Microsoft Touch Cover (for Surface)

The Microsoft Touch Cover is perfect for the Surface tablet user that only needs to type some of the time, but it's not cut out for extended keyboard use.

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Microsoft Sculpt Touch Mouse

By Ahmer Kazi

The Microsoft Sculpt Touch Mouse is a compact wireless mouse that connects via Bluetooth and has been designed with the touch-centric tiled user interface of in mind. To that effect, it features a touch-sensitive strip in lieu of a traditional scroll wheel that's capable of horizontal and vertical scrolling as a means of navigating through Microsoft's new operating system. It's also useful for those without Windows 8, as it's compatible with Windows 7 and, lo and behold, Macs. Factor in an ergonomic, ambidextrous design, and you've got a solid choice for a mouse that works for lefties and righties alike.

Design and Features

The Sculpt Touch strikes a nice balance between portability and ergonomic soundness. Measuring 2.56 by 3.76 inches, it's roughly 75 percent the size of a traditional mouse, so while it's not nearly as tiny as the Wedge Touch Mouse, it's still small enough to slip into your pocket or your bag. Unlike other portable mice, like the Targus Ultralife Wireless Mouse , its profile isn't low to the point where it doesn't comfortably fit in the palm of your hand. The plastic chassis is sports a tasteful pewter finish, which is complemented by touches of silver in a strip around the perimeter and the touch-sensitive strip. The only departure from its all-plastic construction is the black rubber material on the sides that serves as a grip. A light directly beneath the touch-sensitive strip, meanwhile, indicates when the battery's running low or when the Sculpt Mobile is in pairing mode. It's no coincidence that the face of the Sculpt Mobile is symmetrical, as its ambidextrously designed to work with right- and left-handed folks alike, unlike, say, the HP Wi-Fi Touch Mouse X7000 , which is geared solely towards righties.

The Sculpt Mobile uses two AA batteries, which Microsoft asserts will last up to nine months. For obvious reasons, we weren't able to independently verify this claim, so we'll have to take it at face value. At any rate, an on/off switch on the underside helps preserve battery life. Alongside the on/off switch are a Bluetooth connection button and two glide pads to ensure smooth movement. The glowing blue light emanating from beneath the Sculpt Mobile signifies Microsoft's BlueTrack technology, which gives the mouse the ability to track movements on a wider range of desk surfaces since its light beam is markedly larger than the laser beam used in standard mice.

Additionally, the Sculpt Mobile is compatible with Bluetooth-equipped Mac computers, wherein its touch-sensitive strip functions as an ordinary scroll wheel would. Given its ambidextrous design and cross-platform capability, it's one of the more versatile mice you'll find in the market. The Sculpt Mobile is covered by a three-year warranty.

Performance

Despite its small size, the Sculpt Mobile fits comfortably in the palm. Moreover, its combination of BlueTrack technology and glide pads made for an exceptionally smooth experience. As is the case with the Wedge Touch Mouse, sliding a finger vertically or horizontally across the touch-sensitive strip, lets one cycle though the tiles on Windows 8 desktop.  A nice touch (no pun intended) is the matter in which the strip simulates the tactile sensation one gets from a typical scroll wheel, as sliding gestures produce a haptic feedback that feels akin to spinning the famed The Price is Right

wheel. Within a program, like Internet Explorer, the touch-sensitive strip allows for horizontal and vertical scrolling, as well as hyper-scrolling, both of which can be stopped simply by a gentle tap on the strip. Additionally, clicking the strip over a link opens it up a new tab.

The Microsoft Sculpt Touch Mouse is a solid mouse in nearly every respect. Its compact size doesn't come at the expense of ergonomic comfort, and its ambidextrous design and ability to work in Windows and Mac operating systems makes it quite a versatile performer. Within Windows 8, it especially shines. That said, however, our current Editors' Choice for touch mice, the Microsoft Touch Mouse , retains its title not only for its full gesture support but also for the fact that it will soon receive a free software update that will make it fully compatible with Windows 8. Users with that mouse, then, should stick with it, and anyone in the market for a new touch-sensitive mouse would likely benefit from its greater functionality.

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Adonit Jot Touch (for iPad)

By Sascha Segan Adonit's Jot

Touch is the most precise pressure-sensitive Apple iPad  stylus on the market, and its delicate precision makes it one of our Editors' Choices for pressure-sensitive iPad style. 

Long, smooth, and elegant, the $99.99 (direct) Jot Touch is also the most expensive of the three styli we tested. At 5-5/8" long, it's a touch shorter than the Jaja, but it's also narrower and lighter. Our model came with a red metal barrel and cylindrical rubberized grip, which houses two slightly balky action buttons. The buttons are usually set to undo and redo functions, but apps can customize them. Remove the screw-off cap and you'll see a clear disc tip, which lets you make very small, precise movements on the screen. Some people have complained the the Jot Touch's disc makes noise against the screen. I didn't find that.

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Nintendo unveils first Wii U touch controller commercial

Nintendo has released their first commercial showing off the Wii U's touch controllers.The GamePad, which features a 6.2-inch touchscreen, is the main selling point of the console, but there has been little in the way of gameplay demos outside of this year's E3.

Nintendo will sell the Wii U Basic and Deluxe bundles on November 18th, with the base model costing $300 and the deluxe edition selling for $350. The base model will include the Wii U console with 8GB memory and the Wii U GamePad in all white. The deluxe edition comes with 32GB and a GamePad charging cradle. Additionally, it will come bundled with the game Nintendo Land and offer digital benefits.

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