Highly portable pressure-sensitive mouse has a design that reminds you of a sleek car remote

Astract Japan has launched CapacMouse Pro, the successor to its previous-gen CapacMouse Neo, for crowdfunding and preordering on Makuake.com, a Japanese crowdfunding platform.

CapacMouse Pro is a hyper-compact mouse. The whole unit resembles a car beeper remote more than anything else, but it is complete with two scroll buttons, two side buttons per side, and two main buttons. Various key combinations rather than dedicated software allow for adjustments to DPI and scrolling sensitivity. Still, a four-tier status indicator light displays the level of DPI or scrolling sensitivity when you change those settings.

Now, as for why it’s called CapacMouse, the mouse seems to use capacitive touch for a few functions. The top scroll button appears to be pressure—and touch-sensitive, with direction and range varying based on direction and pressure. The bottom mouse button would otherwise be a scroll wheel click on another mouse.

Regarding pricing, the MSRP will be 7,680 yen (roughly $50), but early bird discounts via crowdfunding can get you the mouse when it releases for just 5,370 yen (approximately $35). These prices also seem to include shipping, though you may need to pay a bit extra since those calculations are likely made with Japanese customers in mind.

The CapacMouse Pro is an interesting choice for those needing a hyper-compact mouse. The adjustable DPI settings (1,000, 1,600, 2,400, and 4,000 DPI) should allow for a wide range of comfortable cursor speeds. The similar ability to adjust scroll speed/range from the scroll button is also a welcome addition, particularly the ability to have single scroll button taps move a set distance.

As expected from a typical Mouse 3/Mouse 4 arrangement, the left-side buttons are for back- and forward-page navigation. Things get a little quirkier with the right-side buttons—down-right triggers an auto double-click function, while down-up is only used with other buttons to change DPI and scroll speed settings.

With a total weight of 30 grams and support for wireless operation on both Bluetooth and 2.4 GHz, the CapacMouse Pro seems suitable for its targeted niche of business and casual users on the go. However, I wouldn’t recommend it for PC gaming over something like the leading gaming mice from Logitech, Corsair, or Razer—but that’s not who this mouse is for.