Trying out computer mice in London or Washington, DC

May 18, 2016 3:16 AM

I'm in the market for a new computer mouse, and I want to be able to actually try it out for a few minutes before I buy it, just to make sure it feels comfortable in my hand. I'm currently in London, and I'll be in the Washington, DC area in a few weeks. Is there any store in either city that has a wide variety of mice out of their packages and available for customer use?
posted by yankeefog to Computers & Internet (5 answers total)

Best answer: For DC, will you have access to a car? If so, then your best bet is the Microcenter out in Fairfax. Best Buy tends to keep everything all packaged up so you can't play with it, but Microcenter sometimes has mice out on display. Maybe there are specialty electronics stores within the district that will also be helpful, but I'm not sure.
posted by dis_integration at 5:03 AM on May 18, 2016

Best answer: In a UK city I would head for a John Lewis or PC World, both tend to have the products on display such that you can pick them up.
posted by Ness at 5:40 AM on May 18, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: In my experience, office supply stores like Staples and Office Depot have mice out of the box and on display, tethered so you can't walk out with them. You can get touchy-feely with them. Expect most to be Logitech or Microsoft mice.

Google says there's an Office Depot on Connecticut Ave, just north of Dupont Circle, and Staples stores on L Street and H Street in the District. Metro will get you there.
posted by justcorbly at 5:44 AM on May 18, 2016

Best answer: Micro Center is great. I do not remember how many mice they have out to try—it could be more or less than a typical office store—but the selection overall will be unrivaled. I just wanted to add that a car is not strictly required—while the surroundings are pretty car-centric, it is a very practical one-mile walk from the end of the Orange Line, as well as being adjacent to several bus routes.
posted by musicinmybrain at 6:37 AM on May 18, 2016

Response by poster: Thanks, everybody. Much appreciated!
posted by yankeefog at 2:10 AM on May 19, 2016