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Logitech MX Air (Source: Logitech)
New MX Air works with hand gestures and laser tracking

Logitech today announced its latest MX Air mouse for desk and couch uses. The new rechargeable MX Air sports 2.4 GHz wireless technology with 30 feet of operating range. When placed on a desk, the MX Air uses laser tracking technology to precisely track movements. It functions no differently than other mice on solid surfaces.

When laid back on a couch, the MX Air uses free space motion sensing, allowing users to control systems with hand gestures. The hand motions are translated into various controls including cursor, volume and playback with simple waves and flips of the wrist. Logitech claims the MX Air can also distinguish between intentional and unintentional hand movements.

“The MX Air mouse offers a radically new way for people to control their PC entertainment,” said Rory Dooley, Logitech senior vice president and general manager of the Control Devices business unit. “It’s for any of the millions of people using the Internet to browse and watch videos on sites such as YouTube or Grouper. And it’s for people with a living-room computer or media PC who want to navigate their media content on their terms.”

Logitech does away with scroll wheels on the MX Air. Instead of a traditional scroll wheel, the MX Air features a touch-sensitive scroll panel. The panel features inertial scrolling with a finger swipe of the surface. The inertial scrolling mechanism can detect the speed of the finger swipe – an evolved version of the MX Revolution free-spinning scroll wheel.

Expect the MX Air to arrive in retail next month with list pricing at $149.

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gyration?
By jkresh on 7/12/2007 3:13:58 PM , Rating: 3
This doesn't seem to be that different or that much of an improvement over http://www.gyration.com/en-US products (I use one of their mice with my htpc and it works pretty well, though I don't think I would want to play an fps with it).




RE: gyration?
By Anh Huynh on 7/12/2007 4:41:15 PM , Rating: 2
I think the benefit of the MX Air, is the ability to use it while at your desk and just get up and sit on the couch. Just have a single device that can do both instead of having two separate setups.


RE: gyration?
By jkresh on 7/12/2007 4:44:17 PM , Rating: 2
actually my gyration mouse also has an optical tracking system and works fine at a desk as well. Some people using my htpc use it in the air, others use it as an optical mouse on one of the arms of the chairs.


RE: gyration?
By Anh Huynh on 7/12/2007 5:08:30 PM , Rating: 4
Well then....it eerrm..looks good and matches the Di Nuvo Edge keyboard? :-p


RE: gyration?
By AsicsNow on 7/13/2007 8:29:27 AM , Rating: 2
No, the advantage is its made by logitech duh. ;)


Now honestly.......
By marvdmartian on 7/12/2007 3:49:44 PM , Rating: 1
.....when you guys read "hand gesture mouse", you initially thought the same thing I did, didn't you?

"Hand gesture mouse? Will it work even when I make rude hand gestures???" ;)




RE: Now honestly.......
By lumbergeek on 7/12/2007 4:17:57 PM , Rating: 2
Actually, I was wondering if this was Logitech's way of making a rude hand gesture at me! And at the price they want for it, I'm now convinced I was right.


RE: Now honestly.......
By dajeepster on 7/12/2007 4:25:09 PM , Rating: 2
whew!!... for a second there, I thought you were going to refer to pron :D


Harmony
By TimberJon on 7/12/2007 2:25:32 PM , Rating: 2
Next step is the wireless rechargeable harmony with 1.5x2" display, that can port text messaging from your PC and support movement and voice commands. THAR be a remote control. Other than this latest product from Logi, I don't see how you could make a mouse much more useful.

And im very against taking my mouse away from the PC, what if it disappears?




RE: Harmony
By omnicronx on 7/12/2007 2:32:32 PM , Rating: 2
all life will end as we know it!
the sky's will fall
it will rain all day
the dinosaurs will return!

and stupid people (me) who make comments like this will rule the world!!!


I'm tired just of looking at it
By thartist on 7/12/2007 2:35:47 PM , Rating: 2
Nice ...gadget, but i guess it is the most anti-comfortable thing to have your arm/hand permanently raised for as long as you are working.

A "document typer" at an office or home wouldn't need such a sofistication and a gamer would hardly accomplish any precision task, and for the matter, anything else can be done with more control with a mouse...

Imagine a gamer playing an fps, zapping with its finger in the air to make some headshots! LOL! ;)




By omnicronx on 7/12/2007 2:39:19 PM , Rating: 2
i dont think you need your arm raised, i think its just a general purpose mouse to be used anywhere not on a desk (well the sensor portion as it includes a laser for desk use), whether it be in mid air, sitting on the couch, or sideways on your chest.. you get the point ;)


Cool
By gigahertz20 on 7/12/2007 2:02:30 PM , Rating: 2
Looks pretty awesome, it sort of looks uncomfortable though to use, but who knows until you actually use it. What breaks the deal though is the $150 price tag....damn, that is one expensive mouse, but I'm sure there will be plenty of people who buy it, the same people who buy 8800 Ultras and 1KW power supplies.




RE: Cool
By sirius4k on 7/13/2007 2:17:31 AM , Rating: 1
My Razer Copperhead cost a lil more when I bought it.. So I don't think it's expensive ( and I'm not someone who could afford stuff like 8800 ULTRAs and 1KW PSU ok :) ). If I'd like it, I'd probably buy it. IF ..

But since I'm a gamer and this clearly isn't a gamers mouse, I guess I don't have anything to complain about either :) Looks cinda weird though. But then again.. I've always basically hated the Logitechs mice for their aweful (that's my opinion) design.

Innovation is good.. Even if that tech. has been used decade ago, it's still good that someone else takes it and tries to improve it. And anyway.. on the market.. it doesn't matter who did it first.. what matters, is who will sell it for the End-User most effectively.


Spock!
By ssidbroadcast on 7/12/2007 4:33:01 PM , Rating: 2
Set phasers to 'stun'…




Microsoft Research Soap
By Xerio on 7/12/2007 8:07:03 PM , Rating: 2
Has anyone seen this?

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2147449,00.as...
quote:
With this new-age pointing device, now under development at Microsoft Research, you can navigate your PC using nothing but a bare hand. You can lose the end table and the lap desk. You can even lose the couch and the bed, driving your machine while walking across the room. It's a bit like the Wii remote—only more accurate and far easier to use.


That is what I call kick-butt new technology. Who says Microsoft sucks? Somehow they employ guys that think this stuff up. Patrick Baudisch, a member of the Microsoft Research team thought this up one day, and has posted his thoughts on the project on his website. He even tells you how to make your own. Check it out:
http://www.patrickbaudisch.com/projects/soap/index...




Gyration with hand gestures
By strend on 7/12/2007 8:57:07 PM , Rating: 2
Had a model like this one:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N8...

at work for a good 3 years now. Excellent for presentations. This just looks to be an evolution of sorts, supporting hand gestures and more buttons.

I'll pick one of these up for my HTPC for sure though.




By sammass on 7/14/2007 6:11:33 PM , Rating: 2
Would appreciate a little latitude and good humor as I change the thread a bit. Since this discussion is about a Logitech product, took the chance that someone out there has an opinion. I am a newbie to this website and blog format. If there is a better forum to query, let me know. Any suggestions are appreciated.

I find that having a 10-key pad stuck to the right side of most keyboards available today is a bit of business overkill for a home use KB. I have no need to have a numerical input device past the number keys on a querty layout to surf the 'net. Further, having my arm stuck out further than needed to use the mouse tends to be rather uncomfortable after awhile. I know Logitech makes the deNovo KB's but paying $150-200 retail seems a bit out of line. I'm needing not to make a fashion statement. lol.

So..... finding no easy way to call Logitech and ask the simple quesiton of why the web site doesn't have a wireless 88-key KB (their CS folks were mystified also), I found their product development suggestion form in all it's legal glory. I queried if they had a KB similar to what I would like. The boilerplate form letter back was 'sorry because of blah, blah, blah'. And of course, there was no real answer to my question, just they were not interested in my "invention". :-)

Does anyone know of just a decent wireless 88-key KB available? Would prefer it to be similar feel to a Logitech, but can
adjust. ....well....Sorry, I don't do well with the mouse on the left side.

Thanks for everyone's time and suggestions.




Wii crossover
By SandmanWN on 7/12/07, Rating: -1
RE: Wii crossover
By darkpaw on 7/12/2007 2:10:51 PM , Rating: 3
Funny thing is that it costs 60% what the Wii does though.

Damn and I thought my MX1000 was expensive when I bought it for $60.


RE: Wii crossover
By omnicronx on 7/12/2007 2:28:12 PM , Rating: 2
ya i got the mx5000 keyboard with the mx1000 mouse for 150 when it first came out, but this maybe a bit too much. Looks pretty damn cool though although it does not mention anywhere that it can be used as a pointer like the wii controller, it says it still uses conventional lasers to control the device.
would be kind of cool though for shooter games if you could :)
keyboard one hand, wireless pointer mouse the other!


RE: Wii crossover
By BillyBatson on 7/12/2007 7:13:00 PM , Rating: 2
I have the mx5000 set too and they BLOW! I traded my MS keybaord and MX1000 mouse (not BT) for it and I regret it every day. Worst keybaord/mouse ever made, so many bugs, lag, BT is just not done well. I pray every day that a new mouse and keybaord combo i s released from logitech that is actually worth it and not a budget set so I can impale my keyboard on my fence and shoot the mouse with my BB gun.
Maybe if they add a real nice keyboard to this mouse I will go for it.


RE: Wii crossover
By hadifa on 7/12/2007 7:50:59 PM , Rating: 2
This should be great for presentations.

I remember there was a gyroscopic mouse with similar capabilities.


RE: Wii crossover
By hardwaremister on 7/13/2007 6:14:54 AM , Rating: 2
Well... but for real apps, the wiimote has an absolutely crap precission.
I guess, R&D to achieve PRECISE gestural controller to work as a everyday must have been absolutely inmense.

Anyway, time will tell how well does it perform ;)


RE: Wii crossover
By Xavian on 7/13/2007 6:29:26 AM , Rating: 1
look at this and get back to me:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQeHjQziSzA


RE: Wii crossover
By hardwaremister on 7/13/2007 8:32:39 AM , Rating: 2
Well... just for instance, you need the IR-bar to get the right location of the wiimote, thing not needed with this mouse.
For a second point, theremin-so max/sp ports to the wiimote have shown how little real-world definition the wiimote really has! Nothing comparable to real mouses... i can do way better with a crappy vb app gettin control over my mx1000, and that's the kind of mouse we're comparing this new device to!

I mean the wiimote works, and does it so brilliantly, but don't forget it's a pointer system designed to work for a 480p resolution! You need loads more of definition on the whole sensor&algorithmic armada if you wanna handle accurately a screen resolution like 1080p (like mine) and do things like text pointing, selection and other slow-motion. Yep... and that requiring no skill at all, just like you do with your mouse. Mmmm... wii is good, but is still not there.

At the end, this new product could easily be pure kerfuffle, but logitech normaly tries to preserve the good name of its brand intact as a high-quality thing.

Let's wait and see.


RE: Wii crossover
By Schadenfroh on 7/12/2007 2:28:51 PM , Rating: 2
Actually, Microsoft made a controller similar to the Wii (in that the motion and movement of the controller itself acted as input) for the PC way back in the late 90s.

http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Sidewinder-Freesty...


RE: Wii crossover
By Xavian on 7/12/2007 3:05:02 PM , Rating: 4
doesn't have a pointer though, or rumble, or a speaker, or wireless and isn't Split so you can use both hands.

Infact its not much like the Wii controller at all.


RE: Wii crossover
By Flunk on 7/12/2007 3:53:36 PM , Rating: 3
Not to mention the fact that it was hideously unconfortable to hold and the tilt sensor was so overly sensitive and prone to miscalibrations that it wasn't worth useing.


RE: Wii crossover
By bangmal on 7/12/07, Rating: 0
RE: Wii crossover
By Schadenfroh on 7/13/2007 10:21:54 AM , Rating: 2
You mean a tech product lacks the features of another tech product that is nearly a decade newer? Who would have thought?

If you prefer one handed controls, might I suggest the Atari Le Stick from the early 1980s? It controlled the video games with the movement of your hands.

http://www.puredigitalthought.com/2006/05/09/le-st...


RE: Wii crossover
By bangmal on 7/12/07, Rating: 0
RE: Wii crossover
By invidious on 7/12/2007 2:54:38 PM , Rating: 2
fI used an air mouse back at an old job in our conference/presentation room. It wasnt a hybrid like this, it only functioned in the air. For browsing the PC and the internet it was actually very intuitive. It would be nice to have something like this for a laptop. You could use it as a standard mouse most of the time, then put the laptop on the coffee table and recline back, still able to browse and perform basic tasks.


RE: Wii crossover
By Lightning III on 7/12/2007 3:20:41 PM , Rating: 3
PLEASE

GYRATION

had this when they were still planning the game cube

much less the Wii

this has been in the HTPC world for years

that's like saying apple is the first to put a touch screen on a phone

but I think it is the first combo

regular mouse & air mouse


RE: Wii crossover
By omnicronx on 7/12/07, Rating: -1
RE: Wii crossover
By Anh Huynh on 7/12/2007 3:56:11 PM , Rating: 2
Apple isn't the first company to release a touch screen phone, they have the first multi-touch, but thats it.

I've had two phones in the past that have touch screens -- an iPaq and my current Cingular 8525. They were PDA phones and had touch screens. Apple isn't the first.


RE: Wii crossover
By Flunk on 7/12/2007 4:03:26 PM , Rating: 2
No, they Apple was not the first to put a touchscreen on a phone. The HTC Touch was first: http://www.htc.com/product/03-product_htctouch.htm

Please, no more fanboys.


RE: Wii crossover
By omnicronx on 7/12/07, Rating: -1
RE: Wii crossover
By xti on 7/12/2007 5:58:45 PM , Rating: 5
quote:
I do not know whats worse anyways, a fanboi or an anti-everything-boy,


quote:
i will never own an apple product.. well until apple brainwashes me with one of those fancy commercials and i become apple zealot like the rest of you!!


does not compute...


RE: Wii crossover
By BladeVenom on 7/12/2007 5:03:30 PM , Rating: 2
Motion control goes all the way back to the Atari 2600 Le Stick, it wasn't wireless though.


RE: Wii crossover
By SandmanWN on 7/12/2007 5:19:49 PM , Rating: 1
LOL didn't mean to cause a fanboy fiasco. I mentioned it being the first Wii crossover due to its proximity after the release of the Wii and its controller which have obviously sparked new interest in controller design.

Not to mention it uses motion sensing instead of the old gyros in the controllers some of you pointed out. I have an old airstick joystick that uses one of those old gyros and it was ok to use but rather hard to calibrate and never the most accurate control device.

What I really wanted to comment on is some of the physical interactions this controller might allow in gaming that makes the Wii stand out in the console arena. This mouse might allow for a few interesting games to come to the PC market that have those physical interaction qualities. Hopefully someone with attempt to utilize its features other than a lazy mans way to interact with YouTube and Grouper.


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