When the subject of mouse controllers comes up, it's only natural to think of the two big guns: Logitech and Microsoft. These companies control the majority of the desktop interface business, including mice, keyboards and other peripherals. But there is room for innovation, as evidenced by the popular Razer mouse designs, which have carved out a niche in the enthusiast gamer section of the market. This is where Sandio Technology is aiming with their 3D Game O' Mouse 6DOF (6 Degrees of Freedom) controller, going directly for the gaming community by offering a mouse that provides unprecedented control and movement.
The Sandio 3D Game O' mouse may not have the hippest product name, but the unit itself holds some definite promise. The device is comprised of two distinct parts, the Sandio 3D Game O' mouse and a detachable base. This actually works very well in practice, and for those who appreciate the wrist rest/guard, it functions perfectly and even has three Teflon mouse feet for added smoothness. The only caveat is that this makes the unit noticeably larger, and it will require a bit more real estate to move. On the other hand, gamers who prefer a standard mouse design can simply remove the silver base and operate the Sandio 3D Game O' like any other mouse controller. Either way, this is a high-end gaming mouse so it bypasses the wireless revolution and attaches only through a USB cable.
The 3D Game O' mouse features a laser tracking engine (using the high-speed Avago 6010 laser sensors), and the design adheres to the standard 5-button + scroll wheel design. These buttons include the standard pair of top-mounted buttons, two thumb-controlled buttons, and another activated by pressing the scroll wheel. Other features include varying levels of DPI settings (400, 800, 1600, 2000), full 16-bit data packet transfers, and configurable driver software. Aesthetically, the Sandio 3D Game O' mouse we reviewed featured a red and silver outer shell (it is also available in gray-black), that while nice, still looks a bit too "plasticky" for our tastes. Its heft is very conducive to gaming, and the Teflon mouse feet ensure a smooth ride.
The big change is of course the three 3D buttons (similar to coolie hats on a flightstick) found on the mouse, with two mounted on either side and the third right on top, below the scroll wheel. This is actually a fairly solid design, as Sandio has kept the 3D buttons out of the way of the standard controls, and allow the mouse to be easily used in a standard Windows environment as well. Each of the three circular 3D buttons moves in four directions, thus providing 12 specific button arrangements and potential keystroke assignments. It also offers game movement along the x, y and z axes, which can be very useful in real-time strategy and role-playing games. While these buttons only activate using an up/down-left/right format, there are some diagonal spaces available, which unfortunately leave you between active positions.
Also note that Visiontek has signed on to market the Sandio 3D Game O' mouse under the XG6 3D Laser Mouse brand name. This model is equivalent to the only reviewed, with the only real difference being the black and red color combination.
The specific features and buttons of the Sandio 3D Game O' mouse are controlled through a software driver set. This is the 3D Mouse Management interface, one function is which is the loading of canned game configurations. Our driver set (1.04) came with 23 interface configurations, heavily weighted in the FPS and RTS genres, including games like Far Cry, Prey, Quake 4, Battlefield 2, Half-Life 2, HOMM 5, Rome, and Oblivion. These default settings can be edited and adjusted to individual tastes, or new configurations can be created and loaded. The 3D Mouse software only sets controls for the three "coolie hat" buttons, while leaving the standard buttons and scroll wheel for Windows or the actual game software.
In terms of real-world usage, the 3D Mouse Management software worked quite well. After experimenting with some FPS configurations for Quake 4, Half-Life 2 and UT 2004, and having some trouble with the defaults (again, personal taste), a few adjustments later and we were in business. In UT 2004 in particular (an old fave), a few keystroke changes later and using the Sandio 3D Game O' mouse offered an extremely quick acclimation time. But be prepared to jump in there and adjust the settings as needed, since many defaults may simply not feel natural or conducive to your current method of gameplay.
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