Microsoft Hardware Unveils Ten New Products

by Marco Chiappetta — Tuesday, September 09, 2008, 02:24 PM EDT

Today, Microsoft Hardware introduced NINE innovative new products – all designed with the theme of “Hardware Anywhere.” It's not just about the office. People are using webcams at the coffee shop down the street and laptops on the kitchen counter, and Microsoft is making that experience easier than ever before.

Leading the new lineup is a groundbreaking new mouse technology: BlueTrack Technology. This new tracking technology – available only from Microsoft – lets consumers use a mouse almost anywhere and work with confidence on more surfaces than ever before. BlueTrack Technology is better than optical, better than laser, and it allows consumers to mouse on virtually any surface – from a granite countertop to an airport bench to the living-room carpet. The new technology debuts in two Microsoft mice: Explorer Mouse and Explorer Mini Mouse.

Microsoft also raises the style stakes with the unveiling of a revolutionary crescent-moon shaped mouse – the Arc Mouse. This new mouse is all about the fashion edge and it brings design to the PC with a unique shape that folds closed to reduce in size by almost half, giving consumers the comfort of a full-sized mouse with the portability of a notebook mouse.

Even Clinton Kelly is a fan of the new Arc Mouse: “Style isn’t just about the clothes you put on your back,” said Clinton Kelly, fashion expert and host of TLC’s hit show “What Not to Wear.” “You have the option to express your personal sense of style in practically every aspect of your life, from home décor to your tech accessories. The Arc Mouse definitely tells the world you’re ahead of the curve, so to speak, and that you want to be surrounded by beautiful things all the time.”

The new lineup also includes:

LifeCam Show & LifeCam VX-5500 – Two stylish webcams that move easily from notebook to desktop.
Video Messages – A new communications service that keeps people connected; it’s like voicemail for your webcam.
Wireless Laser Desktop 6000 – An ultra-thin keyboard with a translucent border and a full-sized, ergonomist approved mouse that includes a snap-in transceiver for perfect portability.
Wireless Mobile Mouse 3000 – A comfortable, ambidextrous mouse offered in glimmering special edition colors.

Tags: Hardware, Microsoft, OS, product, MIC, pro, unveil, AR, icrosoft, Micro

Marco Chiappetta

Marco's interest in computing and technology dates all the way back to his early childhood. Even before being exposed to the Commodore P.E.T. and later the Commodore 64 in the early ‘80s, he was interested in electricity and electronics, and he still has the modded AFX cars and shop-worn soldering irons to prove it. Once he got his hands on his own Commodore 64, however, computing became Marco's passion. Throughout his academic and professional lives, Marco has worked with virtually every major platform from the TRS-80 and Amiga, to today's high end, multi-core servers. Over the years, he has worked in many fields related to technology and computing, including system design, assembly and sales, professional quality assurance testing, and technical writing. In addition to being the Managing Editor here at HotHardware for close to 15 years, Marco is also a freelance writer whose work has been published in a number of PC and technology related print publications and he is a regular fixture on HotHardware’s own Two and a Half Geeks webcast. - Contact: marco(at)hothardware(dot)com