Laptops with their trackpads have conquered the world these days but there some people who still use desktop computers with the mouse. The way we use the mouse has not changed much since its conception but when it comes to design and style, there are massive upgrades everywhere.

If you're into gadgets and innovations of any kind, you'll enjoy viewing today's collection of mouse designs. Industrial designers do their best to design mice for playing games or comfortable everyday usage – they also make them look really cool.

Recommended Reading: Unusual Computer Mice You Probably Haven’t Seen Before

Some of these mice are just concepts, while others are already available for sale.

VF Portable Mouse by Jet Ong

This mouse design is just a concept, but the stylish and sleek concave back and the white-and-red combination will make this mouse a delightful addition to the workdesk.

GoodMood Mouse for Microsoft by Evgeni Leonov

In addition to eco-friendly materials and an ergonomic design, this mouse is equipped with an Activity Sensor. When you spend more than an hour on it, the mouse sends a vibration signal to your arm to tell you to take a break.

Wooden mouse by Alest Rukov

This mouse is an alternative option in a greener sense. The main goal behind this product is to get the maximum out of natural materials and extend lifetime warranty.

Woody | PC Mouse by Joana Ferreira do Amaral

This mouse design is based on the tree leaf form. Plus, it is made from organic materials and serves as a great example of biological design.

Microsoft Arc Touch Mouse by Donn Koh

Microsoft found a way to get a mouse to flatten for travel and storage, while being ergonomically shaped for use. It was engineered with the bend-and-snap principle.

Bean by Rene Lee

Bean is a universal ergonomic mouse. It has only one touch sensitive bottom that clicks on both edges. Its lateral symmetry makes it a comfortable fit for both right and left hand users.

The Mouse by Alex

This mouse has a pure and smooth surface design plus a hollowed out design in the middle to keep it lightweight for constant use.

Express Mouse Limited Edition by Microsoft

Microsoft Express Mouse tracks on almost any surface with BlueTrack technology, works for both right hand and/or left hand, is available in a variety of colors and just looks so cute.

Pearl Mouse by Lee Gicas

This mouse is built to pivot in four directions, left and right, front and back, allowing users to extend, flex, and relax their wrists for minimal fatigue while using the mouse.

CAMEL TOE by Matthieu Nollet

It is still a concept but just look at it!. The lack of the scrolling wheel is replaced by optical detection. Hey, you can dream, right?

Infinity by Pierre Schwenke

Look at the curve on those mice. Check out the design process at the original link for a backstage look into how mice are made.

XEN: faceted mouse design by Zhenhui Ng

From curves to corners, this Xen mouse, had some body work done to give it an alien-version of what a mouse would look like.

Megalan Speed Mouse by Adept and Petya Savova

Fancy sports cars? Then maybe this Megalan Speed Mouse is right up your alley.

Float – Minimal Mouse by Patrick Mulcahy

Material reduction comes to play but not at the expense of ergonomics. The soft touch black with a teal accent makes this one a classy act.

Jailed mouse – PC peripheral by Jang WooSeok

If you hate it that your mouse becomes greasy from extended use, this jailed mouse design keeps the surface dry with steel bars.

Intelligent Design – Titanium mouse by Zlatan Menkovic

This Titanium perfection at your fingertips comes with high quality-plastic resin and a neodymium scroll wheel.

Elecom Egg Mouse

Want more to grip on? The ovoid design here will fit perfectly in your palm. Its variety of colors will also be a great addition to a not so white-and-black workdesk.

Really Cool Washable Mouse from Belkin

Finally, they made a washable, water-resistant mouse that can survive spills on the table and can get back to work after a quick wash under running water.

SWAROVSKI MOUSE by by Jeremy Doherty, Simon Doherty and Dareen Doherty

This mouse design is a play on the Swarovski logo. The body of the Swan becomes the body of the mouse and the two buttons are placed alongside the crystal.

The Flip-Flop Toe Mouse

Here’s one for the foot. It is designed for people with upper limb disabilities and is inspired by flip-flop beach sandals.

Which mouse design do you like best and why? Share your ideas and thoughts in the comment field below.

While handheld devices afford you portability and easy access, when it comes to packing a punch for the long term, the personal computer is still the one to beat. While you can fall back on (more expensive) shelf-ready desktop systems, there is always the option to build your own personal computer.

It’s not only cheaper, but you can probably get better performance out of your machine, as well as make it unique, like an extension of your personality.

(Image Source: Show4Pro)

This article is for those in the midst of building (or considering whether or not to build) their own PC. You will want to read this before you go for your shopping spree. In the spirit of DIY, let’s go through some of the concerns you should be looking into when custom-building your own PC.

Recommended Reading: 50 Greatest Computer Workstation (PC/Mac) Setups

Building A PC

There are plenty of videos out there that will teach you to assemble your own PC. The process lets you get a feel of your machine, and save on labor costs. Plus, it’s also fun to figure out the inner workings of your PC and not depend so much on your know-it-all friends or on tech support.

But when it boils down to the end result, there are a few things you should be considering particular when you are picking out parts to put together.

The basic components you require would be the motherboard, processor, RAM and storage, and the externals: PC case, power supply, monitor and the perpherals (keyboard, mouse, speakers). But you’d probably need more if you will be gaming a lot, or will have to use heavy-duty desktop programs for video editing, design, photography or even programming for the long term.

Here are a few extra things to consider when customizing your PC.

1. Overclocking And Heat Dissipation

Overclocking a processor, graphic card, or RAM makes the component perform faster than the specified settings provided by the manufacturer. Overclockable processors and motherboards are not much more expensive and every dedicated graphic card can (and should) be overclocked.

The catch is: overclocking will release heat, which will wear out components faster. To counter that, you just need to cool your components properly, more on that later.

(Image Source: Overclock.net)

Verdict: Overclocking is not a necessity and you don’t have to add to your budget with expensive RAM or overclockable motherboards and processors if you don’t plan to overclock.

2. Quiet Cooling

Proper cooling can be a contributing factor to the performance and lifespan of your entire PC. You can choose to use air or water to cool your system.

Air-cooling is cheap yet performs well but it is noiser than water-cooling due to the speedy fans. Most processors come with a basic CPU air cooler and fan, but you can switch those out for something bigger with better cooling performance.

(Image Source: skycomp)

In water-cooling, there are still fans at work but they can run slower and thus are quieter. Water-cooling is also slightly more expensive and particularly so if you assemble a custom loop where you have to route tubing through components, pumps and radiators.

Closed-loop solutions can be mounted, the moment they leave the box, so you can opt for those for convenience.

(Image Source: quietpc)

Verdict: Both air- and water-cooling are great solutions. If you don’t plan to overclock, using the air cooler is sufficient. Alternatively, you can also add more fans throughout your case to cool the system down.

3. RAM-ing for Size and Speed

If you foresee the need to run many applications at one time, you need more RAM to do that smoothly. The sweet spot for RAM capacity is 8GB – it also has the best value to performance ratio most average to hardcore users need.

Note that if you’re running minimal apps while surfing or working on a document, the extra RAM mileage won’t show. Generally, high RAM speed matters more to enthusiats or more hardcore users who overclock.

(Image Source: Corsair)

A ‘standard’ speed RAM would be rated for 1600MHz and have a CAS Latency (CL) of 9 – this is more than enough for most users who need not do anything heavier than rendering. Still, it’s best to buy an 8GB kit that includes two 4GB sticks of RAM; 8GB, 1600MHz, CL9 RAM costs $70 – $100.

Verdict: It helps to know what you are building for, to get the best capacity and speed out of your RAM.

4. The Deal With Graphics

If you’ve never dreamt of building a career in gaming and at most will only need to watch YouTube videos, you don’t have to purchase a graphic card. Processors today are equipped with powerful on-board graphics, even allowing smooth gameplay at lower quality graphic settings. But a beastly graphic card will give you better quality and more frames when gaming.

(Image Source: Hardware.Info)

Gamers may know that the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN and the AMD R9-290x are the latest and greatest in the market. The TITAN costs $999 while the R9-290x is launching at the end of October and is supposed to be slightly cheaper. $999 is a whole lot to spend, but if you’re not too fussy with graphics, spending $300-$450 for a GTX 770 or AMD 7970 won’t put your budget in jeopardy.

Verdict: If your budget allows for a beefier graphics card, go for it! Otherwise an upper-mid range one would suffice.

5. Solid State Speeds & Storage

Hard drives today are very affordable and inexpensive, however that isn’t the case for Solid State Drives (SSD). For its higher price, SSDs lets you boot up your machine more quickly, and after a while you would be spoiled with the speed. Read more about this in my previous post on Solid State Drives (SSD) to help you decide.

For items like pictures, movies, documents, and music, you can store them on a hard drive. Hard drives are relatively inexpensive – you can get a 4TB/4000GB hard drive for as low as $169.

Verdict: You can get an SSD for your operating system and core programs you use daily, and a hard drive for everything else.

6. Monitor Size, Resolution & Color

The minimum monitor size and resolution for today’s generation is 22-in, with a 1920×1080 resolution. Monitors with those specifications are so common, they aren’t very expensive anymore. An upgrade from the norm would be 27-in, with 2560×1440 or 4K monitors that have 3840×2160 pixels (priced at $3499).

(Image Source: ASUS 31.5" 4K Monitor)

Another thing worth considering, this time by photographers, designers & video editors, is color calibration and color reproduction of the monitor.

Some of these higher-end monitors are color calibrated out of the factory and/or have deeper black and better color consistency throughout the monitor. DELL’s UltraSharp monitors are a good example, and if you need true colors in your work, you might want to think about investing in one (or two).

Verdict: We can’t help but stare at monitors so it is worth an investment for the long-term. 4K monitors may still prove to be too exclusive and expensive for the most of us. Custom-building a PC of course is about keeping the costs within the budget, so if you find a 27" monitor too big, then opt for a 22" or 24".

7. PC Aesthetics, Design & Size

Bored with the regular casing that makes your computer look like everyone elses? When you customize, you get to choose. We can now go beyond LED strips or fans, and even make it the centerpiece of the room you work or game in. There are also many casing options that come in different sizes and paint jobs. The world is your oyster.

(Image Source: L3p D3sk)

It’s worth noting that the current trend is "going smaller", more precisely the Small Form Factor (SFF) PCs . Don’t judge them by their size as they can still pack a punch. This is due to the advancement in motherboards, allowing zero compromise in its small package.

You might be limited to one (PCIE) expansion slot on an ITX motherboard solely for a graphic card, but that’s essentially all you need.

(Image Source: BitFenix Phenom Mini-ITX)

8. USB Peripherals

The rest of the list is far easier to decide on, particular since we have dedicated full articles about them. From a gamer’s perspective, a higher quality mouse and keyboard gives you a greater user experience. Gaming peripherals are built to be durable and look great as well.

Check these out for ideas:

• 15 PC Keyboards With Cool Design
• 30 Awesome Gaming Devices For PC Gamers
• Unconventional Mice You Just Have To See

9. Sound Devices

The quality of on-board sound cards aren’t a let down, but those who have a keen ear for quality audio might consider a sound card together with a great pair of speakers/headphones.

You might want to look into these sound devices:

• Boombot Rex – Small Ultraportable Speaker Packs A Punch
• Tiptop – A Portable, Bluetooth-Enabled Speaker
• 20 Creative Headphone Designs For Audiophiles

10. Power Consumption

Getting a Gold Certified Power Supply Unit (PSU) makes the system more power efficient. If your system is left on most of the day, investing in one can help you save on energy bills in the long run. A cheaply priced PSU may not be supplying a stable enough electrical current for the components, and may do more harm than good. A Gold PSU, on the other hand, can be pricey, but anything with "rated 80+" on the box is good enough.

Wrap Up

To help you out, here is a great tool to help you virtually put parts together: PCPartPicker. It’ll tell you if the parts are compatible with one another and let you know where you can purchase them. Although the links are mainly for the US only, it’s a great way to find everything you want and need in a PC without burning a hole in your wallet. Good luck, have fun!

We’re back, this time with a gem of a giveaway!

Courtesy of Pixelkit, we have here 25 handpicked flat icons to be given away to hongkiat.com readers. Available in a variety of sizes – from 32×32 to 512×512 – the icons are available in PNG as well as layered PSD files and are scalable vector graphics, easily resizable with no loss in quality, for use.

Download Icon Set

The flat icons in this icon set are available for download in PNG and PSD. Get it in the sizes and formats you need.

PNG	PSD
32×32	All
64×64
128×128
256×256
512×512

For More

This freebie pack is actually part of a larger, full 133-icon set that is available at Pixelkit. If you like what you see, but missed out on our last giveaway, it’s alright, you can still get your access to the full Flat Jewels icon pack plus other resources at just $39 a year.

If you keep up with the development of custom ROMs for Android, you should be familiar with the popular ParanoidAndroid ROM, a custom ROM with many interesting features including the innovative PIE control option. PIE control gives you floating navigation buttons that appear when you swipe from the edge of the screen.

But what if you want these PIE controls without having to flash ParanoidAndroid onto your device? Try LMT Launcher. Read on for a quick guide to getting ParanoidAndroid-style Pie controls using LMT Launcher.

Recommended Reading: 30 Must-Try Apps For Rooted Android Phones

Getting Started With LMT Launcher

First, you need a rooted device – follow our basic introduction to rooting if you want to know how to root your device. You’ll also need to go to your device’s security settings and allow installation of apps from unknown sources. Then, head over to the official thread on XDA Forums and download the latest version of LMT Launcher.

Once installed, start the app from the app drawer. Grant root access to the app and you’ll be taken to the main settings screen.

Press Activate TouchService to start LMT Launcher. You can also enable Autostart TouchService if you want LMT Launcher to start automatically when you boot your device.

Now, swipe from the middle right side of your screen and you should see the Pie appear with its default settings.

Customizing LMT Launcher’s Pie

If you scroll down the main Settings screen, under the header Piecontrol, you will find that you can change settings such as:

• Activation area position (which sides of the screen activate the pie)
• Activation area thickness and length
• Pie colors
• Pie inner radius and outer radius
• Pie status info colors and font

In addition to these settings, you can also customize the pie’s contents if you want. Swipe all the way to the right and you should arrive at the Pie menu. Here, you’ll be able to assign commands to each Pie item, including longpress commands (max: 10 items).

You can also assign navigation commands, toggle commands and apps to the pie items, for example, you can have basic navigation controls on level 1, and shortcuts to your favourite apps on level 2. You don’t have to worry about saving your changes, since the app automatically applies every change you make.

Setting Up Gestures and ISAS

LMT Launcher also has support for Gestures and ISAS (Invisible swipe areas). Invisible swipe areas are invisible areas on screen where you can swipe to execute an action. To use Gestures and ISAS, go to the main Settings menu.

Press the Set gesture input, then select your device from the list. Then, press Set TouchService Mode and select either Gestures and ISAS or Gestures, ISAS and Pie. You can also tweak some basic settings for both Gestures and ISAS, but the default settings may be enough.

Once that’s done, swipe to the Gestures menu, select a "gesture" and then select the "action" that should be associated with the gesture. For ISAS, swipe to the ISAS menu, select the "Invisible swipe areas" you want, and then the "actions" that you want to associate with them.

Wrap Up

On the whole, LMT Launcher’s customization options and compatibility with a wide range of Android devices mean that it’s a great way to get pie controls on your device without having to worry about changing ROMs.