Simtrix Slider Mouse Uses Your Keyboard for a Mousepad
The Simtrix Slider joins the list of strange pointing devices like the finger mouse designed for mobile computing. Held between thumb and finger, it's designed to slide right over the keys on your laptop, making the whole keyboard a mousepad. Supposedly this offers efficiency savings, as your hands don't have to dart off to a touchpad or grab a mouse, and Simtrix says it may reduce the risk of RSI. Seems like a good idea, though we wonder how you avoid dt causing typos dçe] by ?- rando,m keypresse;'ss. No idea when you'll see it as a real product. [Simtrix via PCPro]
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@Keebler: I'm with you... what a dumb idea.
hagrun
Actually watching the video from the BBC it doesn't look "that" stupid.... or maybe it does?
[www.bbc.co.uk]
ianmunslow
This makes no sense to me... wouldn't the time savings of "not having to dart off to a touchpad or grab a mouse" be entirely offset by the fact that you have to remove a mouse from your keyboard when you want to type? And if you weren't typing, then why would your hands have to be darting off anywhere anyways?
*confused*
Keebler
@ianmunslow: yeah i think that only looking the video u can get a real idea of this thing. seems quite natural, maybe a lot practice is involved....
breath
@ianmunslow:
Oh man it's WAY smaller that it looks in the picture. I couldn't figure out how it worked until the video. This actually doesn't look like that bad an idea. You do lose your right thumb for typing but I don't think I use it to type anyway (space with left thumb).
N@tedog
Why do you have to use your keyboard? I have a Logitech VX Nano and if I use it on the space to either side of my Vaio's trackpad I can easily reach every inch of the screen without interfering with the keyboard. Hell, I can even use it over the trackpad so it doesn't get in the way of my hands while typing.
twoeightnine
I think I'd have to see this thing in action to fully understand the "savings" they are revering to. I honestly don't think this thing would have ever actually made it past the paper stage into a real object if it was harder to use than a traditional mouse. Harder to GET USED TO maybe.
Maybe I'm wrong here or just don't understand quite how this thing works......
Out2gtcha
I actually like the concept of this quite a bit. I don't think I'd have too much trouble adapting to it, but after using a traditional mouse for almost 20 years now, it would take some adjustment for sure.
The guy using it made it look so natural, which indicates that it's at least possible, but of course it's human nature to resist change whenever possible, so the mouse isn't going to go anywhere anytime soon, I don't think.
tayaya
You could also use one of these if you can't move that far away from a normal mouse.
Alternative devices are definitely needed, not everyone gets to sit behind a desk all day.
skulldriveshaft
I saw this on the stand at CeBit today and it was actually pretty amazing. You do a test with a touch pad and then their swiftpoint and the swiftpoint blows the touch pad out of the water...and I'm a touch pad user! No problem with it pushing buttons on the keyboard either it sits over several keys at once to stop this and there is virtually no downward pressure required to move it around - I actually did the mousing below the key pad but could have done more over the keys if I needed to. My overall rating was: I want one now!!!
exti047