"Slider" mouse aims to replace trackpad

 

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By Stuart Turton

Posted on 4 Mar 2008 at 17:04

A small New Zealand company has reinvented the mouse as it seeks to "abolish the trackpad" on laptops.

Simtrix's Swiftpoint slider device fits between the thumb and forefinger and is held as you would hold a pen.

It's movements are followed by an electromagnetic sensing technology built under the keyboard which allows it to track the mouse vertically as well as horizontally over the keyboard.

This allows the user to either slide the device over the keyboard like a traditional mouse, or wave it in the air. The device can also be flipped onto its side, functioning as a pen for tablet PCs.

Clicks are registered by flicking the slider upwards, something which worked well when we saw it demonstrated on the stand.

The company say that the technology is as accurate as current mice, and that the sensor mat sat beneath the keyboard would make little difference to either bulk or battery life on laptops.

Simtrix does admit, however, that convincing companies to build the slider into their laptops is proving something of a stumbling block as it looks for partners.