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People with glass desks shouldn’t use mice without a dusty old mousepad–that used to be the rule, at least. Logitech announced two new mice today that work on virtually any surface, even glass. The Performance Mouse MX ($100) and Anywhere Mouse MX ($80) use a new dual-laser technology called DarkField (said in an ominous Dark Knight voice, of course) to track your movements on the shiniest, clear surfaces. Can it be true?

I tested the Performance Mouse MX against the slightly older MX 1100 on PopSci HQ’s lone glass tabletop in reception and, well, she speaks the truth:

The DarkField lasers are able to track movements on virtually any surface because they don’t hunt for the surface itself, but tiny imperfections like scratches and dust. When on a glass surface, the lasers create a map of the table based off the reflections of flecks and dings they see.

Both mice will be available sometime this month, when OCD glass tabletop users can pitch one more piece of clutter from their desktops.

Corinne Iozzio
Corinne Iozzio

Corinne Iozzio is the former Editor-in-Chief of Popular Science. In that role, she oversaw an award-winning crew of science journalists—both editors and writers—who are obsessed with shining a light on the thousands of ways science and technology transform our lives daily. She lives in Washington Heights in New York City (or, as she affectionately refers to it, “Upstate Manhattan”) with her partner, an ever-expanding collection of vintage hand-blown glass, and a talkative tuxedo cat hellbent on knocking it all to pieces.

Computers
Peripherals