Along with introducing the $399 Surface Go on Monday, Microsoft revealed a new Surface Mobile Mouse you can pre-purchase now for $35. The upcoming peripheral will ship on August 2 in platinum, burgundy, and cobalt blue colors, matching the palette coloring the new Surface Go Signature Type Covers, the Surface Pro Signature Type Covers, and the Surface Pens.
The new Surface-branded peripheral is extremely compact, measuring 1.01 inches at its tallest peak. It’s minimalistic in nature, sporting left- and right-click buttons, a mouse wheel, and a power button that also serves as a pairing button for connecting the mouse to your Surface device. It only connects via Bluetooth so you’re not dealing with annoying wires and dongles.
“New Surface Mobile Mouse features a smooth, sculpted design with a redesigned wheel that fits comfortably in your hand and supports smooth, natural scrolling,” the company says. “What’s more, it works on virtually any surface thanks to built-in BlueTrack technology.”
Microsoft’s BlueTrack technology relies on a blue light source that provides a higher contrast of the surface image, and is four times larger than your typical red LED on other mice. This method is supposedly similar to using ultraviolet light to illuminate details unseen in normal lighting conditions. Backing the blue beam is a high-angle “specular” optic sensor that captures an exact replica of the surface versus blurry images captured by other mice.
Thus, given the mobility-first aspect of the new Surface Go, Microsoft’s new Surface Mobile Mouse is the perfect fit, capable of correctly tracking on most if not all non-liquid surfaces. Customizable features include adjusting the X/Y resolution, reassigning the wheel button, swapping the left- and right-click buttons, and customizing the wheel speed. The mouse requires two AAA batteries that will last up to 12 months of “typical usage.”
Along with the new Surface Mobile Mouse is Microsoft’s new Surface Go Signature Type Cover for $129. Sold in the same three colors along with a fourth black option, it provides a full mechanical keyboard with backlit keys that connects to the Surface Go’s magnetic Type Cover port. It measures just 9.65 inches wide and includes a mechanical click pad.
If you missed the Surface Go announcement, it’s a 10-inch tablet powered by Intel’s seventh-generation Pentium Gold 4415Y processor and Windows 10 in S Mode. For $399, the device ships with 4GB of system memory and 64GB of storage (eMMC). If you need more, there is a $549 model with 8GB of system memory and 128GB of storage (SSD).
According to the specifications, the screen sports an 1,800 x 1,200 resolution, 10-point touch input, a 3:2 aspect ratio, and a 1,500:1 contrast ratio. Other Surface Go ingredients include a 5MP camera on the front, an 8MP camera on the back, a headphone jack, a Micro SD card slot, a headphone jack, one USB-C port, Wireless AC and Bluetooth 4.1 connectivity, and more.
An LTE version of the Surface Go will be made available later this year.
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