I see it often. Hardworking professionals in cafés, airports, or parks hunched over a laptop while carefully dragging their fingers over their PC’s trackpad to navigate some email, project, or alert that can’t be ignored. They would prefer a mouse to a trackpad, but are reluctant to travel with one.
When you’re on the go, carrying a mouse can seem burdensome or unnecessary. But I’d argue that it’s worth the boost in efficiency and comfort when navigating your computer, tablet,
or phone. For the people who refuse to carry a bulky mouse with them, even when they plan to use their computer away from their desk, I’m glad Logitech launched the Mobi Fold, a foldable, wireless mouse. But I’d still push reluctant mobile mouse users toward something even more comfortable.
Logitech’s Mobi Fold
The
Logitech Mobi Fold released today for $80 folds in half so that it’s easy to carry around. Logitech’s announcement claimed that it found that “while 72 percent of professionals own a mouse, only 26 percent actually use one when working in public places.” The announcement didn’t explain Logitech’s methodology, but it seems that someone at the Swiss company has also grimaced at the awkwardly bent wrist of people using laptop trackpads in public.
Logitech’s foldable mouse can get extremely compact, thanks to its distinct hinge, which is encased in accordion-shaped silicone. The hinge pivots at approximately 130 degrees,
The Verge reported today.
Logitech says the Mobi Fold senses when it’s lifted, at which point its buttons will stop working to avoid accidental inputs while you’re folding it. The mouse’s scroll function, which is provided by a touch panel, and tracking will still work during this time.
The Mobi Fold embraces its bendy nature and, sensibly, automatically turns on when opened up and turns off when it’s folded shut. Long battery life is critical to how travel-friendly a mouse is, and this auto-power feature should help users conserve battery, especially compared to traditional wireless mice. It’s easy to forget to flip a wireless mouse’s power switch before putting it in a bag.
<small>Source: Ars Technica</small>
