Worth It: A Mouse That's Kind To Wrists

Much unlike many a magazine editor who recommends you buy all sorts of crap that they most likely got for free, your Jezebel staff doesn’t get jack shit (other than books, unsolicited). And that’s how it should be. But on our own time, in our personal lives, we still buy stuff. So this is Worth It, our daily recommendation of random things that we’ve actually spent our own money on. These are the things we buy regularly or really like, things we’d actually tell our friends about. And now we’re telling you.

Regular readers already know that I use voice-recognition software to save my repetitively-stressed wrists. But they may not know about my super-secret weapon: the 3M Ergonomic Mouse.

I’d been using voice rec for several years already when my clicky-finger (I guess that would be my right index finger, but you know what I mean) started feeling tingly and numb after a long day of mousing. A little online sleuthing brought me to the ergonomic mouse, and I have never looked back. Its design is simple: it’s basically a joystick with one button on top (left-click, for PC users) and one on the stick itself (right-click). A normal mouse basically makes me mash my wrist in order to click — the ergonomic variety leaves it nice and neutral. The literature calls it a “handshake” position, but I prefer to think of it as a “jet-piloting” one.

I’ve been jet-piloting for about three years now, and it has not only solved my clicky-finger problems, but also allowed me to integrate some typing back into my routine. The ergonomic mouse takes enough pressure off my carpal tunnels that I can type a bit without my wrists freaking out. Unlike my voice-rec software, it’s portable — I just plug it into whatever computer I’m using and I’m ready to go. And unlike voice-rec — which, let’s face it, is always going to be a little clunkier than typing — it’s just as good, if not better, than the non-ergonomic device it replaces. Bonus: it looks cool. Everybody who comes by my desk thinks I am a badass. And with my wrists all happy and pain-free, I’m in great shape for crime-fighting.

3M Ergonomic Mouse, $49.32, Amazon

Worth It only features things we paid for ourselves and actually like. Don’t send us stuff.