This year, the Microsoft Hardware group celebrates its 30th anniversary of being in the hardware business. It all started back in 1982. In a blog post today, the Microsoft Hardware Team takes a look back at 1982 and reminisces about the year that started it all.
I can’t really reminisce about 1982. I was born in 1983. But I can talk about how much Microsoft Hardware is integrated into how I use my PCs today! Especially their mice and webcams.
Every single mouse, keyboard or webcam I own is from Microsoft Hardware. But things really kicked into high gear (my obsession with Microsoft Hardware that is…) for me however in September of 2010. That’s when we announced the Arc Touch Mouse. The Arc Touch Mouse was the first Microsoft mouse to use the touch scroll strip for easy navigation with haptic feedback (vibration technology that simulates the feel of a traditional scroll wheel). It uses BlueTrack Technology that allows it to be used on virtually any surface. The best part about the Arc Touch Mouse is that you can flatten it to turn the mouse off and slide it in your pocket or messenger bag to take with you on the run.
As of today, I pretty much own every Arc Touch Mouse ever made. Almost.
My collection includes:
- The Sangria Red and Cement Gray editions of the Arc Touch Mouse announced at CES earlier this year.
- The prototype Arc Touch Mouse that is clear.
- An unreleased black Arc Touch Mouse with the same checkered texture seen on the Sangria Red edition Arc Touch Mouse.
- The Limited Edition Artist Series Arc Touch Mouse with a white floral design by the artist Oh Joy.
- The Limited Edition Artist Series Arc Touch Mouse celebrating the Year of the Dragon featuring a design from Shenzhen, China-based artist Paco.
- An unreleased “grey” Arc Touch Mouse.
There is one Arc Touch Mouse I won’t be adding to my collection – an exclusive commemorative special edition Arc Touch Mouse was created specifically to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Microsoft Hardware.
And this Arc Touch Mouse will be one Arc Touch Mouse I won’t be adding to my collection because we’re giving it away on Twitter! The giveaway for this commemorative mouse is dedicated to celebrating the decade in which Microsoft Hardware started – the 1980’s. All you need to do is tweet something you loved about the 80’s with the hashtag #MSHWturns30 to enter in to the contest. The full contest rules can be found here. Good luck! The commemorative 30th Anniversary Arc Touch Mouse comes with a special certificate signed by Young Kim, Senior User Experience Lead for Microsoft Hardware and Brett Kelleran, General Manager for Microsoft Hardware.
There’s nothing like having a flock of mice on your desk, right?
I also make it a point to own Microsoft Hardware’s latest and greatest HD webcam. Today that’s the LifeCam Studio. However, Microsoft Hardware has a fleet of HD webcams from the high-end (LifeCam Studio) to the reasonably priced. Back in March, we announced that all of the currently available HD webcams and headsets from Microsoft Hardware are now Skype Certified. Over the weekend, my dad did a video call from his brand new Nokia Lumia 900 Windows Phone using the Skype app to me on my PC with Skype for Windows and my LifeCam Studio. Video calls are how I stay in touch with my family.
Happy anniversary Microsoft Hardware!