Hardware Microsoft Announces Touch Mouse

Microsoft announces the impending launch of its multi-touch Touch Mouse.

http://www.bit-tech.net/news/hardware/2011/01/12/ms-announces-touch-mouse/1

 

I would need to read some reviews first. In fact I'd probably want to test it out to make sure it functioned as it should and was comfortable to use. Sounds interesting though.

 

Err the Mighty mouse had no touch sensitive portion.

The Magic mouse released around a year ago, on the other hand, does.

Bit of a mistake in the article there :/

 

why do Bit-Tech keep saying that the Mighty Mouse is 'Touch-Sensitive'? its touch sensitive in the same way any mouse is... the buttons are clickable and the scroll is done with a small ball... well, at least it was on the one i used (which was a while ago, i'm probably not remembering it properly).

 

Noted and corrected.

 

So... a mouse with no buttons? Breakthrough of the year!!

 

It sounds a lot like the Magic Mouse (which I love to bits). The deal maker or breaker for me would be whether or not it has momentum scrolling though.
it's the feature I miss most abotu normal mice ever since I got used to my Magic Mouse on my mac.

 

Whilst I'm sure some people will love it, I couldn't. Even if it is just the scroll wheel, a clicky one is a must for multiple reasons: switching between tabs for a start, one click=one tab.

And buttons are good: I tend to leave me hand on my mouse and without having to pick my hand up and mess around, I can close windows/tabs, go forwards and backwards and if I didn't want to be able to change the sensitivity I could do a load more.

/me hugs his G5 and MX518

 

not to mention middle mouse button on hyperlink to open in new tab. I use that one a LOT!

otherwise I like the idea in principle

 

anything that brings us closer to space-age input devices must be applauded.

*applauds*

 

I for one, welcome our new input device overlords...

Although Apple got there first, it is a nice device: like the Apple Magic Mouse, only more ergonomic. Big Fail on drivers only being available for Windows 7, though, although I'm sure the hacking community will correct that.

 

I've used my brother's magic mouse - it's horrible for gaming with! Still, I don't think that's the priority for these devices.

 

Touch mice are terrible for gaming. I have a Magic Mouse that sits in a drawer, unused, whilst gaming is done with a Razer Mamba. Apple's new trackpad is great for non-gaming tasks though.

The problem with touch is simply a lack of accuracy. If you're playing a fast-paced game, you frequently end up not making the correct gesture (even for right-click), and scrolling accurately becomes a lot harder. Oh, and then the lack of any other buttons!

 

the magic mouse was a piece of crap...bought one because the logitech I was after was out of stock. big mistake.

a touch sensitive surface isn't useful at all when it sits on something designed to slide around easily, and mice are just the same as keyboards - it's nice to have a tactile border to the button you want to press.

I was coding, so constantly going from two-handed typing to the mouse, and each time I grabbed the mouse the cursor jumped across the screen until I had a grip on the mouse - not annoying once, but multiply it by a thousand times a day. It also forces you to rest your hand on the mouse in an unnatural position due to the fear of the aforementioned nervous cursor.

All this is, is Microsoft ticking a comparison box for a useless device.

 

"Sliding a single finger across the surface of the mouse will enable scrolling, while a thumb-swipe moves backwards or forwards in a web browser. Meanwhile, two finger movements will maximise, minimise, snap and restore windows, and a three-finger swipe enables the user to jump to the desktop."

That sounds very intuitive. I think i like it, but what about left clicking?

 

I think I'd like that, but I hope they produce a wired version.

And I agree it'll be annoying for most FPS, though if the gestures are re-programmable it *might* be as good as a regular programmable buttoned mouse.

 

In the picture, it looks like there is are proper left and right buttons. Unlike the Magic Mouse, where I guess you have to take your fingers off to click?

I'm still waiting for a keyboard with a pointing stick

 

I'd recommend to simply add a Wacom Bamboo Pen&Touch to your mouse and keyboard as this covers all the bases perfectly fine then.

 

So does that mean you have to keep your fingers off of it to avoid clicking buttons? I'll stick with my trackball, thanks.

 

A mouse with a touch sensitive top? I bet that's great for RSI sufferers...

£50 isn't bad for a premium mouse but I bet that $80 will translate to £80