Choosing a mobile mice for travel requires trading off size and comfort -- squeezing the bulk and weight versus fitting well in your hand for prolonged use (see previous post).
But what if the bulk of the mouse could disappear completely? This is the magic of the MoGo Mouse line from Newton Peripherals -- business-card sized mice so thin that they dock in the PC Card or ExpressCard slot of your laptop.
Just store them away when not in use, as they hibernate and recharge. Then pop them out to get to work -- They connect using Bluetooth wireless, and have a flip-out "kickstand" to lift up the back for a more natural hand position.
The MoGo Mouse line also includes Presenter versions that switch modes to become a wireless control for your PowerPoint presentations.
For laptops with a PC / PCMCIA Card slot, the MoGo Mouse BT is $79, and the MoGo Presenter Mouse PC is $89. The kickstand strip along the back also serves as the power switch.
For laptops with an ExpressCard / 54 slot, the MoGo Media Mouse X54 is $89, with the ability to control iTunes, Windows Media Player and other media players, and the MoGo Presenter Mouse X54 Pro is $89 with a laser pointer.
These charge in 30 minutes, and have a battery life of 8 to 10 hours of use. There's also the MoGo X54 / BT Charging Cables for $19 to connect the cards to a USB port to recharge, and the MoGo Bluetooth USB Adapter for $29 if needed to add Bluetooth to a laptop.
The MoGo Mice are clearly not intended to compete with ergonomically designed desktop mice, with contoured grips and precise button action. But for a credit card design, they are impressively functional, with two buttons and even a center scroll wheel replacement -- a scroll button on the PC card designs (press and hold to scroll by moving the mouse), and a scroll strip on the ExpressCard.
So for minimal weight and no extra bulk, you can carry a mouse and presenter tucked into your laptop, ready to pop out and start scurrying along whenever you need it.
See my Portable Peripherals and Accessories Gallery for more on these and related products.
Find the MoGo Presenter Mouse on Amazon