Table of Contents
Logitech has positioned itself fairly solidly as the best mouse maker, with a variety of devices that are above the competition. The Logitech MX Vertical is another shot at the top, except with an added emphasis on ergonomics. But how it achieves, this is all in the name. The MX Vertical combines verticality, versatility, and comfort to create a mouse designed for productivity. But it has a few peculiarities that make it harder to use than a standard mouse and a design that makes it much less portable. This is our Logitech MX Vertical Review.
Logitech MX Vertical Review: Design
The MX Vertical has a design that resembles a cresting wave, with a convex curve on the palm side and a more deep curve on the thumb side. While many mice have these curves, the MX Vertical has them predictably vertical. A slightly crumbly base gives it the appearance of a chocolate chip from the front and back while being more trapezoidal in profile.
All those shapes may not sound very ergonomic, but they combine to create a mouse that feels incredibly natural to hold. Unbeknownst to traditional mice, Logitech has chosen a natural handshake, so you don’t have to extend your hand far to hold it. If you do something like rock climbing and it results in much tension in your forearms, the difference between using the MX Vertical and an ordinary mouse will be easy to see. We like to hold on, and our arm feels relaxed the whole time we use it, with no extra tension in our forearms.
For the price, the materials seem simple. It is made with hard plastic on the base and ribbed rubber material for the thumb and palm. The ribs look weird at first glance but are also strangely soothing. There are two thumb buttons on the left side, two split mouse buttons on the right side where your ring and other fingers naturally sit, and a nicely ribbed and serrated scroll wheel. The mouse is provided with a metal plate (although perhaps still plastic), on which a DPI switch button is also mounted.
On the front of the mouse, there is a USB-C port for charging the built-in battery or for using the mouse via a wired connection. However, the included USB-C cable is stiffer and more grip able than we would like with a mouse cable. Fortunately, the MX Vertical is primarily a wireless mouse, with support for Bluetooth and connection via a Logitech Unifying receiver. A button at the bottom enables you to switch between three different wireless connections quickly.
While many Logitech’s peripherals have a slot to store the receiver when not in use, the MX Vertical is annoyingly unable to provide space. The MX Vertical takes some time to get used to. It is not immediately apparent that the MX Vertical has to stand slightly to the left so that thumb and fingers are not parallel to the arm. But, after the hurdle in the non-intuitive design, we only find the large, travel-unfriendly shape and the absence of the reception slot as a drawback in the design.
Connectivity
The performance of the wireless connection to the Unifying receiver is phenomenal. We don’t experience any interruptions or delays, and it seems to have a pretty high level of performance. Switching between the different types of connections is also fast. We set it up to connect to our laptop via the receiver and Bluetooth, and then connect it via USB. USB overwrites the wireless connections, but when the connection to the unified receiver is disconnected, it can take effect immediately. We tried to disconnect the mouse while it was moving, and it kept moving the whole time smoothly.
Switching to Bluetooth on our laptop is a bit slower, but that can make the laptop wrong because our phone recognizes the Bluetooth input much faster. Bluetooth feels quite worse than the receiver’s connection because it looks like the polling rate is lower, for cursor movements that aren’t as smooth.
Logitech MX Vertical Review: Performance
The MX Vertical doesn’t have the crazy specifications you’d expect from a game mouse, but it feels accurate enough for productivity. With a DPI range of 400 to 4,000DPI, you should be able to find a setting that works for you, whether you’re using a 720p monitor or 4K. While we initially struggled to keep the mouse in the right position, we tested one physical performance problem. Since the mouse buttons are on the sides, they are pressed sideways.
A typical mouse has a desk underneath to absorb the force of a button press, but the Logitech MX Vertical only has a thumb to withstand that force. If we hold the MX Vertical lightly in our hand, we notice that pressing buttons results in a slight push of the cursor. This is true for the middle mouse button, which needs a more substantial pressure.
For gaming with high accuracy, this is a wrong choice. Even while working, that slight cursor movement can result in clicking on the wrong part of the screen or not selecting an entire line of text. It’s easy enough to fix with a tighter grip, but that negates the whole point of this vertical mouse designed to take the tension off your arm. If you have a light grip (maybe you use your fingertips and release your palm completely), this can be a wrong choice. For anyone who has a firm grip, the view is much better.
It also gets excellent battery life. Logitech claims that the MX Vertical lasts up to four months on a single charge. You can, of course, also use it as a wired mouse by connecting the USB Type-A to Type-C charging cable.
Price and Availability
At $99 or £92 (about AU$135), the MX Vertical isn’t cheap, especially considering how many computer mice can be kept for less than a third of that price. The $99 (£99, AU$149) Logitech MX Master 2S scored top marks in our review, and it’s easy enough to find at a discount well below that price. We’re also fans of the MX Anywhere 2, which has been followed up by the $79 (£79, AU$99) MX Anywhere 2S.
So even among Logitech’s offerings, the MX Vertical has to prove itself. And while it offers unique ergonomics that the others don’t, the experience of using this mouse holds it back just enough to keep it behind his siblings.
Logitech MX Vertical Review: Conclusion
If you work a lot with a mouse and have pain in your hand, arm, or wrist, the MX Vertical can provide a more comfortable changeover. We feel more relaxed in the arm when using it, except when we need to hold the cursor harder to stop it from moving while clicking. As far as we are concerned, this is an ergonomic top mouse.
But most of it doesn’t make it the best option for people who are often on the move. And its price and cumbersome clicking behavior don’t help it compete with more accurate mice. Gamers, above all, can immediately rule this out. For gaming mouse, check our list of Best Gaming Mouse