Navigating without Trackpad

[im_ashley]

I'm planning on docking the MBP in a vertical station and use it with a external display. I already have a bluetooth mice/keyboard set ready to go for that setup. But I'm so worried that gestures won't be possible with the mice alone. Adding Magic Trackpad to my purchase list will make my 2015 MBP purchase closer to 2016's price. I don't find Magic Trackpad is worth $129.

- Will it be possible to navigate the OS without gestures using just a mice alone?
- If not please recommend any cheap alternative to Magic Trackpad. (I don't really care about the force touch feature).

 

[FreakinEurekan]

Gestures are not possible with mice alone, other than limited gesture support with the Magic Mouse. But gestures are simply shortcuts for other features in macOS - you can definitely perform all the functions in macOS with a mouse.

Personally I do like having the trackpad on my desktop Mac; I'm still using the original Magic Trackpad (the one with two AA batteries) and it's doing a fine job. I like the consistency of moving between the MacBook and iMac without having to change basic things, such as how I move between Spaces. I don't use the force-touch features on my MacBook so I don't miss not having those, and the hassle of swapping out batteries once every few weeks (I use rechargeables) is minor enough. You might check online for the original Trackpad, maybe pick one up used.

 

[QzzB]

I have used a Mac Mini with a windows mouse, as i had it knocking about. The Gestures are useful if you use them, but are not necessary. Anything that can be done using gestures or the trackpad can be done with any mouse using point and click.

 

[im_ashley]

But gestures are simply shortcuts for other features in macOS - you can definitely perform all the functions in macOS with a mouse.

I'm still thinking how these(below) can be done using a mouse. Are there button shortcuts for these actions?

 

[QzzB]

There are also keyboard shortcuts for most of these, such as the expose, navigation centre, etc...

The only thing that can't be done with a keyboard would be zooming, but that can be done using the View menu.

 

[FreakinEurekan]

I'm still thinking how these(below) can be done using a mouse. Are there button shortcuts for these actions?

Definitely, as QzzB shows those have default keyboard actions & are customizable. Some will also work by default with function keys if you're using an Apple wireless or USB keyboard, e.g. F3 for Mission Control and F4 for Launchpad.

For the longest time I was a desktop Mac user with only a mouse, so I used keyboard shortcuts for everything. I used my wife's MacBook Air only occasionally so didn't learn the gestures. Once I got my own MacBook and started working with gestures, I just had to get a Trackpad for the desktop Mac too