Smart Mouse with E-Mail and IM Alerts
lilrock writes "CoolTechZone.com takes a look at the world's first smart mouse from Logitech, the MX610, that has e-mail and IM alert buttons. It also has auto turn on/off functionality as well. According to the article, 'All these standard features aside, what has us impressed are the e-mail and IM notification buttons. Though the idea behind them is simple, it's interesting how Logitech comes up with such exclusive features. Basically, you will have to configure the indicators to alert you when you receive an e-mail and/or an IM message from the person of your choice. The buttons will alert you by lighting up, and lead you directly to the message once you press them.' " Because I for one am constantly staring at my mouse when I have a gigantic monitor right in front of me. Cough.
You laugh, but I have a friend that recently bought a new cellphone because the new one "vibrates harder then my last one"
So you know vital details, like you got spam when your screen has blacked out.
I picked up a MX610 to replace a mouse that just didn't meet my needs. Specifically, I wanted a mouse with plenty of programmable buttons that didn't require me to move my hand position.
I'm surprised at how well the blinking catches my attention. When I'm using my laptop in class, a meeting, or the library, audio indicators are out of the question. On-screen indicators are great, but unless they're persistent, I often miss them. The MX610 does a decent job of letting me know I recieved an IM or an e-mail.
The drawback? It's currently exclusive to M$ applications with no mention of further support. I have to use MSN messenger to talk to some of my friends, but I can't stand Outlook. >:(
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/09/08/003425 2&tid=126&tid=99This was reported on /. over three months ago. Nothing to see here... move along..
Having said that, it would make more sense for IM programs to add this functionality.
Gaim has support for "buddy pounces" which allow you to set an action (such as a notification which can be anything from a pop-up window, IM box, and sent message to just a simple sound) for any event (an IM, change in state, even typing) a person on your buddylist triggers. They can also be set to repeat. They can even be used to piss people off by having it send a message to them whenever they start or stop typing. That can get really annoying, believe me.