Magic Mouse Scrolling Sensitivity

Question

Magic Mouse Scrolling Sensitivity

So, I just got a Magic Mouse today (for my MacBook Pro) and I am overall very pleased with it. There are two things however...

1. The tracking speed is very slow, even when set to the highest level. I see that there have been a few complaints about that already.

But more importantly, for me anyway...

2. The sensitivity of the Scroll feature is WAY too sensitive. It's not bad at all when just browsing a web page, but did anyone at Apple try using Google maps? It's next to impossible to zoom in/out by just a single "click" - it always jumps at least 2 or 3 clicks. And when I drag the map around, if my finger rotates on the surface of the mouse due to my hand changing position as I drag, it reads that as a scroll action. Same with photoshop when dragging a marque - Photoshop "remembers" the any scrolling actions you make while you drag a marque and then after you let go of the mouse button (once the marque is the right size), it instantly performs all the scrolling actions that have been "saved up".

My suggestions are:

The scrolling should work similar to tracking, where slow finger movements result in very fine scrolling, and a faster finger movement results in a larger scroll. And it seems that lifting my (stationary) finger off the mouse can sometimes trigger an accidental scroll.

And I think the scroll action should be turned off (ignored) while the button is down to eliminate that last problem.

Anyone else have these scrolling issues? Any know work-arounds?

MacBookPro, Mac OS X (10.6.1)

Posted on Nov 20, 2009 7:01 PM

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Answer 1

K T

Level 7

23,877 points

Nov 20, 2009 7:24 PM in response to GregInTheNight

The scrolling should work similar to tracking

It's a touchpad similar to those on laptops (w/over 100 sensors)...not a trackball - don't let one method of using the interface confuse you when using another.

It may take time for you to get used to this type of device...I recommend using a bit longer before coming to too many conclusions about how it specifically operates, etc.

As for the slowness - any change if you operate with the battery cover removed?

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Answer 2

Nov 20, 2009 7:43 PM in response to K T

K T wrote:
It's a touchpad similar to those on laptops (w/over 100 sensors)...not a trackball - don't let one method of using the interface confuse you when using another.

It may take time for you to get used to this type of device...I recommend using a bit longer before coming to too many conclusions about how it specifically operates, etc.

I'm not confused (although maybe I didn't explain clearly) I know the difference between a touch pad and a trackball - but have you tried to zoom in/out using the scrolling feature while in google maps? Even if I set the scrolling sensitivity way down, I can't get it to zoom just one level. I've programmed games for the iPhone so I know at least a little about finger tracking and acceleration and issues with accidental input. I've never had ANY issues using the trackpad on my MacBook Pro.

K T wrote:
As for the slowness - any change if you operate with the battery cover removed?

That seems to just add more friction on my mouse pad. I've found at least 10 different threads on as many different message boards mentioning the slow mouse tracking on this mouse/software - so it's not just me.

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Answer 3

Nov 20, 2009 7:56 PM in response to GregInTheNight

Just found out about "MouseZoom" in this thread: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2215825

It seemed to have solved the slow mouse tracking.

Still having issues with the scrolling though...

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Answer 4

Jan 6, 2010 9:29 AM in response to GregInTheNight

I agree that there's a problem with the scrolling in some applications. And so do others: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=10748163

I have problems with scrolling sensitivity in two places: Google maps zooming is overly sensitive, and using Preview with a PDF single page mode is just plain frustrating. I didn't have these issues with the scroll wheel on the (gasp!) Microsoft mouse that I just retired.

These applications don't seem to be interpreting Magic Mouse's scroll properly for small, discrete scroll inputs.

Preview behavior is particularly frustrating. It works great in View->PDF Display->continuous mode. Preview handles slow, fast, short and long swipes predictably, with or without momentum. But in non-continuous single or two pages modes Preview:
- Ignores slow scrolls completely. If can slowly drag my finger all the way from the top to bottom, Preview doesn't do anything.
- Ignores short scrolls completely. If I move scroll about 1/8th inch or so, no matter how quickly, Preview does nothing.
- If I swipe fast enough and a slightly longer distance, Preview will move forward or back a minumum of four pages, but usually eight or so pages.
It's impossible to scroll forward or back one page at a time in Preview PDF using the Magic Mouse.

For what it's worth, if I open the PDF in Adobe Reader I can scroll forward and back okay. It's a bit on the sensitive side, but:
- A short, sharp swipe will move one page, sometimes two. With practice I think I'll be able to reliably move one page at a time.
- A very slow, longer swipe will move page by page in a contolled fashion.

So I think it's an application problem more than a Magic Mouse problem. I hope Apple does something to make Preview more usable with the new mouse.

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