Packaging and Construction

The packaging is durable and visually catching – though it’s not as fancy as the MX1000 packaging with its rainbow foil and well-themed colors. The ML100 box provides plenty of protection during shipping, as well as prominently displaying the mouse itself in a clear plastic shell.

Included with the ML100 mouse is a small instructional booklet that covers installation and troubleshooting, and also a small 3” CD that contains the drivers and its own proprietary software to enable the 3 thumb buttons. The mouse works out of the box just fine, with the thumb rocker buttons being used for ‘forward’ and ‘back’ functionality when surfing. The middle button has no function until the software is installed.

Also, the ubiquitous light-green USB to PS2 adapter is included – for those who wish to free up their USB ports for other devices. We tried attaching it to the PS2 port when the system is on, and it was immediately recognized and functioning.

Still in its clear shell

Batteries not included (or needed)

Mouse, sheet and mini CD-ROM included

Construction Impressions

The ML100 itself is an impressive unit to view – though it doesn’t have the ‘wow’ factor as one would expect from seeing the MX1000. There are no straight lines to be seen. The silver mouse buttons’ ‘plateau’ is massive – and detracts from the nice metallic red that curves itself around the sides and front of the mouse. The black one-piece rubber grip feels sturdy, and will probably stand the test of time.

The construction of the mouse body feels sturdy, yet light. The skate pads have not worn out at all in the 2 months that we’ve been using it, on and off. The thumb buttons are on the small side for this reviewer who wears a size S adult glove.

The chrome ‘pod’ that encompasses the scroll wheel looks somewhat out of place since there is no other chrome accents on the mouse. Nevertheless, it makes the scroll wheel stand out more.

Thumb rocker button

Close-up of 3 thumb buttons

Underbelly of the ML100 - notice the skate pads built-in

The only visual issue for us was the simple “Optorite Laser” oval logo where the user’s palm would be. We felt the logo could have been more polished in to give it a more professional, or edgy look.

Also, one thing we wish mouse designers would minimize is the dreaded “gunk-trapping chasm” problem. This is the gap in between the panels of the mouse body, on the upper side where it comes in contact with the hand. As time passes by – the hand and fingers start to deposit particles in there, which in turn, attracts dust. In a few months, you get the nice crusty whitish residue that no one would claim as their own. Time to get the toothpick! The ML100 is guilty of this design sin also.

One way to prevent this is to have fewer panels on the topside of the mouse, or create a way for the panels to join below the mouse, as we’ve noticed with the bottom rear-side of the MX1000. Also, is there a reason why this gap between panels so wide? I think with the ability to manufacture tiny devices such as cell phones, PDAs, mp3 players – we should be able to have a mouse with smaller gaps between panels!

The scroll wheel is one of the highlights on this mouse. It is tactile and has easily-sensed internal ‘notches’ or clicks which gives feedback to the user. We’ve tried some mice (like the Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer 2.0) which has a ‘lazy’ scroll feedback which makes it difficult to sense when a ‘notch’ has been reached, thus, making changing weapons in-game more difficult.