Belkin Wireless Optical mouse

I have used the same Belkin mouse for about 3 years now and love it. However, in that time, I've encountered several "quirky" problems, only one of which turned out to be the fault of the mouse itself.

I'll outline some of the problems below and you can try the fixes as you see fit.

* Running XP-SP1, the mouse wouldn't work at all. Uninstalling SP1 fixed the mouse.

* After Installing XP-SP2, the mouse worked fine.

* I had 3 IOGEAR USB hubs go bad after various periods of time which caused intermittent issues  mainly with the mouse at first but later affected other peripherals as well. Belkin and Kensington hubs fixed the problem and continue to work fine today. This problem nearly drove me nuts because the IOGEAR hubs worked O.K. on other computers. The problem turned out to be a software issue between the IOGEAR hub, Windows and Dell combined.

* Try plugging the mouse receiver directly into the computer's USB port and not into a hub.

* Wireless HID's do not work well on or near large metal objects. If you are working on a metal desk or near a metal file cabinet or other metal object, wireless performance can be adversely affected.

* Light colored or reflective surfaces can cause eratic mouse performance as well. Try using the mouse on different surfaces, ie: a mouse pad, a book, a piece of wood, cardboard, cloth, etc.

* The distance between the mouse and the receiver may be too far. 3 feet is the maximum distance under the best conditions for that mouse.

* Wireless signals can be blocked or reflected by seemingly insignificant objects. Even things like a cordless / wireless phone, a pen or a glass of water...virtually any object under the right, (or wrong) conditions can distort the wireless signal. Even the position of your own body relative to your computer can adversely alter a wireless signal. Almost anything can act as a radiating or receiving antenna, thereby altering wireless signals.

* Try a USB extension cable with your mouse receiver. Moving the receiver in slightly different positions can greatly improve wireless reception as well as getting the receiver closer to the mouse itself.

* Other wireless peripheral devices can conflict with your mouse. Try unplugging all other wireless transmitters / devices and plug them back in one at a time to try to isolate a problem device.

* Covering the mouse with too much of your hand also causes poor, intermittent or jerky operation.

* If all else fails, Belkin Mini Optical Mice are covered by a lifetime warranty. I returned my first one after the left click button began to stick. Since I purchased it from Dell, they replaced it for free and didn't even require me to return the old one resulting in no shipping cost! After receiving the replacement, I noticed that the new mouse had significantly better reception and range compared to the first and is still working great after nearly two years.

* Keep in mind that possibly only one or several of the above mentioned items acting together can be causing your problem so be diligent and experiment.  

Thanks for the reply - a lot of options to try. I had shifted the USB port and found a minor improvement, but solved the problem by removing the mousepad completely (shiny surface), and using the optical mouse directly on my desktop. I've been used to a mousepad as my previous wireless mouse (not optical) worked best with a mousepad.

Again thanks!