Evoluent Vertical Mouse 4: Left Hand Wired Mouse VM4L

Ergonomics - 4+
Like most of the reviewers here I give a hearty thumbs up for the basic ergonomics. Fits my smaller hand well.

Mousing About - 3
Easy, accurate, smooth. However, inevitably one must pick it up to reposition - and I almost always click some button on the left side. The surface is too slick for a light grip when picking it up. Perhaps if there was some kind of edge/ledge between the top 2 buttons on the left side then that would solve the problem ... The concave thumb rest on the right side keeps me from accidentally hitting those buttons.

Button Programmability - thumbs up
The fact that it's programmable is a BIG plus.

Functionality - 2
This mouse should have "continuous scrolling"/"smooth scrolling"/dynamic scrolling or whatever it's called. Like scrolling on the iPhone, or the Logitech Performance MX mouse.

This is not a $15 dollar mouse. So why is the scroll wheel so circa 1990? That is, a clicky scroll. It takes many, many, many, finger pushes to scroll down a web page.

Adjustability via the Mouse Manager screen simply cannot mitigate this very disappointing limitation. This is probably a Windows limitation, not the Evoluent software. For example a press-scroll moves the screen a lot, but it is so jumpy, jerky, too-much-per-click as to make press-scroll unusable.

do not buy the company is not good to when you need to return an item there is a item restocking fee on every item.

I love this mouse! It really is much more comfortable and natural to grab a mouse with your thumb upwards and pinky downwards. The only reason I did not give 5 stars is because it needs to be a little smaller. The world is not "one size fits all".

The mouse is a little bit difficult to get used to I would give it five stars if it was wireless and really what I was looking For was a left handed trackball

As a left-hander it is VERY difficult to get a good ergonomic mouse - there are very few to choose from.
I've had the Vertical Mouse now for a couple of months. The first week or two was strange, not bad - just different. It took a little getting used to. Now, its second nature and the problems [& pain] I was having with my arm have gone completely.

My only complaint is that with the larger surface mass of the mouse in contact with my hand, there is a need to clean it more often. Also, I would have preferred a less smooth surface overall for a better grip, as my hand and fingers slide around occasionally and also get stickier than on other mice.

The obvious selling point is the neutral vertical (or handshake) position your hand will stay in during use but version 4 ("VM4R") has some notable improvements over other versions (I also own version 2) that definitely justify the slight price difference:

1. Stickier material - makes it easier to grip the mouse with less effort.

2. Mouse wheel - has tiny rivets making it easier to grip and turn (mouse wheel was entirely too slick on past versions).

3. Pointer speed buttons included on the mouse (with an electronic display showing your current speed) - it can get very fast which equates to a lot of movement with little wrist work.

4. Bigger flanged web at the base on which the pinky fingers rests so it doesn't drag across the mouse pad

General notes:
1. You need to use this mouse with a wrist-rest-mouse-pad to keep your arm and wrist in alignment.

2. It is a larger mouse and may not work as well for those with smaller hands. I'm a 6'-0" 180-lb male and it works excellently for me.

3. There are 3 finger buttons, 2 thumb buttons and 1 mouse wheel button all of which are programmable.

4. The corded version is lighter than the wireless due to the batteries' weight.

In Closing:
I have wrist tendonitis and as a mechanical engineer, computing is 95% of my day. Obviously this mouse is not a cure but it does make it possible for me to get through the workday in significantly less pain than I had using a standard mouse. I highly recommend the Evoluent Vertical Mouse Version 4 for anyone using a mouse for many hours at a time (I also have found the Kenesis split keyboard with the VIP freestyle mount very beneficial).

Don't wait until you have tendonitis, carpal tunnel or some other repeitive stress injury and spend $1,000's on physical therapy and accupuncture as I have done. Start your preventative maintenance today. Best of luck,

Dave

I BOUGHT THE LEFT HANDED MOUSE TO ACCOMPANY USE OF THE RIGHT HANDED MOUSE. USE OF BOTH PRODUCTS REDUCES HAND AND FOREARM FATIGUE. I HAVE DEVELOPED ULNAR NERVE PROBLEMS IN BOTH ARMS. THESE PRODUCTS HAVE BEEN EXTREMELY HELPFUL! I STILL MAY FACE SURGERY IN THE NEAR FUTURE, WHICH IN ESSENCE MAY JUST BUY ME TIME, BUT I TRULY DIDN'T BELIEVE THAT I WOULD STILL BE ABLE TO WORK UP TO THIS POINT, AND THESE VERTICAL MOUSE PRODUCTS HAVE ALLOWED ME TO KEEP MY JOB. I PLAN ON BUYING A SET FOR HOME USE AS WELL. AS I SAID IN A PREVIOUSLY SUBMITTED OPINION, ONCE YOU USE THESE MICE, YOU CANNOT GO BACK TO A STANDARD MOUSE. I AM VERY PLEASED WITH THE PRODUCT.

I ordered three mice based on the ergonomic assessments fo three staff. Each staff has reported back that the mouse works well and has alleviated some hand/wrist motion problems they were having. The mouse were a recommendation from a professional ergonomic firm.

I have had my Evoluent mouse for over a year now, and I don't know how I ever lived without it! it is extremely comfortable and natural. I thought I would have had a breaking in time, but it was so natural my hand took right to it. I highly recommend this product.