Kensington has released a new range of mices with the introduction of the plug and play Pro Fit family of input devices.

In the words of Kensington, the Pro Fit range is "designed to fulfil businesses demand for reliability, performance and comfort".

The Kensington Pro Fit USB/PS2 Wired Full-Size Mouse is a right-handed effort with an optical sensor for ?14.99.

The Kensington Pro Fit Retractable Mobile Mouse instantly retracts its cord that stores inside the body of the mouse and also offers an optical sensor for ?14.99.

The Kensington Pro Fit 2.4 GHz Wireless Full-Size Mouse is another right-hander on offer for ?19.99.

The Kensington Pro Fit 2.4 GHz Wireless Desktop Set is made up of a full-sized keyboard and mouse, said to be able to withstand drops and spills, for ?29.99.

Tags: Hardware Mice Keyboards Kensington

Kensington launches Pro Fit mouse family originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 27 Nov 2009 14:43:58 +0000

American customisation company ColorWare has turned its palette to Apple's new Magic Mouse, offering to transform the input device with a startling range of hues.

The service will see a different colour applied to the top and bottom of the mouse, with glossy or soft-touch finishes available.

If you want to order the whole shebang straight from ColorWare, it'll set you back $99, but those who already have a Magic Mouse to send in will pay just $30.

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Tags: Hardware Mice Apple Magic Mouse ColorWare

Apple Magic Mouse gets coloured in originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 15:03:34 +0000

The humble computer mouse, admittedly not the most exciting piece of tech out there, but pretty essential, unless your an absolute whiz at navigating with the keyboard.

The Microsoft Wireless Mobile Mouse is one such device and is available at Play.com for a pretty reasonable ?24.99. Reviewed in October it was given a price tag of ?34.99 so seeing a third off in just a month seems non too shabby.

The specs include battery life of around 10 months along with a handy indicator so you know when it's time to swap them over, 4-way scrolling and 4 customisable buttons.

The transceiver, which enables the wireless functionality, slots into the mouse for easy transport and as the device comes with Microsoft's BlueTrack tech, it should work effectively on a variety of worktops such as granite, wood or carpet.

There is a full review which goes into a more detail regarding usability and there are a variety of colours to choose from at Play.com, so if you're interested click through on this link which will take you to the deal.

Tags: Hardware Mice And Keyboards Mice Microsoft Microsoft Wireless Mobile Mouse 4000 Play Daily Tech Deal

Daily Tech Deal: Microsoft Wireless Mouse 4000 under £25 originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:00:00 +0000

Razer has announced the new "Imperator" gaming mouse with "contours and grooves specifically crafted to enhance aggressive mousing movements made by gamers".

A right-handed ergonomic mouse aimed at palm and fingertip gamers, Razer promises "your grip stays locked and planted no matter how often you lift and swipe your mouse while playing".

Boasting adjustable side buttons that slide and lock into the "ideal thumb position", the new mouse also gets a 5600dpi Razer Precision 3.5G laser sensor.

Available online now, the Imperator will see a December retail debut for around $80 or 70 euros.

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Tags: Hardware Mice Razer Video Gaming

VIDEO: The Razer Imperator gaming mouse announced originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 17:46:54 +0000

2009 has been something of a glass ceiling for gamers. Yes, the software has continued to come and in more inventive ways than ever, but it's been pretty much the same kinds of consoles available on the shelves. At the same time, at E3 this summer, we saw some of the most ground-breaking and exciting projects for years with motion sensitivity and augmented reality the stars of the show.

Unfortunately, there are no prizes in the Vodafone Pocket-lint Gadget Awards 2009 Best Gaming Hardware category for anything still caught up in the ether. The fact is what we need is feedback from people and that's exactly what we hope you give us in the comments below. Which do you think are the worthy winners?

The Machines

With the major boxes and handhelds still in their place, 2009 was very much a year of upgrades. The bloated PS3 went slim, the Nintendo DS got itself an "i" and the PSP, controversially, ditched its UMD slot favouring digital downloads with the PSP Go. With rumours already of a PSP-4000, you wonder whether that's a move that Sony regrets. Even the new gaming conundrum that is the iPod touch/iPhone only got a minor perk in power and performance with the new iPhone 3.0 software, and 3rd generation and 3GS releases. But, with apps getting all the more sophisticated, it's no longer a platform we can ignore.

Perhaps more interesting on the hardware side was the advance in PC gaming that's once again on the rise owing to a clutch of hugely popular and painfully addictive titles. Asus came out with two turbocharged super-PCs with the W90 and G60 - both featuring over 1GB of memory on the graphics units alone as well as all the usual trimmings. 2009 was also the year that Dell decided to hand Alienware the complete set of keys to its gaming line and brought out both 17 and 15-inch laptops in the familiar sci-fi-look colour schemes, complete with Alien language and more chip ports than you could shake a stick at. Even budget specialist Medion took the time to get involved with the launch of the Erazer. Naturally, it's a lot cheaper than the others, despite impressive specs, but the catch is that she ain't much of a looker.

Game controllers

With the machine manufacturers taking a breather - relatively speaking - it's given the peripheral gang an excellent chance to both catch up and really push themselves to get inventive. Naturally, those unleashing the limitless potential of the Wii have been having a lot of fun. To add to the already brimming closet of unused plastic you can now bag yourself a Wii Bowling Ball, a slightly disturbing baby doll controller for Baby and Me, a series of machine guns - as well as one that transforms into a sawn-off - and some dumbells. Mercifully, there have been some serious technological developments with the Wii Motion Plus improvement to the original WiiMote, as well as the addition of the Jog for Wii controller for fitness fans everywhere.

Probably the most interesting developments in the field have been in the controllers for the software explosion that is still the Rock Band and Guitar Hero games. You no longer have to put up with having Fisher Price-looking toys in your arms when striking out on a solo. Logitech brought out some enviable wireless instruments plus, of course, Harmonix splashed out on making guitars and even a drum kit that ape those of the Fab Four for the release of The Beatles Rock Band. Just a shame we're still waiting on the availability of the Krator Orpheous WG-07. Beyond that, Activision broke the mould with an entirely new device for DJ Hero, however there are very few opinions on just how well that's worked out as yet.

Of course, for Logitech, there's nothing peripheral about peripherals and it wasn't just music games where the company spent some money. Naturally, there's a load of mice and keyboards with their logo stamped on, but the Logitech G27 Racing Wheel and pedals complete with VR3 racer was quite clearly a drool-fest for petrol-head gamers and the G940 Flight Simulator was equally well-received by the specialists.

Last of all was the highly entertaining Novint Falcon gun controller for the PC, riding on the back of the success of games like Left 4 Dead. Anything with a realistic sense of recoil is always guaranteed to get a smile out of gamers.

Keyboards and Mice

Of course, if it's all about PC gaming for you, then there's no more important tools than your keyboard and mouse and, as ever, 2009 has seen advances here too. Whether or not, they help you get more kills is another thing altogether but at least it might make it a little easier to keep up with the pack. Logtiech has been as busy as ever with the highly inventive G19 keypad as well as the full G110 board and the G500 mouse and headset too. Razor has honed in with the RazorNaga MMO mouse with more buttons and shortcuts than ever right where you need them - all very well if you can remember what they're for - and Sidewinder has stuck with wireless and produced the X8 mouse which the company considers to be the fastest in the world.

Audio

Audio is rarely top of most people's lists for gaming, but add the right piece of kit and it can add a profound finish to your experience. If you need to do things on the quiet Verbatim, Sennheiser and Creative have each come up with excellent value solutions at a respective price increase. Whether you're after a heavy sub, some in-ear isolation or on-ear noise cancelling, they represent something for everyone.

Of course, if you're happy to blast the premises, Creative and Logitech have sculpted and tuned several high quality and good looking options for serious desktop power and Altec Lansing have gone and invented something highly unique for the home in the shape of a stage-monitor type speaker for guitar console games. You can even put your foot on it like you're really there having underwear thrown at you. Hello Cleveland!

Displays

Last of all come the screens on which you get to enjoy your interactive entertainment, and 3D has been the new projector in 2009. Yes, the likes of Epson, Optoma and LG are still supplying some wonderful hardware to make your Street Fights 60 inches tall, but ViewSonic, Nvidia and Vuzix are working on the idea of your avatars actually leaping out and punching you in the face. Admittedly, this works with varying degrees of success, depending upon whether you're going for a goggles or traditional monitor solution but it's certainly a serious edge that can add to the fun.

What do you think?

But these are just some of the fantastic choices our readers have had in 2009. What would you like to see held aloft as the winner of Pocket-lint Best Gaming Hardware 2009? What have we missed out? Which are your unsung heroes and of those we've already mentioned, which would get your vote? Let us know in the comments below and you can help our panel decide which make the shortlist of nominees to be announced here on Pocket-lint on 16 November. We'll have all out coverage of the Vodafone Pocket-lint awards 2009 right here. Don't miss a minute of it.

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Related links:

• Feature - Vodafone Pocket-lint Gadget Awards 2009 - games
• Feature - Vodafone Pocket-lint Gadget Awards 2009 - software, services, apps
• Feature - Vodafone Pocket-lint Gadget Awards 2009 - laptops

Tags: Gaming Pocket-lint Gadget Awards 2009 Pocket-lint Awards Features Xbox PlayStation Nintendo PC games Mice And Keyboards Keyboards Mice Speakers PC speakers Logitech

Vodafone Pocket-lint Gadget Awards 2009 - gaming hardware originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:30:00 +0000

A company called WarMouse has seen the problem of trying to remember a million shortcuts in applications like OpenOffice, Photoshop and some video games, and is attempting to solve it by building a slightly ridiculous 18-button mouse with analogue joystick and 512k of onboard memory.

The OOMouse comes with profiles designed specifically for use with the five primary OpenOffice.org applications, as well as a few other apps and games, but the keys are programmable for any app - meaning that you can set them up to do whatever you like. The company is also building up a catalogue of default profiles "for everything from major mainstream applications to obscure DOS abandonware", even offering to create profiles on request.

Warmouse is calling the OOMouse "the complete opposite of Apple's approach", adding "The Magic Mouse has one giant button that can do 10 things, we have 18 buttons that can each do two or more things. And a scroll wheel. And a joystick. And 512k of memory".

And if you're after something like this, but a bit more games-oriented, then you've got the option of the Razer Naga MMO Mouse, or a selection of mice that WarMouse promises it'll be releasing in 2010. We'll keep you posted of that.

In the meantime, the OOMouse works on Linux, Windows and Macs, and costs $75. It'll be available "soon".

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Tags: Hardware Mice And Keyboards Mice OpenOffice

WarMouse offers 18-button OOMouse originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 09 Nov 2009 10:37:29 +0000

Apple has released a software update for its new?Magic Mouse, allowing all Mac users running Leopard and Snow Leopard to use the new mouse even though stock of the new product can't be found in retail stores.

Apple has so far only offered the new touch sensitive mouse to customers who buy its new iMac computer following its announcement over a week ago.

While the company is famous for announcing a product and having it in stores the next, if not same, day Apple stores across the US are still without stock citing that it is "expected soon".

"You can expect once the software hits, the mouse will be available soon after", a store clerk told Pocket-lint in Apple's 5th Avenue store in New York before the software became available for download.

The update, which weighs in at 63.9MB, and 101MB when installed, will allow users of the mouse to scroll vertically and horizontally with a swipe of their finger rather than having to rely on a scroll wheel.

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Tags: Hardware Mice And Keyboards Mice Apple Software updates Magic Mouse

Apple Magic Mouse software released to all originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 29 Oct 2009 05:20:59 +0000

Apple, as predicted, has announced a new mouse today that features the company's multi-touch technology rather than using a scroll wheel.

The new mouse, which for legal reasons has had to drop the "mighty" namesake will be called the Magic Mouse instead.

"Instead of mechanical buttons, scroll wheels or scroll balls, the entire top of the Magic Mouse is a seamless Multi-Touch surface," say Apple.

Magic Mouse comes standard with the new iMac? and will be available as a Mac accessory at just ?55 (inc. VAT).

According to Apple, the Magic Mouse features a seamless touch-sensitive enclosure that allows it to be a single or multi-button mouse with advanced gesture support.

Using intuitive gestures, users can easily scroll through long documents, pan across large images or swipe to move forward or backward through a collection of web pages or photos. Magic Mouse works for left or right handed users and multi-button or gesture commands can be easily configured from within System Preferences.

It will not, it seems, be offered in a wired version, instead with the company opting for a Bluetooth connection to its laptops or desktop models.?

It will be available at the end of October and require users to be running Mac OS X Leopard version 10.5.8 or later.

Tags: Hardware Apple Mice Mice And Keyboards Magic Mouse

Apple Magic Mouse ditches buttons in favour of touch originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:12:59 +0100

Mice have been given access to a first-person-shooter style virtual reality video game that has sparked fears that they may rise up and enslave the human population of the earth.

Just kidding. The real objective behind the study is to have a good look at neurological activity in animals that are moving. Normally it's quite tricky to stick electrodes in the brain of an animal that's running about all over the place. Now the scientists can study real-motion tracking of single neurons.

"The neurons move back and forth while you're trying to measure things", said David Tank, a neuroscientist at Princeton University. "So we developed a way to keep the head fixed in space, but still have mice perform behaviours that are usually studied in mice running through a maze".

The virtual world that the mice are running through was designed in the Quake level editor, but the mice didn't get weapons or ammo - they got little sips of water from a head height water tube instead. We'll stick with Left 4 Dead for now, we think.

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Tags: Software Mice Virtual Reality Gaming Video

VIDEO: Mice get virtual reality video game originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:43:39 +0100