Blog 5 Innovations with a Mouse

So I’m doing this as I write. Maybe I’ll come up with some pretty wacky things.

First Word: MOUSE

I had to clarify that it was a mouse for the computer, not the animal. Words, synonyms, and associations that come to mind: mouse (the animal), technology, cursor, Logitech, laser, wheel, pointer, computers, click, button, skipping, rolling, Microsoft, scrolling, battery, wireless, mouse pad, gaming, word processing…

So you ever stop to think about how much utility the mouse provides us with? I absolutely hate not having a mouse. When I first got my laptop, for a few weeks I did not have a mouse, and it was very irritating. While it might be ok to browse the web or type in Microsoft Word using the touchpad on the laptop, doing anything slightly more advanced like video editing will become very tedious, and gaming will be impossible. And having a good mouse gives you is such a different experience compared to just a so-so one. You have so much control over exactly where you need the cursor to go at the exact moment…something gamers would understand intimately.

Second Word: BEVERAGE

Words, synonyms, and associations that come to mind: Coke, Sprite, Orange Juice, juice, alcohol, water, bottle, can, Dasani, soda, mug, cup, thirst, gulp, quench, Gatorade, chug, cold, ice, hot chocolate, aluminum cans, milk, cartons, Capri Sun, coffee, Starbucks, wine, soy…

I love beverages. Drinks are absolutely amazing, and a meal without them is like a day without the sun. Sometimes, it doesn’t even matter so much how tasty the drink itself is, just the feeling of the cold liquid flowing down your throat is sheer bliss.

I prefer 100% juice drinks over soda, not just for health but I think juices taste spectacular too. But a soda or alcoholic beverage once in a while is refreshing too. The drink I drink most often though is milk. I love milk, and usually anything that goes with it. When I make my coffees, hot chocolate, they’re usually over 50% milk. If I have to go more than two days without milk I get unhappy. The only exception is if I can have a soy drink, which can replace milk for me. I do this when I go to China, where soy drinks are excellent and cheaper than water. I drink milk when I am in the states, because for some reason soy drinks here are quite expensive (relatively).

Combination Ideas:
1. A mouse pad that is see-through and has liquid on the inside.
2. A mouse that is see-through and has liquid on the inside.
3. A mouse pad with beverage pictures on it
4. A mouse with a beverage company design over it; for example instead of a grey mouse it’s a Starbucks mouse pad
5. A cup or mug with the words of a mouse-making company over it, like Logitech
6. A mouse shaped like a wine bottle
7. A digitalized picture of a beverage drawn by a mouse
8. An aluminized-cased mouse, like soda cans.
9. A mouse that has a malleable outer shell, supported by liquid inside
10. A mouse that has a cup attached onto it so you can drink when you are in front of the computer.

To be honest I am very surprised and happy with my ideas. In fact, they all seem like viable product ideas to me, a few of which already are. The first two are just for an aesthetic design. Numbers 3 – 4 I’m sure have been done by companies at some point.

My favorite two are the last two. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a mouse with a malleable outer shell that can custom-fit every person’s hand shape. What if it is supported by one of those gels that can take the shape of a person’s hand when they use the mouse? It might also be more comforting on the hands to hold something soft rather than hard. Wow I actually really like this idea. Any ideas on how I can pitch that idea to Logitech now?

The last one – I like to eat behind/around my laptop. It becomes inconvenient when the cups and bowls start stacking up around my workspace. I know this sounds kind of odd at a first glance, but what if you had a cup that fit over a mouse? It has to be wide and relatively deep so the liquid doesn’t spill all over the place when you move the mouse around. Then you could drink without having another cup on your desk.