The MugMouse | Your coffee mug as a mouse

Wednesday, November 08, 2006

In the past we reported about USB gadgets that are able to warm or cool mugs but we never gazed over a great project build just around the mug: the MugMouse.

As its name suggests it is a Mug (one of those used typically for coffee or tea) that once connected to a computer becomes a mouse. This project was created by the interaction designer Louise Wictoria Klinker and can be admired on the lwk.dk website.

Moving it around you move the on screen cursor while pushing the mug toward the desk you simulate a click. The whole bottom side of the MugMouse is in fact a big mouse button so clicking is very intuitive and easy. It works on infrared so essentially like a normal optical mouse. As for the connection to the computer it supports only USB using the cable attached to the mug.

The MugMouse can be very hand for coffee or tea addicts that have little space on their desk and must choose between the mug and the mouse. It can also be used to reduce frenetic activity because to avoid spilling the liquid you have to move the MugMouse slowly (assuming the mug is full).

Kidding aside this can become a real problem if you forget that the mouse is actually a mug too. This is one of the things that can reduce the diffusion of the MugMouse and make it just another great gift idea with limited practical use.

Another problem is that it lacks a feature we are now used to have on our mouse: the scroll wheel. Honestly it’s hard to image how the manufacturer could have added this feature without physically adding a wheel on the MugMouse.