The MX Master’s USB dongle is very small and can be misplaced or lost very easily. The good news is that you might be able to continue to use it without a dongle. Let’s get into the details!
The MX Master is a wireless mouse with two different connectivity technologies built into the same dongle. This makes it different from most other Logitech mice.
Let’s get into the solutions – starting with the simplest one first.
Solution 1 – Use Bluetooth
The MX Master is a wireless mouse that uses Bluetooth. In fact that’s the one thing that all the different versions – 1, 2, 2s and 3 and 3s have in common.
If you lose your dongle and have Bluetooth on your laptop, you can still connect to it and work as you would normally.
Most desktop PCs don’t have built-in Bluetooth. In this case you could buy a Bluetooth dongle and get up and running in no time.
There have however been many reports of mouse lag with Bluetooth. And in this case, it may be worthwhile to consider solution 2.
Solution 2 – Purchase a replacement receiver
Despite the fact that the MX Master products use Bluetooth, they also ship with a small USB (type A) receiver that supports Logitech Proprietary wireless standards. In this post we delve into Logitech receivers and what makes each one different.
The important thing is that Logitech USB receivers are easy to replace.
In the case of MX Master products they use either Bolt or Unifying type receivers.
When purchasing a replacement you have to look for the correct one as the two different receiver technologies – namely Bolt and Unifying – are not compatible with each other
The table below show which receiver works with which product.
| Mouse | USB Receiver |
| MX Master | Unifying |
| MX Master 2 | Unifying |
| MX Master 2s | Unifying |
| MX Master 3 | Unifying |
| MX Master 3 for Business | Bolt |
| MX Master 3s | Bolt |
Note that there are two different types of MX Master 3 mouse products. To identify which one you have, turn it upside down. In the case of the MX Master 3 for business the picture below shows what it looks like.
And in the case of the MX Master 3 there’s the familiar Unifying logo as well.
Summary
If you lost the USB dongle receiver for the MX Master 1, 2, 2s or 3 mouse, it’s easy to get a replacement after you identify which one you need. In this post we have identified the different receiver type for each mouse. Alternatively you can simply use Bluetooth and no dongle is required in this case.
