Slashdot Mirror
Apple vs. Microsoft Multi-Touch Mouse Comparison
blee37 writes "This is a side-by-side comparison of the Apple and Microsoft multi-touch mice. It includes video demonstrations of using the mice in applications, first-person shooters and 3D manipulation. It also has new photos of the internals of all the mice."
Problem with this, like with many other touch screen like devices, is that you don't get physical feedback when you're clicking or scrolling or doing anything. There's a reason why you actually need to push the mouse button a little bit so it clicks. Not much, but it actually feels like a click. Keyboard presses need to be the same way too - you need the feedback.
Another example is the scroll in mouses. My Logitech MX Revolution mouse has both seamless and non-seamless mode that you can activate for different apps. Seamless mode was activated by default for IE and I had to take it off, because mouse scroll also needs to "tick" and feel back when you're scrolling. The Apple video shows that you can scroll faster by moving your finger rapidly - guess what, you can do that with a normal scroll too, just by rapidly firing the scroller to either direction (the logitech software actually releases the tick for a bit so it works even better)
Other thing to consider is how quickly the touch area gets dirty and less functional. I sometimes like to eat a great three story cheese bacon hamburger filled with majonese, chipotle ketchup and delicious cheese with deep fried french fries, topped with a cold beer and chocolate ice cream with strawberries and chocolate dipping. Lets face it, the touch area is going to get dirty. Will it function the same way after that and can you clean it as easily?
I don't think anyone is denying that Microsoft R&D can churn out some interesting concepts from time to time, but there's a big difference between shipping an actual product with most of the details worked out, and merely mocking up a few prototypes that are nowhere close to being ready for actual sale. I'd be curious to see what prototypes Apple came up with before shipping the Magic Mouse. That'd be a more interesting comparison.
Which multi-touch mouse do you want the most? Or are they all gimmicks?
Nice card-forcing there.
I like Microsoft's basic wheel mouse on Windows and Mac, and HP's 3-button optical mouse on X11.
No, seriously, they post crap like that on the Internet?
This is a comparison of a finished product that is shipping today, against a number of prototypes, none of which you can buy anywhere and most of which you will never be able to buy. Most importantly, none of which are finished and ready for use. We're all living in the tech world. We've all seen at least a hundred videos of prototypes that we were really looking forward to - and the final product either never arrived or wasn't half as good as the demo had led us believe.
Make a comparison when they're both shipping. Everything else is dumb, and creating false expectations.
Assorted stuff I do sometimes: Lemuria.org
So with my current mouse I can rest my finger on the mouse button, and press down when I want to click.
With these new mice, when I want to click I have to lift my finger up from the surface of the mouse and then press down (if the video in the article is indicative of how it functions). I think constantly lifting my finger would become tiring.
From TFA:
...and by "tame" we mean "already living peacefully in people's houses." And by "radical" we mean "awesome in theory."
From TFA:
Ok, can't agree with this one. Since then we've added the scroll wheel, which was a huge improvement in mouse technology. If you don't believe me, try going back to a plain two-button mouse, and then work with a document bigger than your screen. You used to spend your life moving back and forth between the scroll bar and the text. We've also, for the most part, done away with crappy ball mice in favor of the light tracking ones, which eliminated the sticky mouse problem.
Multi-touch may turn out to be a big deal, but it's certainly a stretch to say that mice haven't improved substantially since '68.
MS: displaying prototypes of multi-touch mice. Apple: actually selling one. That right there is sort of a microcosm of the whole industry.
MS: We have some cool ideas, but we're waiting to see what the actual uses and benefits are, in terms of both hardware and available software.
Apple: WE HAVE MULTITOUCH! YOU CAN SWIPE TO SCROLL!!! IT'S WHITE! Our last mouse was perfect, but it sucked. But this one is perfect! BUY IT BUY IT BUY IT!
Have you watched a new user try to figure out one of the new apple trackpads? There is so little feedback that they have a hard time even understanding that there is a button available... and its seriously too bad if they meet up with a highly customized desktop supporting multiple gestures. I've noted that even experienced users need to take some time to figure out a peers configuration (concerning which corners do what).... but can you imagine what will happen as the gestures themselves become more and more customizable and as applications add their own gestures to the mix?
First Apple makes the, reasonable I think, assumption that the person logged in is the one currently at the computer. The guest account (or a new one) is meant for other users and it has a very simple and consistent setup. When you go to configure the gestures they are explained in the preference panel. No doubt gestures will become more configurable but it won't be through Apple but through third party software. It would be out of character for Apple to do anything but offer a basic set of gestures and lock its use down tightly.
The feedback issue is subjective I think. Most gadgets these days are going "touch" and people who have handled something like an iphone would have little difficulty adjusting but I can see how it would be a problem for some.
Magic Mouse -- it doesn't behave the same as a trackpad. In effect having pushed back on movable "mice keyboards" they've also neglected to build a moveable "mice trackpad".
That was never the point. The Magic Mouse is an evolution of the Mighty Mouse, not a trackpad. If it were a trackpad there's be no point in making it movable and you'd end up with something like the Bamboo which looks interesting but is a niche product like trackballs. If you meant moveable as in "wireless" you can get such a thing now by using an app like Touchpad Pro for iphone BTW.
If all else fails, immortality can always be assured by spectacular error.
Do you have to look at your mouse?
For one thing, there's tactile feedback with a mouse. It's pretty substantial. Secondly, yes. I'd argue that you look at your mouse pretty constantly, because most people tend to watch the mouse cursor when they're using the mouse.