and hiding the charging port on the bottom so it cannot be seen on a regular basis, is definitely on brand. I just have never understood the countless posts, articles, and videos that have been made over it. 🤷🏼♂️
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raymondai 70 comments · 9 Years
About 2 days ago
1.For the old mouse, after you realize that it is out of battery, then you go to find the spare batteries (if you don’t have to go to buy it) and change it, it may has enough time to charge the rechargeable model to work for a day.
2.May the next model has wireless charging, and works on a wireless charging pad, then no more complain.
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Fidonet127 581 comments · 5 Years
About 2 days ago
raymondai said:
1.For the old mouse, after you realize that it is out of battery, then you go to find the spare batteries (if you don’t have to go to buy it) and change it, it may has enough time to charge the rechargeable model to work for a day.
2.May the next model has wireless charging, and works on a wireless charging pad, then no more complain.
The new mouse shows battery level and gives notifications. How do you miss that to the point of running out of power? Plugging it in for a few minutes gives you a lot of charge. You can't spare a few minutes to allow it to charge? For health reasons alone one should get up for at least a minute every hour. Should have at least 1/2 hour for lunch, plug it in for lunch hour and again after completing work for the day. Now you have plenty of power for the day after the lunch and other breaks, and for a month after charging over night.