Apple's next Magic Mouse could include a multi-touch display

124»

Comments

  • Reply 61 of 63
    sequitursequitur Posts: 1,910member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bugsnw View Post


    Throw me in with this camp. So far, Apple has not paid as much attention to the tactile experience of using their mice. Even the keyboard has received much more attention and yet it's the mouse that our hands caress the surface of.



    I currently use the logitech 7+ button, metal scroll wheel wonders. I like real buttons that give haptic feedback by clicking when pressed. I love that spinning flywheel. It feels substantial and fun to use. They even put a strip of rubber on it for traction. And somehow the logitech mice barely draw juice from the batteries. They last a looong time. No wireless issues here.

    .



    I have used the Logitech 7+ button mouse for quite a few years and couldn't imagine using anything better. However, a number of months ago, I began using the Magic Mouse when I bought a new iMac and then started using the Magic Track Pad in conjunction with the MM - the best of both worlds.



    Recently, I ran out of batteries and had to use the Logitech again. BUMMER. Clumsy. CLUMSY.



    I couldn't wait to get back to the units that you say, "our hands caress the surface of". For me, it is far more intuitive and easier to use than mechanical buttons and wheel. I hadn't realized I was so in tune with the touch surface.



    No more buttons and wheels for me. I made sure I'd never run out of batteries anymore; I bought Sanyo long life, long shelf life Eneloop rechargeable batteries; they're great. Costco sells them cheaper than elsewhere. I believe they are what Apple sells - for a higher price.



    I have one problem with the MTP. I don't always get the rhythm of the double tap to grab an item. If I have to do that frequently, I revert to the MM; otherwise, the MTP is perfect - in my estimation.

    The saying that 'if someone doesn't prefer the Mac, they haven't used it' or at least long enough. That holds true with the MTP and MM.



    Use the Mac (MTP & MM), and you'll never go back. I certainly won't!!!!
  • Reply 62 of 63
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    Apple has shown interest in adding a display to its multi-touch Magic Mouse, adding interactivity and functionality to the wireless mouse for its Mac line of computers.



    The new Magic Mouse was revealed this week in a patent application published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office entitled "Computer Input Device Including a Display Device." Discovered by AppleInsider, it shows a mouse with a display on top that would be able to display information or allow contextual input options.



    Apple's filing notes that the usability of a computer might become easier through input devices that are "more communicative" to the user. It also notes that the addition of a screen could make a device more "aesthetically pleasing," by allowing users to change the look of it by customizing what is displayed on the screen.



    The proposed invention would provide "observable data" to a user through the input device itself. The image could even be displayed on the back of a curved surface, like a mouse, by projecting the image onto an outer surface of "collimated glass."



    The display on the mouse would change according to what the user may be doing on their Mac. As an example, the application describes displaying a number of icons for quickly selectable options when a user is running Apple's Pages word processing application. Switching over to the spreadsheet software Numbers would reconfigure the buttons on the screen to allow for commands in that respective application.







    In another example, the mouse displays a virtual depiction of a traditional number pad, commonly found on a full-size keyboard. With this, users could quickly input numbers right from their mouse using its touch-sensitive back panel.



    The application notes that the dynamic touch-display input method could be employed on other devices like a keyboard, or even a mobile device like an iPhone or iPod touch.



    In one illustration, an iPhone is shown with the top third of its screen occupied by the handset's traditional applications like SMS, Calendar and Photos. But the bottom two-third of the display are occupied by a trackpad-like area, and below that is a virtual clickable surface for using a cursor to select objects on a traditional computer. The iPhone sketch also lacks a home button on the hardware.







    The patent application revealed this week is credited to Gordie Freeman, Jacob Farkas, and Toby Charles Wood Patterson. Apple first filed for the proposed invention in July of 2009.



    Apple introduced its multi-touch Magic Mouse -- without a display on it, of course -- in 2009. The wireless mouse lacks any physical buttons, but brings multi-touch gestures, such as two-finger scrolling, to the pointer. Previously, those types of gestures were only capable on an iPhone, or a multi-touch trackpad on a MacBook.



    The effort to add multi-touch input to Apple's entire line of products continued in July 2010, when the Magic Trackpad was released. The flat trackpad surface offers input similar to a MacBook on a desktop Mac.



    As for controlling a device with an iPhone, iPod touch or iPad, Apple already allows that with its own free Remote application. That software, available on the App Store, allows iOS users to control their Apple TV wirelessly from anywhere in their home.



    It is better for the answer, Could you pls give more explanation on your needs?
  • Reply 63 of 63
    addaboxaddabox Posts: 12,665member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by julianneqowpn0 View Post


    It is better for the answer, Could you pls give more explanation on your needs?



    Man, these are really getting irritating. Could someone figure out what they are and make them stop?
Sign In or Register to comment.