The Magic Mouse is a

multi-touch In computing, multi-touch is technology that enables a surface (a touchpad or touchscreen) to recognize the presence of more than one somatosensory system, point of contact with the surface at the same time. The origins of multitouch began at CER ...

wireless

mouse A mouse ( : mice) is a small rodent. Characteristically, mice are known to have a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail, and a high breeding rate. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (''Mus musculus' ...

that is manufactured and sold by Apple. The first-generation Magic Mouse was released on October 20, 2009, and introduced

functionality to a computer mouse. Taking after the iPhone,

iPod Touch The iPod Touch (stylized as iPod touch) is a discontinued line of iOS-based mobile devices designed and marketed by Apple Inc. with a touchscreen-controlled user interface. As with other iPod models, the iPod Touch can be used as a music pl ...

, and multi-touch MacBook trackpads, the Magic Mouse allows the use of multi-touch

gestures A gesture is a form of non-verbal communication or non-vocal communication in which visible bodily actions communicate particular messages, either in place of, or in conjunction with, speech. Gestures include movement of the hands, face, or ot ...

and inertia scrolling across the surface of the mouse, designed for use with macOS. The second-generation Magic Mouse (initially marketed as Magic Mouse 2) was released on October 13, 2015, removing the use of AA batteries, replacing it with a built-in lithium-ion rechargeable battery, and a Lightning port for charging and pairing, and was later made fully compatible with iPadOS.

Description

The Magic Mouse connects wirelessly to a Mac computer via Bluetooth, with the second-generation additionally supporting iPads. The mouse is powered by two AA batteries, and is operated by a solid-state laser tracking sensor, like the previous-generation wireless Mighty Mouse. Apple includes two non-rechargeable batteries in the box. Until 2016, Apple sold a

battery charger A battery charger, recharger, or simply charger is a device that stores energy in a battery by running an electric current through it. The charging protocol (how much voltage or current for how long, and what to do when charging is complete) depen ...

that includes two rechargeable NiMH AA batteries, designed for use with Mac peripherals, including the first-generation Magic Mouse. Like its predecessor, the Mighty Mouse, the Magic Mouse includes support secondary click. The Magic Mouse has been included with most desktop Mac computers since its introduction, including the iMac,

iMac Pro The iMac Pro is a discontinued all-in-one personal computer and workstation designed, manufactured, and sold by Apple Inc. It was released on December 14, 2017. While it was sold, it was one of four desktop computers in the Macintosh lineup, si ...

, and third-generation

Mac Pro Mac Pro is a series of workstations and servers for professionals that are designed, developed and marketed by Apple Inc. since 2006. The Mac Pro, by some performance benchmarks, is the most powerful computer that Apple offers. It is one of f ...

, as well as being available as a standalone purchase. The Magic Mouse uses its acrylic multi-touch surface for 360-degree scrolling, replacing the rubber scroll ball on the Mighty Mouse. The mouse does not support left and right-clicking simultaneously, and also removes the ability to middle click without third-party software workarounds. The Magic Mouse borrows design elements from the preceding Apple Pro Mouse, notably its seamless "zero-button" design and translucent acrylic surface. The second-generation Magic Mouse was introduced in October 2015, alongside the Magic Keyboard and second-generation Magic Trackpad, and has since been made available in a large variety of colors. A space gray color was introduced with the

in 2017, and was later made available as a standalone purchase. iPadOS 13.4 introduced mouse support to iPads for the first time, and supports all functionality of the second-generation Magic Mouse. A variety of pastel colors were introduced in 2021 to match the colors of the

M1 iMac The iMac with Apple silicon, also known as the iMac M1, is a Macintosh All-in-one PC, all-in-one desktop computer designed, developed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple Inc. The first iMac with Apple silicon, a redesigned 24-inch model based on th ...

. Additionally, standalone purchases now include a USB-C to Lightning cable, instead of USB-A to Lightning. The space gray color was replaced by a black color with a silver aluminum finish in 2022, which was originally only available bundled with the third-generation

. All colors of the second-generation Magic Mouse have been introduced alongside matching colors for various Magic Keyboard models.

Reception

1st generation

Initial reception to the Magic Mouse was mixed, with reactions to its inability to trigger

Exposé Expose, exposé, or exposed may refer to: News sources * Exposé (journalism), a form of investigative journalism * '' The Exposé'', a British conspiracist website Film and TV Film * ''Exposé'' (film), a 1976 thriller film * ''Exposed'' (1932 ...

, Dashboard, or

Spaces Spaces may refer to: * Google Spaces (app), a cross-platform application for group messaging and sharing * Windows Live Spaces, the next generation of MSN Spaces * Spaces (software), a virtual desktop manager implemented in Mac OS X Leopard * Spac ...

, as its predecessor could, or to

middle click A computer mouse (plural mice, sometimes mouses) is a hand-held pointing device that detects two-dimensional motion relative to a surface. This motion is typically translated into the motion of a pointer on a display, which allows a smooth c ...

. Later versions of Mac OS X include gestures to open Mission Control, which incorporates functionality from Exposé, Dashboard, and Spaces. Other issues included the mouse's unstable connection to first-generation Mac Pro models, and its low-profile design being uncomfortable for some users.

2nd generation

The Lightning charging port is located on the bottom of the mouse, rendering it unusable while charging, a design choice that was widely criticized by critics. Critics have also noted the omission of Force Touch technology, compared to the second-generation Magic Trackpad.

Gallery

References

Citations

Sources

* * {{Apple hardware Macintosh mice Computer-related introductions in 2009 Computer-related introductions in 2015