Logitech Mobi Fold hands-on impressions

You have to give it to Logitech: for a company that sells no less than nineteen different wireless mice designed for work – as well as the best productivity wireless mouse of all time for years now – it sure likes to experiment with new form factors. Having noticed that so many people do work while out and about nowadays, but find that their laptops’ trackpads are not comfortable enough for prolonged use, Logitech built a wireless mouse that takes up as little space to carry around as humanly possible. It’s called he Mobi Fold and it’s available now.

Yours truly had the chance to get a media sample early and he’s been testing it in regular intervals for the past two weeks. Here’s what working with a Mobi Fold is like, both in a home office and a chill coffee shop – where Logitech’s latest is, admittedly, meant to be used.

Folds in two, looks cool doing it

Well, let us not overcomplicate things here: just as the name of this mouse suggests, it folds. The Mobi Fold may remind a few people of another such device, one released all the way back in 2010, that was bendable: the Arc Touch mouse. The key difference – and the way Logitech was smarter about this – is that while Microsoft’s mouse was curve-shaped when in use or flat for increased portability, this one is used curved-shaped but can be folded all the way for maximum portability. When folded in half, like the smallest foldable smartphones do, it takes up so little space that it can be carried around in a shirt pocket. Literally.

If the shirt pocket scenario sounds too good to be true, it’s not: the Mobi Fold weighs less than 80 grams, which is astonishing given how solidly built it is and how easy it is to swap out its included rechargeable battery (most wireless mice sacrifice battery swappability to reduce weight). That battery is almost alarmingly small at first glance – and, at 100mAh, it is small – but Logitech made sure that power management here is smart enough to conserve energy whenever possible and that the Mobi Fold completely powers off when folded, so it can’t be accidentally powered on while in that state.

The company claims its latest mouse can work for more than 20 days away from a power source and, in your truly’s testing, that tracks: he still hasn’t charged it a second time after the initial one. The USB-C port in use here obviously makes charging very easy – any charger and cable yours truly tried worked without issues – and pairing the Mobi Fold with up to three devices is done through Bluetooth, so it’s as fast and reliable as expected. It does offer Logi Bolt compatibility for people who would rather pair it through Logitech’s advanced USB receiver (sold separately), but most consumers won’t really need that in everyday use.

Does a wireless mouse actually need to be that small, though?

So it’s small, light, solidly built and ultra-convenient to carry around. Battery life is not an issue too. What’s it like actually using the Mobi Fold for work, though, for several hours at a time? Well, Logitech is perfectly honest: it’s all about performance and comfort compared to what a laptop trackpad can provide. A good wireless mouse will always be faster and more accurate at pointing than even the best trackpad out there, so the Mobi Fold does help getting things done, especially given how well it moves and tracks on almost any kind of surface.

The Mobi Fold is not just good “for a specialized mouse”: its four buttons – two main, two on the “scroll wheel” surface – feel right when pressed while making no sound, the aforementioned “scroll wheel” touch panel takes some getting used to but works well, the resolution of its sensor is more than high enough for productivity tasks. The only two things about it that some consumers may object to: its size and ergonomics. When in curved mode the Mobi Fold is quite small (it will practically disappear in the palms of people with big hands) and it obviously can’t be as comfortable to hold as bigger wireless mice to which a hand can wrap around in a more natural way.

After using the Mobi Fold for the last two weeks, it almost feels like it was designed to solve an overly specific problem. Most people carrying a usual laptop bag around can easily store a proper, high-performance wireless mouse in that, like Logitech’s own excellent MX Anywhere 3S. Yes, it’s a bit bigger but a lot more ergonomic in everyday use. It’s only people that carry a laptop in a sleeve or just hold it in their hands – no charger, no bag – that will actually need a mouse tiny enough to fit in a pocket or a very small purse. People who use tablets with keyboards also come to mind, but would they prefer charging two peripherals just to use their tablet as a laptop?

In any case, Logitech was right to bring the Mobi Fold to market because there must still be a not-insignificant number of people who just need a mouse that’s as easy to carry as anyone can reasonably expect (e.g. on trips) or one they can have on them at all times when moving around indoors with their laptops (e.g. during meetings and presentations). Plus, let’s be honest here, it just looks cool and highly fashionable in the hands of ladies who would prefer something classy and visually interesting over a traditionally-shaped wireless mouse – even if they have to part with $79.99 for the privilege. It comes in lilac, off-white, graphite and sand.

Logitech has also unveiled Spotlight 2, its latest take on the advanced digital pointing devices many pros use for presentations and the like. It’s a well-designed, well-built, surprisingly light presenter that sports an impressively effective laser pointer and “previous/next” buttons, connects to computers or tablets via Bluetooth and works anywhere within a 30m range. This model incorporates haptic feedback that takes the guesswork out of highlighting, as well as a programmable side button for assigning useful shortcuts and other actions through the familiar Logi Options+ software. It’s out now in black, sand, light lilac and graphite for $129.99.