Tag Archives | Mouse

Sign of the Times: Logitech Launching a Couch Mouse

While knee-deep in the time suck known as Minecraft, I’ve tried on occasion to play the PC game from the comfort of my couch, laptop resting on the coffee table. Without a mouse pad, it was impossible, and even then I had a hard time laying the pad flat on the fabric.

Enter Logitech’s M515, which in a world of better tech product names might simply be called the Couch Mouse. The M515 has a sealed bottom case that keeps lint out while helping the mouse glide across cushions, blankets and carpets with minimal fuss.

But I don’t think the couch mouse is meant for gamers like me. With Web video growing in popularity, it’s probably intended for folks who want to lean back on the sofa while watching Hulu or Netflix on their laptops and home theater PCs. To that end, the mouse also has a hand sensor, so the cursor won’t slide around as you shift your weight.

It sounds like a neat idea, but I haven’t tried the M515; it’s scheduled for a Europe-first launch in April for 50 pounds, and U.S. launch plans are unclear. Hopefully the mouse’s fabric-friendly features don’t negatively affect performance on other surfaces.

(Semi-related: I’m glad to see Logitech fitting another product with its Unifying receiver, a tiny USB dongle that can read multiple Logitech devices at a time. I use one for my keyboard and mouse at home, and there’s just no going back.)

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Microsoft's Touch Mouse An Idea Two Years Late

Microsoft is certainly promoting its new gesture-enabled mouse with great fanfare, saying it’s the result of two years of research and prototyping. But I honestl can’t tell what separates it– or makes it better–than Apple’s Magic Mouse, released in 2009.

As Seattlepi.com reporter Nick Eaton said earlier today, it seems to be a common theme with Microsoft’s presence at CES this year: a lot of nothing new.

Redmond has apparently been working in its Research labs since 2008 on touch-enabled navigation devices, something Apple has offered to consumers for about as long. The mouse is the combination of work from two divisions within the company.

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Microsoft's Arc Touch Mouse Materializes

I, for one, was a little disappointed when the mystery product Microsoft teased last month turned out to be the Arc Touch, a two-button mouse with a touch-sensitive middle strip. Not that there’s anything wrong with touch-sensitive mouses, but all the hubbub seemed misplaced considering that Apple pulled off the multi-touch mouse a year ago.

Fortunately, touch sensitivity isn’t the really cool thing about Microsoft’s Arc Touch. Its most novel feature is shape-shifting. When in use, the Arc Touch is curved to rest comfortably in the hand, and to turn it off, you just pound the arch into a pancake, so it’s about 0.6 inches thick at its fattest point.

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