Warm Winter Good Thing Award
Apple updated all Mac desktops in 2024, but it didn't touch on the worst part: accessories. Especially the magic mouse. This mouse has been buried for many years at this point and is often cited as one of the worst examples of Apple's design philosophy. Despite a lot of positive changes in Mac over the past few years, the Magic Mouse is still stagnant.
A new report suggests that Mac accessories will undergo significant changes in early 2024. Magic Keyboard, Magic Trackpad, and Magic Mouse will reportedly all move to USB-C to match the latest iPhone, Apple's exclusive Lightning connectivity, after previously using USB-C.
If Apple changes the port type and doesn't fix the magic mouse, it will be a serious wasted opportunity.
The biggest design flaw in the Magic Mouse is its port layout. Poor ergonomics and lack of other buttons aren't great either, but if there's one thing I can change with the Magic Mouse, it's the location of the charging port. Since it's located at the bottom, you won't be able to charge the mouse while you're using it like most wireless mice. This may have been acceptable when the Magic Mouse first came out in 2015, but by 2023, it's outdated and embarrassing.
So, if Apple has messed up the connection, now is a good time to redesign the Magic Mouse and at least fix the charging problem.
Over the past few years, Apple has redesigned and revamped almost every aspect of its Mac, including desktop options like iMac or Mac mini. Rumors aside, the idea that Apple will still sell the Magic Mouse with all its problems is getting more and more incredible every year.
As shown above, there have been some homebrew attempts to put together a better solution, but we need Apple to provide a suitable solution. If not, it will continue to be a blot on its excellent lineup of Macs.
Apple released the latest version of Magic Mouse in March 2022, retaining the same form factor that was introduced in October 2015. There is a lightning bolt on the bottom of the mouse, and you have to turn the mouse upside down to plug in the charge, so that it cannot be charged.
Then switching to USB-C is a great idea, but the Magic Mouse needs more than that.