mice – Mouses

1985 – Torrington Manager Mouse

The Manager Mouse was released in 1985 by the Torrington Company, which began its business as Excelsior Needle Company in the mid-19th century — an innovative manufacturer of sewing needles. In the more than a century preceding the release of the Manager Mouse, the company had undergone several phases of product expansion into neighboring markets, such as bicycle spokes and…

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1987 – Genius GM-5 mouse

The GM-5 mouse was released by a Taiwanese company KYE Systems (owner of the Genius brand) for use with Commodore 64 computers (the first mass-produced home computers, which were on the market from 1982 to 1992). The mouse can be dated based on KYE Systems advertising that mentions the GM-2 (a mouse produced by Z-Nix in 1986 and sold under…

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1985 – SMC/Contriver Magic Mouse

The Magic Mouse was introduced in 1985. It was sold under that name in versions for the Commodore 64 and BBC Micro computers. A similar model for the Apple II computers, differing in the color of the buttons and the connection port, was sold under the “Graphic Mouse” name. Reviews usually indicate either SMC Supplies or Connexions as the manufacturer…

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1981 – Xerox Alto Optical Mouse

In March 1973, Xerox Corporation announced the Xerox Alto computer, considered the first workstation (or personal computer), as well as the first computer with a graphical user interface. The workstation also came with the first mass-produced mouse in the history of computers, the Xerox Alto Mouse. The original mouse based on two wheels was in several years upgraded and started…

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1989 – Vatek Color-Mouse

The Vatek Color-Mouse was released in 1989 by Vatek USA Inc., a computer hardware distributor incorporated in California the previous year. According to the mouse’s creators, this made Vatek the first company to officially introduce a multi-color mouse to the market. This priority is not indisputable: Hawley Mouse House’s 1982 advertising materials feature a drawing of the Mark II X063X…

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1987 — Microsoft Dove Bar Mouse

The mouse, nicknamed the “Dove Bar Mouse” by users because of the similarly shaped soap bar, went on sale in 1987, becoming the third generation of Microsoft mice. The design was developed by Microsoft in collaboration with Matrix Design (which later merged with Hovey-Kelley, the designers of the Apple Lisa mouse, to become the design company IDEO). The mouse’s production,…

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1985 — Microsoft Gray-eyed Mouse

This mouse, which went on sale in 1985, became a second generation of Microsoft mice. The company simply called its early models “Microsoft mouse”, sometimes also specifying the method of connection to the computer. Therefore, the official name of this one, “Microsoft Serial Mouse”, was rather confusing, and the mouse became known among users as the “Microsoft Gray-Eyed Mouse” (to…

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1984 – Mindset Mouse

Mindset Mouse came bundled with the Mindset personal computer. The Mindset computer was released in 1984 by Mindset Corporation, and was on sale for only a year. In technical terms, it was partially compatible with the IBM PC, based on the Intel 80186 processor and a non-standard graphics subsystem that had enhanced capabilities, including hardware acceleration of some typical graphics…

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1987 – Sharp KI-OM0002CE01 trackball/mouse combo

In 1986, Sharp announced the release of the 16-bit personal computer X68000 for the Japanese market based on the Motorola 68000 processor. The computer went on sale in March 1987. It was positioned as a personal workstation, and immediately attracted attention due to its rich graphics capabilities and audio synthesis (not inferior to the best game consoles of the late…

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1986 – Sunnyline DIGIMOUSE

The Sunnyline Digimouse for IBM-compatible computers with a serial interface is apparently the first mouse released under the Sunnyline brand. Mice under this brand were sold by Sunnyline MultiMedia Products AG in Germany in the late 80s and 90s. Sunnyline did not have its own production and placed orders with other companies on a contract basis. In particular, the creator…

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1985 – Logitech C7 mouse

Logitech C7 mouse was released in 1985. It was the first mouse sold under the Logitech brand, and also its first mouse produced for retail (before that, company was focused on producing mice for OEM supplies). The selling price of the C7 was only $100, which was noticeably cheaper than other optomechanical mice of the time. Apparently this, along with…

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1985 – Siemens PC-D mouse

In 1984, Siemens announced the PC-D personal computer working under MS DOS but not hardware compatible with IBM PC. This computer was based on Intel 80186 processor, had proprietary monochrome graphics adapter with 12-inch display, custom keyboard, and RAM varying from 128 Kb to 1 Mb. Software included MS DOS 2.11 and Windows 1.0 as well as a number of…

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1988 – Mouse Systems M4 PC mouse

The Mouse Systems M4 mouse is a typical manipulator from the Mouse Systems company created by Stephen Kirsch in 1982 to produce the original optical mouse he invented. This model is a representative of the fourth generation (the last and record in terms of the number of copies) of Mouse Systems mice designed by Kirsch. This one is designed to…

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1983 – Sharp MZ-1X10 Mouse

Sharp MZ-1X10 mouse, known to be the the first mouse in Japan, practically at the same time when the Microsoft’s first mouse, known as the “green-eyed mouse” because of its two green buttons. The real manufacturer of both mice was the Japanese company Alps. The MZ-1X10 mouse was intended for use with Sharp MZ-5500 computers, which were based on the…

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1988 – Tandy TRS-80 Deluxe Mouse

Tandy TRS-80 Deluxe Mouse was the second of two mice designed for the RadioShack TRS-80 Color Computer (later renamed to Tandy Color Computer). The Color Computer model 1, released in 1981, was a home computer equipped with a calculator rubber keyboard, 4Kb to 32Kb RAM, 8-bit word length, and used a TV set as a display. Over time, the list…

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1996 – Q500 mouse

The Q500 mouse was produced in South Korea and was (along with the Hi-Bon Optical laser mouse LMOX-2) one of two unusual optical mice with light guides, developed in 1996 by iO TEK. The Q500 mouse probably has the cheapest optical mouse design ever invented. As with the vast majority of early optical mice, this mousepad requires a reflective mesh…

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1996 – Hi-Bon Optical laser mouse LMOX-2

The Hi-Bon Optical laser mouse LMOX-2 was produced in South Korea and was, along with the Q500 mouse, one of two unusual optical mice developed in 1996 by iO TEK that use light fibers. The resolution of this mouse is 450 dpi. The box mentions as a revolutionary feature the absence of a ball and, accordingly, the absence of the…

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1983 — DEC VS10X-EA Mouse

The DEC VS10X-EA mouse was released in 1983, and it is heavily based on the Hawley Mouse House by Jack Hawley, co-designer of the Xerox Alto computer mouse and one of the authors 1973 Xerox patent for a two-wheel tilt mouse. In fact, the DEC VS10X-EA is a modification of the Hawley Mark II X063X Mouse of the same year….

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1992 — IBM PS/2 Track Ball, a trackball/mouse combo

In 1992, IBM released a non-standard flip trackball that could work in two modes: a trackball and a regular mouse. Converting the device from one mode to another is performed by pressing a pair of plastic latches that change the position of the upper – or, depending on the mode of operation, the lower – side of the case. As…

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1998 — Apple Puck Mouse

The Apple USB mouse, often called the “puck” because of its unusual shape, was developed by Apple in 1998. It was the first commercially released Apple mouse with a USB connection rather than the Apple ADB bus. Many reviewers criticized this mouse for its lack of ergonomic design. Unlike most manipulators, this mouse has a round shape, and it also…

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Category: mice

1985 – Torrington Manager Mouse

1987 – Genius GM-5 mouse

1985 – SMC/Contriver Magic Mouse

1981 – Xerox Alto Optical Mouse

1989 – Vatek Color-Mouse

1987 — Microsoft Dove Bar Mouse

1985 — Microsoft Gray-eyed Mouse

1984 – Mindset Mouse

1987 – Sharp KI-OM0002CE01 trackball/mouse combo

1986 – Sunnyline DIGIMOUSE

1985 – Logitech C7 mouse

1985 – Siemens PC-D mouse

1988 – Mouse Systems M4 PC mouse

1983 – Sharp MZ-1X10 Mouse

1988 – Tandy TRS-80 Deluxe Mouse

1996 – Q500 mouse

1996 – Hi-Bon Optical laser mouse LMOX-2

1983 — DEC VS10X-EA Mouse

1992 — IBM PS/2 Track Ball, a trackball/mouse combo

1998 — Apple Puck Mouse