Every once in a while Microsoft delivers what the masses are looking for and its new BlueTrack mice may be a case in point. The company promises that its new BlueTrack mice will work on almost any surface by combining laser and optical technology.

For mobile workers who frequently find themselves using unconventional work surfaces, this could be a boon to productivity. The BlueTrack mice are available in a couple of different form factors and both of them are wireless. In typical Microsoft fashion the company is staying the course with its established Explorer brand.

The normally sized BlueTrack Explorer mouse retails for just under $100 while the mini BlueTrack Explorer will sell for about $80 according to a company press release.

Glass tabletops, granite, and some polished woods generally seem to cause trouble for existing laser and optical mice so Microsoft seems to be filling the needs of a large segment of business users.

Mark DePue, platforms engineering manager at Microsoft says:

Research shows that people aren’t sitting at a desk all day, but they’ve gone mobile. In fact, 72 percent of PCs sold are notebook PCs, and consumers need a mouse that can go with them anywhere. BlueTrack Technology excels in areas where optical and laser technologies were falling short. Laser mice, for example, have a difficult time working on some common home surfaces, including granite and marble.

This announcement will certainly come as a kick in the pants for Logitech, who has always focused on innovating computer input devices. Typically its products are unique in the way they mold to the user’s hand. But, looking through the products in its Mice and Pointers section online yields a list of products using laser or optical technology exclusively.

It won’t be long before Logitech responds with a leap of its own, but regardless it’s good to see new competition in this space.

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Entry was posted on Wednesday, September 10th, 2008 at 7:13 pm under Retail, Technology.

Read more entries by Matt Jansen.
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