Maybe it’s just an inside joke or a pie-in-the-sky idea that will never happen, but on a recent podcast with The Verge’s Nilay Patel, Logitech CEO Hanneke Faber confirmed that the hardware company is considering a “Forever Mouse” that could include paid software updates.
Faber, who has headed up the company since October, said a premium mouse that you would keep for a long time and maintain with new features through software updates is a possibility.
In the exchange that references this in the podcast, Faber says you would buy a premium mouse, “and you never have to worry about it again, which is not unlike our video conferencing services today.” When Patel suggested that mice and video conferencing are perceived differently, Faber replied, laughing, “Yes, but it’s gorgeous. Think about it like a diamond-encrusted mouse.”
The CEO went on to clarify that mice and keyboards are used by some consumers every day and that their average price is about $26 globally, which she considers low. “That’s like the price of four coffees at Starbucks or less than a Nike running shirt,” she said. “There is so much room to create more value in that space as we make people more productive — to extend human potential.”
The company, like many others, had a surge in demand for its hardware peripherals during the pandemic when many employees were forced to work from home. That surge tapered off and the company is seeking ways to add value to some of these product categories or give customers a reason to upgrade. One of its latest products is a wireless mouse with a dedicated AI button that brings up an AI prompt builder for ChatGPT. Logitech currently dominates CNET’s list of the best wireless mice, with four picks.
Social-media users who saw the interview posted did not respond favorably to the idea of a subscription service for mice. One user joked, “Will it have a battle pass?” in reference to videogames that offer seasonal content for a fee, while another said emphatically, “NOT. EVERYTHING. NEEDS. TO. BE. A. SUBSCRIPTION.”
