Okay Geek Farm
t3ch Review - Logitech Marathon Mouse M705
Jason Tsay
At a glance, the Marathon Mouse M705 is clearly a “revised” version of Logitech’s bestselling VX Revolution. As the owner of both mice, I put them to the test to see whether or not this is a worthy replacement of the VX. One major factor to take note of before we get into the review is that the VX Revolution cost $79 when it was still around and this mouse costs $49. A whopping $30 difference! How does this affect the quality of the product? Read on!
Product: Logitech Marathon Mouse M705
What they say it does: “Runs for up to three years on one set of batteries.”
My Experience
The second I laid my eyes on the mouse, I discovered that it seemed much cheaper than its predecessor. The VX Revolution used a combination of glossy plastic, metal, rubber, and matte finishes to create an expensive looking (and feeling) mouse. This time around, the Marathon Mouse M705 uses mostly matte materials creating an effect where the whole mouse feels flimsy and lighter. Even the bottom of the mouse has been covered with a matte finish. On top, the M705 is a slightly darker shade than the sliver VX. The color on the newer mouse would be better described as gray. In terms of size, the Marathon Mouse is a teensy bit wider and larger than the VX Revolution. Whereas on the VX I would use a fingertip/claw grip, I would use a palm grip on the Marathon Mouse.
Of course the biggest selling point about this mouse is its battery life. After all, that’s what the mouse has been named for. Though I haven’t been able to test out whether or not it really lasts 3 years, I can say for sure it lasted much longer than the VX. To make the comparison more fair, I used only 1 battery in the M705. However, when two AA size batteries are installed, the mouse is indeed much heavier. But thanks to the thoughtfulness of Logitech’s engineers, you can use a single battery if you choose. The best part is that it doesn’t even matter which slot you put it in! At the same time, the M705 uses a more powerful 1000 dpi laser sensor rather than the VX’s 800 dpi engine. Connection to your computer is via Logitech’s new thumbnail sized Unifying receiver. It simply plugs into your laptop’s USB port and can remain there with no worries of it snapping off. There are about a handful of Logitech devices (only 5 compatible mice and 4 keyboards at time of writing) that can use this Unifying receiver and each receiver can connect with up to 6 devices. Due to the new microscopic receiver, there is no longer a storage compartment for it. The compartment on the VX had a neat feature where it would turn on the mouse when you popped out the receiver and turned off when you stuck it back in.
Another popular feature from many of Logitech’s high-end mice has made a return. The Hyperscroll scroll wheel allows you to switch between the usual click-click-click scrolling to a blazing fast wheel useful for flipping through long documents or webpages. On the M705, the button to change the scroll type is right below the scroll wheel on top of the mouse whereas it was a circular shaped slider on the bottom of the VX. As far as buttons go, Logitech has taken out the zoom slider and search button previously found on the VX. However, a new “Stealth button” has been cleverly snuck into the rubber grip of the mouse. On a Mac, this button has been set to activate Exposé and it performs a similar (but less elegant) function in Windows. However, you can reassign this button to do just about anything you choose in Logitech’s Setpoint software. On the bottom of the mouse, there is now a power switch instead of a “press-and-hold” button. During testing, I noticed that the right and left click buttons didn’t feel all that tactile despite excessively loud clicks. Feedback from the VX Revolution felt extremely firm and the noise produced wasn’t quite as distracting. The side buttons on the other hand were super quiet but felt quiet mushy and flimsy. The chrome side buttons on the VX were also extremely tactile and produced an okay amount of noise. The left/right scrolling is the same scenario where the M705 is super clicky and the VX feels tactile but makes next to no sound.
But where does this product stand in Logitech’s current lineup? Well, the VX Revolution was originally made for notebook users and marketed as the little brother to the MX Revolution. The MX Revolution is no more and has since been replaced by the Performance Mouse MX, whose notebook alternative is clearly the Anywhere Mouse MX. After scrutinizing Logitech’s lineup for quite some time, the conclusion I reached was that this is just a more affordable showcase for some of Logitech’s technology such as the battery life and Unifiying receiver. The Darkfield technology, however, would be reserved for the 2 newer MX mice.
Despite many improvements, such as the battery life and smaller receiver, the bottom line is that I would much rather use the older VX Revolution. If you are still able to get your hands on this end-of-life product, I highly suggest it over the Marathon Mouse. If battery life and having the smallest receiver possible are at the top of your list when purchasing a mouse, by all means get the Marathon Mouse M705. After all, the battery life is as long as Logitech’s 3 year warranty.
Pro’s: Long battery life, long warranty, tiny receiver
Con’s: Feels cheap
Price: $49.99
Where to buy it: Logitech Amazon
