We examine the best ergonomic mouse for health minded online ESL teachers
Using a good ergonomic mouse can significantly help to alleviate one of the major downsides and health concerns of working online, repetitive strain injuries. Using a mouse and keyboard for long periods can have a toll on your hands and wrists. Let’s take a look at what an ergonomic mouse can do to help as well as what you should be looking for in the best ergonomic mouse before you buy.
Why should online ESL teachers use an ergonomic mouse?
Most online ESL teachers use a laptop to teach English online, and while that’s perfectly fine, there are some constraints to laptops that make you conform to their placement, rather than what may be comfortable for you. Laptops, are by design, compact and integrated, so the trackpad that is built-in to your laptop isn’t going to move. It’s installed and positioned where it is. A mouse, on the other hand, can be placed where you feel most comfortable using it. An ergonomic mouse is even better, because it is designed to fit the palm of your hand while minimizing strain on your hands and wrists.
What should I look for in an ergonomic mouse?
The most important thing to remember here is cheap doesn’t always mean good. Don’t let price be the first thing you think about when purchasing the best ergonomic mouse for you. You want something that is actually going to relieve strain from your fingers and wrist so if you purchase something that is cheap but doesn’t actually do its intended purpose then it will be useless and may even cause more problems if it puts your hand into an even worse position.
Instead, the very first thing you want to do is to think about your specific needs. Do you have large hands? You probably want to avoid an ergonomic mouse that is super small, for example. Buying something that isn’t suited to your specific needs is a sure way to add more discomfort, or at the very least annoyance, to your teaching experience.
You are ideally looking for something that completely changes the angle and positioning of your fingers and wrist. Many teachers now prefer to use laptop computers which come with a touchpad. The main problem these touchpads is that they don’t promote any sort of optimal wrist placement. Instead, most people simply rest their wrist on the laptop and use their pointer or middle fingers or a combination of both. This puts the majority of the strain on the tendons in the fingers and over time can lead to injury.
The best ergonomic mouse will change this up completely so that instead of putting the strain on your wrist and fingers it is more evenly distributed throughout your hand and relies more on your muscles instead to take the burden.
- Hero 25K sensor through a software update from G HUB, this upgrade is free to all players: Our most advanced, with 1:1 tracking, 400-plus ips, and 100 - 25,600 max dpi sensitivity plus zero smoothing, filtering, or acceleration
- 11 customizable buttons and onboard memory: Assign custom commands to the buttons and save up to five ready to play profiles directly to the mouse
- Adjustable weight system: Arrange up to five removable 3.6 grams weights inside the mouse for personalized weight and balance tuning
- Programmable RGB Lighting and Lightsync technology: Customize lighting from nearly 16.8 million colors to match your team's colors, sport your own or sync colors with other Logitech G gear
- Mechanical switch button tensioning: Metal spring tensioning system and pivot hinges are built into left and right gaming mouse buttons for a crisp, clean click feel with rapid click feedback
- 1 year hardware limited warranty
- HERO Gaming Sensor: Next-gen HERO mouse sensor delivers up to 10x the power efficiency over other gaming mice with exceptional accuracy and responsiveness thanks to 400 IPS precision and up to 12000 DPI sensitivity
- LIGHTSPEED Wireless: Ultra-fast LIGHTSPEED Wireless technology gives you a lag-free gaming experience. The G305 wireless gaming mouse delivers incredible responsiveness and reliability with a super-fast 1ms report rate for competition-level performance
- Ultra-Long Battery Life: The G305 wireless Logitech mouse boasts an incredible 250 hours of continuous gameplay on a single AA battery so you can play at peak performance without worrying about running out of power
- Lightweight design: Thanks to an efficient mechanical design, the G305 gaming mouse weighs in at only 99 grams for high manoeuvrability
- Compact, portable design with convenient built-in storage for included USB wireless receiver. Max. speed: > 400 IPS
- Portable Convenience: The durable, compact design with built-in USB receiver storage makes the G305 means you can take it with you.
- 2-year limited hardware warranty
- Meticulously designed in collaboration with many of the world’s leading esports pros. Engineered to win, being the pinnacle of our continued pursuit for the highest levels of performance.
- Ultra-lightweight at under 63 grams, with hyper-minimal redesign achieving nearly 25% weight reduction compared to standard PRO Wireless mouse.
- Powered by Lightspeed, PRO X Superlight is our fastest and most reliable PRO mouse yet.
- Incredibly precise, fast and consistent control with Hero Sensor, designed from the ground up by Logitech G engineers for the best possible gaming performance.
- Large, zero-additive PTFE feet deliver a smooth glide for a pure, fluid connection with the game. System Requirements-Windows 8 or later, macOS 10.11 or later
- Available in black and white.
- Lightest, Zero-Compromise Miniature Mouse: 10% Smaller Than the Viper and lighter at 61g, with a 8500 DPI optical sensor befitting the most serious gamers without the need for drilling holes in the chassis like competitor mice
- Faster Than Traditional Mechanical Switches: Razer optical mouse switches uses light beam-based actuation, registering button presses at the speed of light for absolute control
- Customizable Chroma RGB Color Profiles & Underglow: Includes 16.8 million color combinations w, included preset profiles
- 6 Programmable Buttons: Allows for reconfiguration and assignment of complex macro functions through Razer Synapse 3
- Drag-Free Cord for Wireless-Like Performance: Razer Speedflex cables eliminate the need for mouse bungees, drastically reducing weight and drag
- Focus 20K DPI Optical Sensor: Auto-calibrates across mouse mat and reduces cursor drift from lift-off and landing for industry-leading precision. Razer Optical Switches – 70M Click Durability
- 3x Faster Than Traditional Mechanical Switches: New Razer optical mouse switches uses light beam-based actuation, registering button presses at the speed of light
- Immersive, Customizable Chroma RGB Lighting: Supports 16.8 million colors w, included preset profiles; syncs with gameplay and Razer Chroma-enabled peripherals and Philips Hue products
- 8 Programmable Buttons: Allows for button remapping and assignment of complex macro functions through Razer Synapse 3
- Drag-Free Cord for Wireless-Like Performance: Razer Speedflex cables eliminate the need for mouse bungees, drastically reducing weight and drag for absolute control
What are some final tips for finding the best ergonomic mouse?
The most important thing for you to remember is that you are going to have to find what works for you. What one reviewer says and finds comfortable may not be what you find comfortable. You need to think about your hand size, how you want to connect whether Bluetooth or WiFi, and what kinds of features you want your ergonomic mouse to have. Also, you will need to think about whether you want to use a vertical mouse or a more traditional positioned mouse. If you are a left-handed user, this will also affect your choice of mouse.