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Microsoft Touch Mouse gets promised Windows 8 support, works like a Charm
Microsoft vowed that its Touch Mouse would get Windows 8 support in time for the software's big release day, and it's being very true to its word by posting the relevant update with less than a week to go. Mouse and Keyboard Center 2.0 saves time for those not graced with a touchscreen by introducing multi-touch swipes that bring up Windows 8's Charm bar, switch between active apps and invoke Semantic Zoom. Will the Touch Mouse update trick you into thinking you have a Surface? No, but it's certainly much easier on the wallet.
Microsoft details the Touch Mouse's upcoming support for Windows 8 gestures
We already knew that Microsoft would be upgrading its Touch Mouse to support Windows 8 gestures, but the outfit never confirmed which finger movements, exactly, would be built in. Now, Redmond is explaining it all, even though the mouse won't actually get updated until Win8 goes on sale in late October. According to the company, you'll be able to swipe two fingers to the right to toggle between open programs, and two to the left to expose those Charms. Sliding three fingers up and down will allow you to use Semantic Zoom. (Naturally, you'll be able to swipe from side to side to move through the tiles on your Start screen, but you probably already guessed that.) We have a Touch Mouse here at Engadget HQ that we're just itching to update, but until those drivers drop three months from now, it seems we'll just have to find something else to keep us entertained.
Microsoft Touch Mouse to take center stage at UIST Student Innovation Contest
It's August, and that can only mean three things: vacations, back to school shopping, and another UIST Student Innovation Contest. Taking center stage this year is Microsoft's Touch Mouse -- a multitouch gesture-based peripheral that we first saw earlier this year. UIST contestants will have to come up with cool new ways to interact with the mouse, with the winning innovator receiving $1500, and $500 going to the runner-up (trophies are apparently involved, as well). All entries will be demoed on October 17th in Santa Barbara, and the winners will be announced on the following day. Hit the source link for information on registration, or squeeze past the break for a video from UIST chair Kayur Patel, along with a clip on the Touch Mouse.
Best of CES 2011
Maybe, just maybe, you've noticed that Engadget relocated this past week to the City of Sin for CES 2011. Oh yes, we set up camp in a double-wide trailer, liveblogged our hearts out, combed the show floor, and worked our rear ends off to bring you more gadget news than you ever thought possible. It's true, we've written over 720 posts (40 or so about tablets alone!), shot more than 180 videos, and brought you over 350 photo galleries in the last seven days. That's a ton of technology news and products, but naturally, only certain ones have been able to rise above the rest and stick out in our scary collective hive-mind. With that said, we've complied our annual best of list for you, so hit the break and feast your eyes on what are bound to be some of the best products of the new year.
Microsoft Touch Mouse: the history and hands-on
Let's be clear about something: Microsoft's Touch Mouse isn't just another one of Redmond's interesting looking computer peripherals, it's the result of one of the company's well-known research projects. There are lots of concept mice that Microsoft has been toying around with in its labs (one even has a webcam inside), but the Touch Mouse is specifically based on one called the "Cap." Led by Hrvoje Benko, the aim was to put advanced touch capabilities into a mouse that wouldn't require users to adjust their usual pointing and clicking habits. And that's exactly what the $80 Touch Mouse does -- from afar it looks like any old wireless mouse and you can right and left click with no issue, but up close the area covered with small Xs is actually made of a matrix of capacitive touch electrodes.We caught some time with Benko this afternoon and he spilled all about the mouse and also gave us a lengthy lesson on the touch and gesture capabilities. We have to say there are lots of gestures, and if you're coming from using Apple's Magic Mouse or touchpads it could be a bit confusing, but there are some very unique shortcuts, including the ability to just swipe a thumb to move you backwards and forwards and minimize windows by swiping two fingers down. As for the actual hardware, it really feels like any other mouse, but we do have to say that the smooth plastic coating feels very nice on the fingers. We could go on and on, or we could just show you how it's all done in the video below. Oh, and also don't forget to check out some pictures of the original Cap mouse in the gallery below.%Gallery-113332%
Microsoft Touch Mouse unveiled, available for $80 in June
No, that's not Microsoft's Arc Touch mouse, it's just the Touch Mouse. Confusing, we know, but this one is more than just a mouse with a touch strip -- the entire top of it consists of a "matrix of capacitive touch-sensing electrodes," and naturally, it supports different multittouch gestures. Based on Microsoft Research concepts, the device will support a slew of gestures, including flicks, pinch-to-zoom, and panning. That all is best seen in the video below, but the sleek black mouse also packs Microsoft's BlueTrack technology, so it should work on carpets, wood, etc. Like most other 2.4GHz mice out there it has a small USB receiver -- sorry, no Bluetooth here. Undoubtedly, it looks pretty sexy, but according to the press release after the break it won't be available until June for $79.95. Updated: Microsoft has launched its Touch Mouse landing page and the mouse is up for pre-order now at Amazon. We'd wait for our hands-on impressions before pulling out the plastic, but that's just us. Update 2: We're back again. The Windows Team Blog has some more information on the gestures. We also stole a few of their pictures and put them in the gallery below. %Gallery-112891%
