The design of Apple’s Magic Mouse continues to be a major complaint among Mac users, a blight on Apple’s otherwise fantastic design choices. The ergonomics are inhuman, it still uses a Lightning charging port (even on the new M3 iMac), and it can’t be charged while being used.
However, an engineer has introduced his design concept that would not only solve the charging issue on the Magic Mouse but also make the design ergonomic and comfortable for natural handling.
Systems engineer and hardware hacker, Ivan Kuleshov recently shared on X (formerly Twitter) his results from rigging Apple’s Magic Mouse to be function-focused from a user standpoint. First, he swapped Apple’s lightning port for a USB-C port, which is likely a savvy move considering the brand has also shifted its iPhone 15 series to USB-C. There’s no telling which accessories might follow to keep up with compatibility in the future.
Kuleshov shifted the port from the underside of the accessory to the front right corner. This would allow for functionality to remain while users charge the peripheral. While it would likely still be a little wonky using the Magic Mouse with a cord attached to its front, the point is that the mouse still works.
How it works pic.twitter.com/77oh7eM9kN
— Ivan Kuleshov (@Merocle) November 16, 2023
Internally, the mouse features a battery that connects directly to the sensors, which allows for charging and functionality at the same time. Additionally, Kuleshov made an ergonomic frame while still using the Apple-branded glass top. He built an extension inside the mouse to enable the click. They vary in black and white, and he also modified them with RGB lighting. Kuleshov said he will soon make the details of his project available on his website and GitHub for anyone who cares to replicate the fix.
Noting that there’s always room for improvement, he hasn’t indicated whether this version includes other Apple features, such as swipe gesture support.
Apple released its latest version of the Magic Mouse in March 2022, retaining the same form factor it introduced in October 2015. With the lightning on the underside of the mouse, you have to turn the mouse upside down to plug it in for charging, leaving it unusable. The Verge referred to this process as “a beetle with its legs in the air.”
Other modders have attempted to create fixes for Apple’s actual mouse without taking it apart, with little success. YouTuber, Matty Benedetto from Unnecessary Inventions attempted to build a contraption that would cradle the Magic Mouse and allow it to connect to a lightning port that was pointing upward. In theory, this would allow the mouse to function and charge at the same time. However, when he plugged the accessory into a laptop for charging it stopped working.
