Did you know? Your mouse has all sorts of settings.
Most mice today come with companion software that lets you remap buttons, create shortcuts, and even set up different profiles for different tasks. Yet among full-time professionals, only 15%* remap their mouse buttons, even though it only takes a few clicks.
* Based on a pre-screened sample of 150 wireless mouse users who chose their own mouse and use it for more than 20 hours per week.
Dell Technologies offers a range of peripherals alongside a companion app, Dell Display and Peripheral Manager (DDPM), the product this research is designed to inform.
So what’s stopping users from using the software?
Research → Segmentation → Synthesis → Poster & Stakeholder Deck
This project followed a full mixed-methods process: 15 one-on-one interviews, a 152-response behavioral survey, and a read of 654+ customer reviews, to find the gap in user journey and the design opportunities that could improve it.
654 Reviews, One Pattern
15 interviews and a 152-response survey gave us two lenses on the same problem: what people say they want, and what they actually do.
Three patterns stood out:
- A "customization trough": mid-journey users who've tried basic customization are less satisfied than people who never touched the settings at all, or people who went all the way to advanced use
- Mid-career professionals (8–15 years experience) are the most invested in getting their setup right, and the least satisfied with the result
- Screen snip was the single most requested one-button action, across nearly every interview
Customer reviews on Dell website are valuable data that reveal actual user sentiment across different product models.
Customer Review Analysis on two best selling mouse
Setting the Research Lens
15 interviews and a 152-response survey gave us two lenses on the same problem: what people say they want, and what they actually do.
Three patterns stood out:
- A "customization trough": mid-journey users who've tried basic customization are less satisfied than people who never touched the settings at all, or people who went all the way to advanced use
- Mid-career professionals (8–15 years experience) are the most invested in getting their setup right, and the least satisfied with the result
- Screen snip was the single most requested one-button action, across nearly every interview
Interview protocols were tailored for two types of users: advanced customizers and on-the-go users.
A Screener That Needed Three Attempts
Recruiting the right participants from a general panel turned out to be harder than expected. Early screening relied on multiple-choice questions for self-reported qualification, but several participants turned out to lack the hands-on experience the study needed once interviews began.
The fix was to stop taking people's word for it. We added card sorting and think-aloud tasks so participants had to demonstrate familiarity, not just claim it. Of a pre-screened sample of 150 wireless mouse users, only 14.7% who personally selected their own device and used it over 20 hours a week actually qualified.
Making Sense of 167 Professional Voices
15 interviews and a 152-response survey gave us two lenses on the same problem: what people say they want, and what they actually do.
Three patterns stood out:
- A "customization trough": mid-journey users who've tried basic customization are less satisfied than people who never touched the settings at all, or people who went all the way to advanced use
- Mid-career professionals (8–15 years experience) are the most invested in getting their setup right, and the least satisfied with the result
- Screen snip was the single most requested one-button action, across nearly every interview
15 interviews and a 152-response survey gave us two lenses on the same problem: what people say they want, and what they actually do.
Three patterns stood out:
- A "customization trough": mid-journey users who've tried basic customization are less satisfied than people who never touched the settings at all, or people who went all the way to advanced use
- Mid-career professionals (8–15 years experience) are the most invested in getting their setup right, and the least satisfied with the result
- Screen snip was the single most requested one-button action, across nearly every interview
Quantitative patterns across user groups
Interview themes identified through affinity mapping
Finding 1
55% own the buttons but only 15% ever remap them
Most own more functionality than they use. 76% have a clickable scroll wheel and 55% have side buttons, yet only a small portion actively customize them. Even among users who paid over $50, most do not go beyond basic settings. This shows that higher-end hardware does not naturally lead to deeper software engagement.
Finding 2
Transitional users report lower satisfaction
Although overall satisfaction is high, a consistent pattern emerges: intermediate users report lower satisfaction than both beginners and advanced users. Those who only adjust basic settings score lower than users who never customized at all or those who use advanced features. This suggests a clear drop-off point in the user journey.
Finding 3
8-15 year professionals are the active power users
Mid-career professionals (8–15 years) stand out: nearly half have spent over $50 on a mouse and they customize it more actively than any other group. However, they also report the lowest satisfaction overall, suggesting their higher investment and engagement are not fully reflected in their experience.
So, What Would Close the Gap?
Find out the details in the full report.
p.s. Photographs
This project was presented at UT Austin MSIS 2026 Capstone Poster Showcase.
