G-series Gaming Mice

[Psychopomp]

I have the first edition g5 mouse which I have had for 3 years and have been using it with the same mouse pad the entire time.  Just the other day it stopped working on my mousepad, when I use the mouse on the mousepad it freezes and won't track, it is all jumpy and is not smooth.  If I use it on the desk surface it works fine but I can't figure out why it doesn't work with the mousepad anymore.  It also seems to be getting worse when used on the mousepad, at first it would sometimes freeze when tracking but now I can barely get it to move across the screen on the mousepad.  Anyone know why this is happening and how I could fix it, because it tracked better on my mousepad (when it worked) than the desk.

[falsinator]

Wow, I was just about to post something similar. My first editiion G5 is about 3 years old and also no longer works properly with a mousepad. I have never had the tracking completely freeze on me, but the tracking has become rather jittery. At first I thought that my mousepad had faded too much, so I bought a new one. Alas, the tracking remained jittery. However, I found that the tracking seems to be quite good when I simply use the glossy envelope/box thing that the mousepad came in as an actual mousepad, but I am unsatisfied since the mouse used to work on mousepads. I have tried the mouse on multiple systems using both XP and Vista. I have even tried using it both with the most recent SetPoint as well as simply pluggin it into a new system and using the default drivers. The mouse simply does not work as well as it used to. I too, am curious as to why that is.

[gregs4163]

I can't believe this! It has happened to me too. But my mouse is the second generation G5 about 2 years old, I was'nt sure if it was the mouse or My Vista Machine so I tried rebooting and loading the newest setpoint drivers but it won't track right with the mouse pad? worked fine with my mouse pad for over 2 years, work perfectly fine on my desktop! go figure?

[CharlesB]

On the first gen users, I'd make sure you have the latest firmware (via the support link at the top of the page)

I'd also check to make sure you don't have any dust or other obstructions that could be causing refractions on the laser. White surfaces actually work really well for G5 mice (my favorite mousepad pre-G9 was just a blank piece of white paper. Currently I use "The Office" branded mouse pads I got from target for $1 apiece, and they work just fine for gaming), and if there's dust causing issues on the laser's optics, it could inhibit it's ability to track on dark or very mottled surfaces.

[gregs4163]

Hi, I just Checked my mouse and the lens look clean (no dust or debris) I also tried it on a piece of white blank paper, works perfectly, then I try it with my 9 month old gray lycra mouse pad (Very clean) and it goes crazy? it was working fine with this pad for all that time untill 4/22/09. Then I try it on my desk surface (Wood grain) and it works perfectly again. It make no sense to me?

Message Edited by gregs4163 on 04-23-2009 03:36 PM

[falsinator]

Alright, so I checked the lens and it seems to be quite clean to me. I then tried the mouse on a white sheet of paper that I took out of my printer. That was quite the experience. The mouse cursor was more jumpy than I have ever seen it before. It actually made the mousepad performance seem decent. Out of curiosity, I tried the mouse on some other random surfaces and have found that glossy surfaces work best. It also does not seem to matter whether the glossy surface is a dark or light color. For now I will use the mouse on the cover of a thin notebook, but I would really like to know why the mouse started acting this way in the first place. After all, I have personally never seen a glossy mousepad. Further still, I have seen descriptions of mousepads being marketed specifically as having anti-reflective surfaces. It really seems quite strange.

Oh, and yes I do have the latest firmware installed. I do not presume to say that the new firmware caused this problem, but I can say that I never had this problem with the older version that came preinstalled when I purchased the mouse.

[Psychopomp]

My lens appears clean, mousepad is clean, and I do not have the updated firmware, but It was working fine.  Also I tried a piece of white paper and it also was worse than the mousepad.  The mouse doesn't seem to work at all on any kind of white paper.  The desk surface seems to work best, but I still have no idea why it suddenly stopped working on the mousepad since the lens and mousepad are clean.

[CharlesB]

Everyone with this issue: I'd try unplugging the mouse, lightly dabbing some rubbing alcohol on a cotton swab, and just wipe off the laser sensor. If this weird behavior still persists, I'd contact your local support team.

[falsinator]

Problem Solved!!! I was just about to post how I fixed my mouse, but it seems the Logitech team beat me to it. Eventhough, to the naked eye my lens looked clean, it must not have been. I took a q-tip and brushed it against the lens. Sure enough, the mouse works just like it used to.

To everyone else with the problem, if your lens looks clean try this method anyway!!! I hope your results are similar.