CES 2009

Laptop mice are supposed to be smaller than average ones to save space in your bag, but do they have to be so small that only Stuart Little can use one? I'd rather sacrifice a little extra room in my bag for a comfortable mouse, but Jasco offers a peaceful compromise.

The Jasco Convertible Mouse looks similar to other laptop mice; it has a retractable USB cord, contoured buttons, and a small scroll dial, but the real difference is in the top slider that extends out the back to provide extra space for your hand. I tested both sizes and found that the fully extended position feels the most natural and allows for painless movement across the standard laptop screen size. The mouse quickly retracts back into its closed position to fit neatly into your laptop case or carry-on.

Check out the Jasco Convertible Mouse in big box stores now for $19.99.

These two keyboards from the input kings at Adesso combine the functionality of a desktop keyboard with the scrolling power of a laptop touchpad. Both keyboards feature a built-in Cirque two-button touchpad meant to take the place of your mouse and clean up your desktop.

(Credit: Adesso)

While we were a little hesitant to accept a touchpad instead of a point-and-click mouse, the Adesso touchpad is actually very intuitive to use. First, you can easily activate vertical and horizontal scrolling simply by swiping your finger along the edge of the square, and the GlideExtend feature gives you three seconds to reposition your finger for further scrolling once you reach the edge of the pad. We're still not sure if it's a mouse-killer, but it's definitely a nice feature to have in travel.

The WKB-4100 released Thursday here at CES 2009 uses a 2.4GHz RF receiver for completely wireless control. It's a full-size keyboard with Adesso-exclusive membrane switches built right into the keys that provide satisfying tactile feedback and quiet keystrokes across surface.

In addition, MCE buttons up top are designed for quick launching of music, videos, pictures, tv, radio, and DVDs. Finally, the body of the keyboard is angled in a semi-circle with a pad on the bottom for increased comfort while typing.

(Credit: Adesso)

The AKB-420 is Adesso's SlimTouch pro keyboard. It also features the aforementioned touchpad, but only incorporates 87 keys in a mini-layout for saving space on your desktop. We're disappointed to see that it isn't wireless, but the convenient touchpad features and a wrist support for ergonomics, not to mention the sleek silver and black design all make up for the connectivity.

Both keyboards are shipping immediately.