Well, there really shouldn’t be any new announcement from Apple that surprises us after they recently said they’d begin using Intel processors in Macintosh computers next year. For Apple followers and Mac addicts, that was the equivalent of a certain very hot place freezing over. Even so, I was caught off guard this morning when I saw this headline on digg: Apple releases multi-button mouse!
Ok, this isn’t the biggest news in the world, but it is somewhat interesting from a tech standpoint. Back in 1984, Apple was the first computer maker to package a mouse with a personal computer, pretty much introducing it to the masses. Since then, the design of Apple mice has changed except for one big exception: there was always just one button. This changes today with the announcement of the Mighty Mouse, Apple’s take on multi-button mice.
If you take a look at the mouse by clicking on that last link, you’ll see a few cool things. First, the thing looks like it’s just one big button, not unlike the current Apple mice. It uses touch sensitive technology to create a few “virtual” buttons that work just like the real things. This feature also allows for 360 degree scrolling without actually moving the mouse. There are also side squeeze buttons and a small button on top that can be programmed to do what you want.
One final thing that is distinctively Apple: The Mighty Mouse has a small built-in speaker to give audio feedback like regular mice once did, such as when clicking buttons and using the scroll wheel. Very cool!