Hardware
My MX518 turns 21 this year. Never opened. Never repaired. Still gaming.
I got this Logitech MX518 for my birthday back in 2005.
At the time it was a relatively expensive mouse, so a group of my friends put their money together to buy it for me as a birthday present. Aaaand 21 years later… it still works.
Never been opened, repaired or had any parts replaced. Ever.
I’ve only cleaned it externally as well as I could over the years and tried to take reasonable care of it. Everything inside is still exactly as it left the factory in 2005.
It has survived several PCs, laptops, countless hours of gaming and probably more clicks than I could ever imagine.
I was living in Romania when I got it. Seven years ago I moved to Vienna, Austria — and of course, the MX518 came with me.
I’m still using it today. PUBG, CS2, whatever I feel like playing.
Lately I’ve been thinking about finally buying a modern gaming mouse. After 21 years, the difference in technology would obviously be huge.
But here’s the problem: I genuinely find it difficult to replace it.
It’s not really just a mouse anymore. It’s been sitting next to basically every computer I’ve owned throughout my adult life.
And somehow… the damn thing still works perfectly. 😂
Maybe one day it deserves a place in a Logitech museum.
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Niiice, it's a very comfy mouse and so sturdy and durable, here is mine after 13 years of heavy usage (thousand hours of gaming and work lol) it's almost like brand new.
it's kind of funny. i wanted one of the 518s when they were out, but i never got one. later when Logitech dropped the 400s, i had the money and bought one, i think they were like maybe $60-80 at the time.
i had it for several years, and i wanted my friend to have a nice mouse, so i gave it to him and figured i'd buy a new one later. i never did though. i've owned many Logitech mice since then, and now i'm kind of wondering if he still has it. gonna have to ask him next time i talk to him.
My g300s and I had to get another one and I hope nothing happens to it because I have never been able to find a mouse with that kind of button layout which is so ridiculously convenient.
its crazy how microsoft legitimately had one of the best and most popular mice ever made and then did absolutely nothing with it. there was about a decade where they could've just released another special edition 1.1/3.0 with a better sensor to rake in the cash but instead they just let it die a slow death to logitech and a million other direct from china companies.
this is nothing new. if you are interested do a quick google search on the Phoebus Cartel, Basically 100 years ago, they had a committee of lightbulb makers promise not to make a lightbulb that lasted over a certain amount of hours. and if one of the companies did make a lightbulb bulb that worked for longer than they agreed on, they were fined.
Phoebus Cartel was made to make more energy efficient light bulbs rather than chasing raw lifespan. The longer the life of a bulb of a specific wattage, the dimmer it will be. Then people upgrade to the next wattage size bulb and consume more power. Multiplied by millions of bulbs on a fledgling electric grid in the 1920s, this was a lot of wasted power, and a seemingly unreliable or incapable grid was bad press for bulb makers or anybody else who sold anything that plugged in.
I see OP's point plastered all over the place as a 'gotcha' all the time. Drives me insane, because the real story is so much more enlightening and an even better point to trash modern corporations. Like yeah, back then, they had the POWER to choose the direction of industry, and they used it for good.
Sooo there are actually legitimate reasons for that. But it’s wayyy too much to explain in a comment. Technology Connections on YouTube has an excellent explanation as to why that decision was made and how it has more to do with brightness and efficiency than planned obsolescence.
The reason why thinner-filament bulbs were promoted is because their lower wattage added less stress to the power grid. Even though they burned out faster, you'd save more money on electricity than the price of a new bulb.
So, there was a purpose behind this, a lot of utility companies made lightbulbs and the longer lasting ones used significantly more power. It wasn't about making people buy more bulbs, in fact, utilities often gave lightbulbs out for free!
People also don't pay for something that lasts longer. If someone won't pay for a product with a lifetime warranty, why make something that lasts that long with a lower margin than the guy who sells cheap garbage. People complain about planned obsolescence and then reward it. It's like when people complain about jobs going overseas, but then buy cheap shit from walmart or complain about lack of good local stores and then buy shit off Amazon because it's cheaper.
Just saw Matag launch a new line... Its like they dusted off the plans for old reliable.. trying to complete with speed queen and getting out of the "sell them a new one every year" idea
I also had two that died. Checking my email I see I ordered the second only two years after the first, so didn't even last amazingly long. I don't think I mistreated them either.
That said I did like them and I still rate some Logitech mice, such as the Pro Superlight I'm using right now. However, I would never go back to a wired mouse.
u/Trendiggityi7-10700 | RTX 4070 | 32GB @ 2933 | MP600 Pro XT 2TBAug 29 '26edited Aug 29 '26
So did I, the wires damaged near where they enter the body of the mouse. I bought it new in 2006 and it failed around 2010. It was a known issue with most wired mice tbf.
I fixed it by hand with a soldering iron and electrical tape and it's lasted another 16 years lol
I've had 3 of these die on me, as well at least 2 MX510. Definitely not alone in that regard, my friends would have to buy new ones every year or two. Either the cables wore out, or the double-click issue would start. They were the most comfortable mouse, and what I was used to, so I just kept buying them. Logitech build quality was just genuinely dogshit back then, but it was affordable and did the job it was supposed to. Currently on year 7 of my G502, and it's the longest lasting mouse I've had by a long margin. From my experience, Logitech stuff has gotten more robust over the years, not worse.
This era of mice had some genuinely bad switches. They would frequently start double clicking out of nowhere 6-12 months in. I replaced a G5, G7, G9, G9x, and a G400 that all had the same double clicking problem.
Bullshit!
I owned like 5 of that mouse and the switches always ended up failing after a couple of years. It's the main reason I won't buy logitech mice anymore.
Logitech never made anything to last. This model had the problem with the switches and the cable IIRC. Every iteration of the model had a flaw and higher price... I've been using the same mouse since the mx500. The mx518 was one of the best still the switches were going to fail and logitech knew it.
Amazing, I've had several over the years and most all of them encountered issues at some point. Mostly the middle click on the scroll wheel and the right click failing after awhile, But it was the only shape I found ergonomic for years. I'm still trying to find a mouse that has that feel.
They're annoying to find now because they got discontinued again but Logitech made a refresh called the MX518 Legendary, and there's also a mouse called the Nixeus Revel Fit that's also discontinued but it sold really poorly so every once in a while they still pop up for sale new.
Wait the only reason I switched was because I discovered the low polling rate was the reason for my lag in pubg like 5 years ago. This was with a 3080 and the latest i9.
Had this one in dark blue for around 10 years. The logo plate disintegrated over time, but also no maintenance on it. Unfortunately switches gave in over time and stopped registering reliably. Still my most reliable mouse and can be used if I have nothing under the hand atm
Exactly, I had the same one for twelve years, only maintenance was replacing the feets. I even padded the buttons to stretch a couple more years out of it 😂
Ayoooo, I've still got one of these in it's original box. Some of the key legends have worn away and the LEDs have gotten rather dim, but it still works.
Funnily enough, I had this paired with an MX518 (and later a G5).
I didn’t believe you until I did my own research. Even after visiting several sites and seeing several photos on eBay listings, it just didn’t make sense to me. Finally, one of the postings explained that it was “clever graphic design” and I saw this settings interface, then I finally became a believer.
https://i.imgur.com/UkI0Hd4.jpeg
It's a weird design, and especially looks weird in photos, but it's actually completely flat and smooth. The "pits" are just part of the pattern design.
Ah yes, classic. The scroll wheel is usually the first thing that breaks. Then after a while, you will get double clicks. Never had this issue back in the day, it's 100% planned obsolescence.
They stopped using the premium switches for a lower tier. However, if you know how to solder they are easily replaceable for the better version. So after the initial repair you can expect a longer life out of the mouse.
You don't even have to solder. The switch has a plastic body with a plastic cap. The cap unclips and you can just bend the copper arm to have more tension again.
The MX518 actually predates Windows Vista by almost two years. This was pure, certified, balls to the wall, Counter-Strike: Source Gameladder 2v2 Windows XP at its finest.
Are you kidding? People said the exact thing about the 80s in the 2000s. Not to mention the 2000s were the start of mass producing landfill tier "tech" on a huge scale
Lol, it wasnt built to last. Its called survivorship bias, as much as I love to partake in the nostalgia, things werent built better in the early 2000s.
You guys are wild. This mouse was great but notorious for breaking. The cable itself. The sensor giving out. Double click issues. This one OP has just happened to last lol.
I have followed the G series religiously since the G5 when I was playing Lineage 2. If you ever upgrade the G502 series is lovely, same as it ever was.
Best Buy had the re-release on sale for $20 back in 2018 or so. I bought like 5 of them to prepare as a lifetime supply. I’m still using the first one I opened and probably didn’t need to stock up lol
Yeah the logo wearing off is basically a rite of passage with these. Mine's a smooth patch now, but the shape and clicks still beat anything I've tried since. Logitech peaked with the 518, honestly.
God I loved that mouse. Ran mine into the ground too, eventually died on me because the rubber of the wire eventually wore away rubbing at the edge of the desk, which, well, I certainly can't fault Logitech for that.
What I CAN fault them for is gradually loosening their quality requirements until I finally gave up on them for other mouse/keyboard companies - after having to replace the G700 twice after it started randomly doubleclicking (twice!), and discovering that they don't make them anymore and I'd have to go to a third-party vendor and pay $200 for another mouse that would inevitably start randomly doubleclicking within 12 months.
Is new Logitech as durable as their old stuff? My dad still has some of their basic mice and keyboards from the 90s and 2000s and they still get the job done
I bought back up mice for mine because I was so sure it was gonna fail me any day now… it Iasted couple more years and I ended up misplacing the back up mouse instead, mx518 just kept going strong lol
GOAT mouse, my original died about 8 years ago after many repairs and 8 was genuinely sad to part with it - tho I am happy with the newer version of it
i'm still using my g5 refresh from 2007. you can still buy different new cables on amazon for like 10 bucks. no soldering needed (but maybe some new skates, which you can also still buy, since the screws are under the skates).
In 2019 i bought a new mx518.
My old mx518 was still very much working flawlessly after 14 years of daily use, but all the text and such had rubbed off so it was starting to look like some sort of hobo mouse.
Anyway, the new mx518 i bought just seven years ago is already falling apart. The cable has torn at both ends.
Using this bad boi myself. Only issues is mousewheel only works like 40% of the time, but I used the side buttons to also function as that, so I can still do things.
Lucky you. Here's mine same 21 y.o. mouse. But I've changed the wire twice the last 10 years of service. And I have to disassemble it once a year to clean the dirt off the scroll-wheel because it stops scrolling. I'm afraid I won't find a modern gaming mouse to replace it, because they are not built to last.
Was my first gaming mouse back in the cs:source days and I haven't found a better shaped mouse since. Using mx518 legendary currently and have these as back up for the apocalypse
My keyboard finally started to get flaky last year. I'd originally gotten it as a totally generic pack-in with a computer I bought in 1995, just shy of 30 years. No Windows key (95 hadn't quite come out yet) and it had needed an AT to ATX adapter for the last 25 of those.
I finally got a nice mechanical as I'd occasionally thought about doing, but it was hard to give up a keyboard that I'd gotten so much use out of.
I think I also have one in the basement that should still work. Bought it together with my first own custom pc to play Battlefield 2 in full details. Awesome time for gaming. It’s still a good mouse but I prefer wireless and lightweight now.
Mine died a few years ago and I bought the rerelease. Very happy with it, still has the same feel and performance. I should have bought 3 to have extra. Best mouse ever. Now if I could only get a new G15 keyboard to replace my aging one...
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