Recently, a few users have noticed how Apple’s new multitouch “Magic Mouse” will disconnect at seemingly random times. Although the the mouse will connect just fine upon boot and is usable for a while, it’s been known to become unresponsive and the “Connection Lost” icon will float at the bottom of the screen.
Per CNET, some users have claimed that just clicking the mice will get them to connect again while others have mentioned tapping it on the case of their desktop computers was how they get it to connect.
This problem appears to be with the mice losing power when movements jar the batteries slightly. In some cases people have been able to cause the mouse to disconnect by holding it up from the trackpad and firmly tapping on the top side of the mouse. This suggests that slight battery movement may cause the mice to lose power, and as such there are a couple of remedies available:
Re-seat the batteries:
If a small misalignment is causing the batteries to easily disconnect, try taking them out and putting them back in. This will exercise the spring mechanisms that hold the batteries in place, and perhaps cause them to apply a better hold on the batteries.Wedge paper under the batteries:
Some people have had success in rolling up a small wad of paper and placing it between the batteries before closing the cover. This will put some additional pressure on the batteries to help secure them in place. If you do this, be sure you do not put so much paper that you warp the battery door.Replace the batteries:
If your batteries are running low, the mouse may start behaving erratically and disconnecting. However, if this is the case the computer should report the battery level as being at critical levels, as long as you have installed the Magic Mouse driver software.
Apple has recently published a new Knowledge Base article that discusses Bluetooth issues, including those that have been occurring with the Magic Mouse. Albeit Bluetooth has proven reliable and spiffy, the article states that there are occurrences of random shut-odds and currently only recommends checking battery levels and hunting down sources of signal interference as possible solutions.
If you guys have seen this on your end or discovered a useful fix of your own, please let us know.
3 replies on “How-To: Work Around Magic Mouse Disconnecting From Bluetooth”
I found that cleaning the battery contacts of both the magic mouse and the batteries themselves has eliminated my disconnect problems. I used a pencil eraser and rubbed the contacts with the eraser, then blew the crumbs out with canned air. Before doing this, I rubbed the pencil eraser on paper to get fresh, clean rubber.
Having problems with my Magic Mouse disconnecting too… and a bit jittery. My daughter took the back cover off and it works just fine. It started acting up a couple days after I got it, thought it was due to booting into 64 bit mode, but that may have been coincidence.
Could it be the hole on the back cover is too small for the optics? Perhaps the cover is blocking the laser pickup. At full battery power the laser might be strong enough to overcome a partially blocked pickup, but as the batteries weaken, the problem would become more pronounced… causing the mouse to disconnect.
Havn’t had the back off long enough to be sure, but this would make sense, right?
I think it’s the mouse software for bluetooth. I have a magic mouse and an older Apple wireless and both of them have had a “signal lost” notice. And, yes, clicking either mouse makes it come back.