Sorry, Microsoft: Haptic mice are a productivity gimmick

The useful part

Instead of serving as the next productivity enhancement, haptic mice feel like more of a convenience rather than a must-have. The Mouse is the most intriguing of the three, since it's specifically designed with new Windows features in mind. In April, I had a chance to try out the new haptics inside the Windows 11 Insider Build 26300.8155, which Microsoft was showing off with a prototype mouse at the time.

How it works

• Some Surface laptops, such as the Surface Laptop Studio 2, have included haptic trackpads for years, as an alternative to the traditional mechanical trackpads that need to be depressed, and whose...
• Haptics, sometimes called force feedback, vibrate and "push back" against your fingers to provide tactile feedback.
• I've always found these trackpads to be particularly useful, as you don't need to "aim" your finger at a portion of the trackpad.
• Mouse — and the Logitech MX Master 4 for the PC and Mac, the ultimate productivity mouse — now support thes...

Example or evidence

• Microsoft today announced a new version of the Surface Mouse, a $79.99 ambidextrous mouse that it launched alongside a new 13-inch Surface Laptop ($1,199) and a 12-inch Surface Pro ($1,149) which include...