If you have gone from the MX518 to the G500, I need your feedback.

LGabrielPhoto

LGabrielPhoto

2[H]4U
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Jan 5, 2006
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hi!
Just wondering who has gone from a 518 to the g500 and could share some feedback on the "upgrade".
Thanks
 
I bought the G500 last night. The scroll wheel on my 518 stopped working. I have not and dont plan on installing the software that comes with it (one of the big pluses imo). The textured sides of the G500 make it feel more "fuzzy". The braided cord is easier to manage. The sensitivity buttons are on the outer edge of the left mouse so (for me) its easier to access and change because they are right next to each other rather than sandwiching the scroll wheel (as is on the 518). The led speed indicator is a nice touch though not really necessary.

The hyper scroll wheel from the MX & VX Revolution is awesome. Having the both the MX/VX Revolution mice, I used to use both the 518 and MX Rev on my main rig (518 for gaming, MX for desktop use) and now I have the best of both worlds in one mouse. The button just below the wheel is to switch it from "fly wheel" to "click wheel" and does not get in the way and is much easer to access than the VX revolution's bottom switch and easier to deal with than the MX's push down 3x to switch.

As far as the tracking of the laser, it works fine. I've always used a proper surface so its a non-issue for me. Though plugging in the G500 the lowest sensitivity is lower than the 518 (perhaps by one tick in windows control panel) but in MW2 I quickly got accustomed to it.

The side buttons are smaller but I pretty much just as usable to me as the two on the 518. I use the forward button as a ventrilo "push to talk" and the back button as the "melee". Using the the middle third button is easy though I'm not sure as to what function to assign to it.

Overall I like it, a lot.

mx518-g500_02.jpg


mx518-g500_01.jpg


mx518-g500-mxrevolution-vxrevolutio.jpg
 
I used the same MX518 from 2005->2009 until i purchased a G500.

1. Even without the weights in the G500 is WAY heavier then the MX518, this is a bad thing for me.

2. The sensor location at the tip of the mouse is a pretty lame idea, I never got used to it. It always feels like it has acceleration.
 
G500 looks great in 3D Vision ;)

I like a lot of things about it, and it's definitely superior to the MX 518 in most ways, but the sensor location is sort of bothersome to me.
 
imyourzero said:
G500 looks great in 3D Vision ;)

I like a lot of things about it, and it's definitely superior to the MX 518 in most ways, but the sensor location is sort of bothersome to me.
Click to expand...

First let me say that I can't believe there is 2 threads on this topic right when I need to decide whether or not to make this upgrade. This is the EXACT dilemmna I am having and thank god [H] is here for me.

Next is this comment that is most worrisome. What is boils down to for me is the mouse selection is even more subjective than headset selection but with much less bickering. I am going to pick up one of these tonight and hopefully there is more feedback in this thread I can contribute to. Thanks for pushing me over the edge!

Update: Bought the G500 from BB on sale last night. Only had about 2 hours to game on it. So far so good but boy howdy the software is more in depth than the regular Set Point. I am going to need to tweak it for a while for best possible experience. Initial impressions-solid, little heavier than mx518 (I am running 0 weights so far), forward laser positioning is going to take some time to get used to. Update later.
 
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The laser location is what scares me too. I guess I can buy and return if I dont get used to it.
 
For people who switched from the MX518 to the G500, was the position of the laser easy to adjust to or are you still having trouble getting used to the feel after a significant amount of time?

Also, there seems to be a number of people complaining about the loose scroll wheel. Do the G500 mice come with very loose scroll wheels or do those people with loose scroll wheels just have defective mice?

I really like the idea of all the extra buttons on the G500 vs. the MX518, but I think a really loose scroll wheel would make me rage out frequently during games.
 
There is a button you press that switches between a loose free floating wheel and the more solid feeling "clicky" wheel.The choice is yours.
 
jbauer2485 said:
For people who switched from the MX518 to the G500, was the position of the laser easy to adjust to or are you still having trouble getting used to the feel after a significant amount of time?

Also, there seems to be a number of people complaining about the loose scroll wheel. Do the G500 mice come with very loose scroll wheels or do those people with loose scroll wheels just have defective mice?

I really like the idea of all the extra buttons on the G500 vs. the MX518, but I think a really loose scroll wheel would make me rage out frequently during games.
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There is obviously the toggle between smooth free spin and indexed "click" spinning. I can see where they would have an issue with the loose feeling. There is a little left to right play in the wheel itself but it isn't really annoying to me personally. You also have to factor in that there is a left and right scrolling you have on the G500 that the mx518 does not. So the scroll wheel is actually 4 axis in a sense with all 4 axis's getting its own settings in the 5.2 software. So far, it is a great mouse but with only like 3-4 hours of gaming under my belt, I am still have mixed feelings about my overall impressions or if I am going to keep it. The laser positioning hasn't really been to bad but then again, have the mx518 on standby so I can switch back but haven't yet to see the big difference.
 
If anything, you should consider upgrading solely to rid yourself of the MX518's crazy lunar landing dimple design :D. With that said, I really like the look of the G500 and have been looking into picking one up for myself.
 
I don't know why anyone would ever change mice after using the mx518. Its the endall.
 
This is going to be a special project of mine because when I came to this forum this thread was just started and it was exactly what I was coming to research. I am going to post pics and other things when I get time to take them but here is what I have found out thus far.

-The software is key to this mouse. I was a little intimidated by the granular nature of the settings all the way from the horizontal side scroll rate to the 5 presets for sensitivity that are predetermined or set at different intervals of your choice. This mouse has on board memory as well so it can be interesting. The first thing I tried to do was replicate the dpi settings that are preset on the mx518 of 400, 800, and 1,600 to the software in the G500. It was close but with the extra settings on the software for input there wasn't a 1:1 comparison and I am pretty sure the nature of the different sensors played a part as well.

-It is noticeably heavier than the mx518 but by how much I don't know yet. Research on the net seems to show the G500 is about 180 grams with the cord or 165 grams with the cord weight non-scientifically removed (and no extra weight in cartridge) and the mx518 total of 145 grams with the cord or around 110-115 grams with the cord weight non-scientifically removed. This equates to a roughly 20%-25% increase in weight depending on which one you want to count as "weight". I tend to think only dead weight on the mouse pad matters here so any way you look at it, it is markedly heavier. My point is that it is noticeable. What is ironic is that with extra weights in the cartridge inserted in the bay actually balances the front to rear weight ratio. It was strange but with the laser placement more oriented towards the front (closer to cord inlet) it made things interesting, which will be covered more in my next point. Either way, you can feel the extra weight from the get go and I am a pick up and put back on the mouse pad to reset type of guy. The weight instantly affected my play. The different shape of the mouse also had a part in picking up the mouse to move it back to the left or right of the pad.

-The laser is approximately 5/6 to 7/8 of an inch farther forward than the optical pickup on the mx. It is very noticeable and thus far it is still something that I am trying to get used to. Having to retrain yourself to slide a different portion of your hand in the direction you want to go if you are a person who plants your wrist is hard to do. There is some discussion on another thread about this feeling like a false sense of "acceleration" on the sensor but in reality it is simply the larger arc made by the hand and the distance traveled by the sensor. Simply something to get used to.

-As for the "feel" of the mouse as in shape and texture, it is very similar to the mx518 but with notable additions. There is textured semi-hard rubberized bumping where the right two fingertips touch and the thumb will rest. It was a welcome addition in my case because the mx's sides were a little slick for me and after marathon gaming sessions, it was getting a little slippery. The ledges on the G500 are more pronounced as well. I felt my hand in a better grip and my fingers found better real estate to gain control of the mouse. Length and height are similar (more measurements to come I hope) but width is about 2-5 mm wider I would estimate.

-Buttons and scroll wheel in the same place but new buttons and routine are in order. Left, right buttons are of course the same. Scroll wheel is in the same place as usual and back button as well. Now for the differences and additions. Scroll wheel is wider, flatter, and has more mass. It is sloppier in its movements, I will concede that. But I presume it is because the wheel has more function than the mx. It is click scroll and hyper scroll capable with the toggle button to switch between the two immediately below the scroll wheel itself. This is the first hyper scroll wheel I have had time to mess with and I really like being able to just flick it and have it run down or up the page. The scroll wheel also is button 3 like the mx but has left and right horizontal click scroll function. I have never really used it because I am not to sure where I would but I could see a good bind option in gaming to use this. Sensor sensitivity up/down buttons are moved from above and below the scroll wheel on the mx518 to the upper left edge of the left click button. Great placement and convenient in my opinion but others with larger fingers have made mention that these have been a little in the way in some instances. Something on the G500 not found on the mx is a visual indicator of sensor setting. It has three bars being able to show all 5 possible preset settings if need be. Lowest setting is lowest bar, 2nd lowest, 2 lower bars, middle is 3 bars, and so on. It is very handy with 5 settings but I never found the presets on the mx hard to keep up with in the first place. There are 3 thumb buttons which is complicating in the beginning. Now the mx518 had 2 but I only used the back button because the forward button was just unusable for anything useful especially during gaming. The g500 packs 3 buttons into a much tighter space and has a little tactile indication for the use of them. I have found regularly using the back and middle button easy. I can now use the in game voice applications like Ventrillo or Steam with the extra button with ease.

My gaming play list is everywhere from FPS games like Modern Warfare 2 and Left 4 Dead 2 to rts's like Dawn of War and Company of Heroes. I am having a hard time getting used to the G500 simply because I used the mx518 for almost 3 years now and, though there was no reason to upgrade, when BB put them on sale and I had some extra gift card left I sprung for it. The only other mouse I would have considered was the G5, but I had counted that mouse out due to the "upgrades" to the mx518 being so little that I needed more to justify it. I was also under the impression this was the successor to the G5. The G9, on the other hand, was just way to much to justify the cost of the extra features it came with. That and I had used a friend's G9 but was not overly impressed. It was a "claw" mouse and I have a hybrid grip between that and palm. Seeing as how the mx518 was a great mouse I figured the G500's shape was more on that end of the spectrum.

So that is my take and hopefully I will be back with pictures and more specifics like digital weight comparisons and more precise dimension comparisons. Hope this helps anybody who was looking for answers and I would love to answer any questions if they haven't been already by the other forum posters.
 
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Nice review, Kenworth. Pretty much everything you said is dead on. One thing I will mention about the loose scroll wheel is that although it does have horizontal scrolling, so does the G5 and it's wheel is much more like the MX518's. I then wondered if the looseness might be attributed to the mechanism used for the free spin feature, but my G9 has free spin and its wheel is nice and firm. In any case, the wheel on the G500 doesn't bother me. It feels nice, but at first I'll admit I accidentally clicked the mousewheel left when I meant to do a middle click. You just have to get used to the slightly loose feel.

I am still getting used to the laser position, which is my only real gripe with the mouse. Having the 3rd thumb button is really nice in some instances, but I don't mind the larger separated buttons that the MX 518 and G5 had either. All in all it's a nice mouse and definitely an evolution from the current G5.
 
I just picked up the g500 as well from Frys. I was able to get them to price match BB so it was $39.99 plus tax.

It was definitely worth the cash from my G5. I like the feeling of the new scroll wheel, and I dont accidentally bump the sensitivity buttons like I did with my G5.

The one feature I have not really played with is the onboard memory. You can store your gaming profiles on the mouse itsself and take them with you. Perfect for those who dont use the same computer on a regular basis.
 
Yep, the onboard memory is nice. I always use the G500 with my main rig, so being able to take my profiles away from home isn't a big deal. But I will say that having the mouse remember my DPI setting between reboots is a very welcome benefit. That's one thing I really like about the G9 and G500 (I know other mice do it too, but those are the only ones that I own with the ability to do so). It's funny how such a minor thing seems like a hassle when you go back to using a mouse without onboard memory.
 
kuyaglen said:
The scroll wheel on my 518 stopped working.
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Somewhat off-topic for this thread, but it's most often rather trivial to fix this problem on the 518. The mouse wheel mechanism on the 518 is extremely simple. It's just a spoked wheel with a two small sensors on either side. Those sensors register the mouse wheel movement every time they connect through the gaps of the spokes.

The problem is that dirt and gunk will sometimes build up in the gaps between the spokes, and since the sensors can no longer connect if gunk is in the way, the mouse wheel either stops working completely or works very unreliably.

To fix the problem you just need to disassemble the mouse and clean the the spoked wheel and anything else which appears to be obstructing the mouse wheel sensor(s). During your cleaning, if you no longer want you mouse wheel to click and rather it be smooth and free, just remove the small little metal bar which should be resting on one of the gaps on the spoked wheel.
 
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Cyberbeing said:
it's most often rather trivial to fix this problem on the 518. The mouse wheel mechanism on the 518 is extremely simple. It's just a spoked wheel with a two small sensors on either side. Those sensors register the mouse wheel movement every time they connect through the gaps of the spokes.

The problem is that dirt and gunk will sometimes build up in the gaps between the spokes, and since the sensors can no longer connect if gunk is in the way, the mouse wheel either stops working completely or works very unreliably.
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mx518_06.jpg


mx518_08.jpg






mx518_09.jpg


Well save for the click mechanism the spokes were clean, but then I noticed that the rigt sensor seemed out of alignment

mx518_12.jpg


and mearly bent it back into place and voila, the scroll wheel works now.

mx518_14.jpg


Awesome. Now I got my awesome MX518 back and an even better G500! Thanks for suggesting Cyberbeing.
 
Had my 518 for 5 years, 1 HW 3 Gladiators in WoW and countless hours of FPS. I just switched to the G500 2 weeks ago and I am very happy with it. I like the heavier feel and the textured side.
 
At first I was hesitant to use the G500 over my MX518, but after using the G500 I like it even more than the 518.

Took my MX518 to work so I use both daily =)
 
Jumped on the G500 bestbuy sale too. I have considered mx518 the end-all mice. Went through 3-4 in the past 7-10 years or so.

MX518:
Pros - Perfect fit... i lift it with my palm and 2 fingers on the buttons, its literally glued to my hand. Nice and tight wheel. Large side buttons.
Cons - Not laser. Glued feet that keep falling off. Dirt magnet... I have to clean the cracks and optical lens all the time. The plastic over the 2 main buttons gets bent after heavy usage. Finish wears out quick.

G500:
Pros - Laser (works on wood, couch, bed... dont need to bring the mouse pad in bed like i had to with the mx518). I like the 2 speed wheel to a point where i cant see myself going back, the free spin mode is real handy in long browsing sessions. Braided cord is a nice touch. DPI led shows the dpi setting so i dont have to click the dpi buttons all the time out of nostalgia like i used to do with the 518. Better, bigger feet that hopefully wont start ungluing/falling off on me. Havent had to clean it so far (not sure what makes the mx518 such a dirt magnet).
Cons - loose/wobbly/not precise/unpredictable wheel... I am sort of used to it by now but it's still just not right, sort of like "scared to touch it because you are unsure what it'll do at first" feel. Buttons with sharp edges, dry finish, hard and rough rubber... it just doesnt feel anything like the mx518 in my hand. Laser lens not where it supposed to be. Top heavy, but wights sort of address the issue. 3 side buttons too close together so you have to think twice and feel your way around everytime you wanna use them.

Bottom line... I feel cheated by a marketing machine. It could have been sooo much better!!! Theres just too many cons unless you are purposely trying to hinder something to fit in a product line or try to milk money from mx518 fans. If i had to do it over i would have passed, but now i dont want to let go of the freespin wheel and i dont want to go back to optical... I still have a couple weeks to think or shop for a different brand. I can see a G518 from a mile away and when the time comes to buy mice again i might not be a logitech fan anymore.
 
gimp0 said:
Took my MX518 to work so I use both daily =)
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Chrysalis said:
I can see a G518 from a mile away and when the time comes to buy mice again i might not be a logitech fan anymore.
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You are both geniuses for completely different reasons...

And Chrysalis, I think you are getting the same just...well...how do you explain it other than an "off" feeling from the G500? Is it that we used the 518 for so long that we are brainwashed or is the G500 truly a little askew?
 
Well after about 7-8 years of running, my MX518 decided to give out. Disassembled it, harvested the USB cable (just had to unplug it from circuit board) and the plastic optical focus piece.

MX 518 is $35 on NewEgg right now, and G500 for $55. Not sure which to pick. I really love/d my MX 518, best mouse ever. Never used a G500 though.
 
way to bump a year old thread :p

i went from 518 to G500 for a total of 3 days before going back.
 
zyzeast said:
way to bump a year old thread :p

i went from 518 to G500 for a total of 3 days before going back.
Click to expand...
Saving the forum from another thread. :D I had a very good experience with my MX 518, and like I said, it went about 7-8 years before kicking the can (today).
 
I went from a MX518 to a G5 - and went straight back to the MX518 because the scroll wheel sucked and it had one less button. The scroll wheel 'notches' didn't match up with the actual actions (though I might have had a defective one). Naturally, I was a little apprehensive about upgrading to a G500. I'm glad I did though:

The scroll wheel is excellent. I can use it as a standard scroll wheel and it was accurate; it does feel a bit heavier and quickly flicking the wheel (while letting your finger off it) could make the wheel continue to scroll for several notches - no doubt due to the design. I didn't think I'd use the flywheel mode, but I found that I really like it for scrolling through pages quickly. It's more convenient than using page up/page down and feels more natural than holding the middle mouse button to scroll quickly.

The memory is also a great feature - or more precisely the high configuration of the device that persists without needing to install software on everything. Once I set everything I wanted using the software I can plug the mouse into any computer and it'll retain the same exact settings. This even includes key mappings (I mapped the backspace key to one of my buttons). I always use a single fixed DPI setting, so I can remap the +/- buttons too.

If I didn't care about the scroll wheel, memory, or extra configurable buttons, then I probably would've just stuck with the already excellent MX518.

Edit: the only real downside is the middle mouse button (scroll wheel button). It's useable but like all side-scrolling wheels the middle button is not as good as a standard wheel. In my case, the benefits of the G500 outweigh this drawback.
 
I just got the G500 mouse on sale at Bestbuy and been playing around with it. Compared to the MX518 I have to say the side buttons for web browsing forward and backward clicks are uncomfortable in that the side buttons are too small slightly and you have to jerk your thumb back to hit the back button. Though I like the feel of the mouse overall. Not sure about the scroll wheel. Seems a little big.
 
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