The 8 Different Types Of Computer Mice

The 8 Different Types Of Computer Mice Created By: Loree Ricketts

Optical and Laser Mouses More modern mouse designs use light, in the form of high-resolution LEDs or lasers, to track the movement of the mouse. They've proven more reliable than mechanical mice because of their lack of moving parts to break or need cleaning, and improvements in both the hardware and software have made it possible for mice to be much more accurate and sensitive.

Electromechanical Mouses When the mouse first became an essential accessory in the 1980s, it used a refinement of Engelbart's mechanical mouse. Instead of wheels, the mouse had a heavy rubberized ball which could roll in any direction. Two rollers inside the mouse recorded the ball's motion and transformed it into electrical signals, while a third roller provided tension to keep the ball pressed firmly against the other two.

Specialty Mouses and Mouse-like Devices In some specific situations – while you're at a screen giving a presentation, for example – you may not be able to use your mouse on a flat surface. Manufacturers have evolved various mouse-like devices using accelerometers that can be used in these situations, translating the motions of your arm through the air into movements of your on-screen pointer. Because it's a niche scenario, these aren't widely known or used.

Serial Mouse The IBM PC didn't have a joystick port, but it did have an RS-232C or serial port for communicating with other devices. When the mouse first became mainstream in the 1980s, early models from Microsoft and Mouse Systems were often designed to attach to this port. Serial ports came in 9-pin and 25-pin versions, but a serial mouse would work on either of those connections with an appropriate adapter.

Bus Mouse The problem with connecting through the serial port was that it was often used by other devices, such as external modems. One way around that issue was to use a bus mouse, which came with its own controller card. The card was installed into a slot on the computer's expansion bus – hence the name and then the mouse was plugged into it. These often had a proprietary interface, so they couldn't easily be moved between computers.

PS/2 Mouse When IBM introduced its PS/2 series of personal computers, it introduced a new, standardized port for the keyboard and mouse. These so-called PS/2 ports were small, round connectors, usually color-coded so you knew which device to install where.

USB Mouse When the USB interface was first defined in the 1990s, one of its design goals was to provide a single port that could be used for any peripheral device including a mouse. Any types of mouse that still use a cord typically continue to use a USB connector.

Wireless Mouse Cords can be messy and inconvenient, so wireless mice were an obvious next step. Some conventional designs plug a small wireless dongleinto the USB port and use that to communicate between the mouse and the computer. An alternative approach uses the Bluetooth wireless protocol to communicate between the mouse and the computer. Modern laptops and tablets typically have Bluetooth built in, so a Bluetooth mouse doesn't require a dongle.

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