Microsoft’s Ocean Plastic Mouse focuses on durability, not DPI

Over the years we’ve seen many great mice from Microsoft, but the one it announces today focuses on recycling and durability instead of innovative scroll wheel controls or high-precision DPI. The Ocean Plastic Mouse is remarkable because it has a shell made of 20% recycled ocean plastic and 100% recyclable packaging.

Image: Microsoft

A pledge from Microsoft in August 2020 said it would pursue a goal of zero waste operations by 2030 and end the use of single-use plastics in packaging by 2025. The small box in which this mouse is delivered, in recyclable wood and sugar cane fibers, represents a step towards this future. Microsoft also mentions a free postal mail program so people can send in their old mice for recycling.

This plastic shell uses resin with recycled materials “made from plastic waste collected from oceans and waterways”. The plastic waste is transformed into granules, and finally, these are mixed with the other materials that make up the shell of this mouse.

Image: Microsoft

To create the resin used in the shell of the Ocean Plastic Mouse, Microsoft has partnered with Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC), a subsidiary of Saudi Aramco. Big Oil’s involvement in a “green” product is more than a whiff of greenwashing, but it’s surprising because the petrochemical industry is responding to the shift to electric vehicles with more emphasis on plastics.

The Ocean Plastic Mouse is available for pre-order starting today for $ 24.99, with Bluetooth Low Energy and Swift Pair wireless connection. Like all Surface gear revealed at the event, it will be available from October 5 in the US.

It promises up to 12 months of battery life from a single AA battery that can be replaced or recharged without destroying everything. Owners can customize its three buttons through the downloadable software in the mouse center and keyboard, while its scroll wheel and sensor technology should be familiar to anyone who has used a Microsoft mouse in the past three. decades.

Image: Microsoft

Related: