Your mouse has had a good run. The Augmental MouthPad is a custom-fit mouthpiece with a trackpad on the roof of your mouth, so you move a cursor with your tongue or your head, click with a tongue press and right-click with a sip. It pairs over Bluetooth like any other mouse, and after two years of early access it went on public sale in the US this summer for $1,400.
How it works
The MouthPad fits over your upper teeth like a slim retainer. A pressure-sensitive pad sits against the palate, and motion sensors track your head, so you can pick whichever feels more natural. Tongue presses handle left-click and drag, sips handle right-click, and swipes cover scrolling. Augmental says you can talk while wearing it, though speech can take some getting used to.
Specs at a glance
- Works with: macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android, with a companion app for macOS, Windows and iOS
- Build: about 1 mm thick and 10 g, made from dental resin
- Battery: 7+ hours of continuous use, about 1.5 hours to charge in its case
- Second-gen tricks: tongue-gesture keyboard shortcuts, a WASD mode for games and 3D modeling, and multi-device pairing with one-button switching
Why it matters
This is first and foremost an accessibility tool. Augmental says more than 100 people with limited mobility use it daily, some for up to 16 hours, and its waitlist tops 6,300, including surgeons, mechanics and musicians who need their hands for something else. One user hit 10.47 bits per second on a speed-and-accuracy cursor test, which Augmental says matches today’s implanted brain-computer interfaces, without the brain surgery.
GadgetKing take
On paper, a tongue mouse sounds like a late-night infomercial. In practice, it is one of the cleverest pieces of hardware we have seen this year. A 10 g retainer that does what some implants do is a big deal for people who cannot use their hands, and the hands-free crowd (surgeons, mechanics, anyone elbow-deep in something) is a real second audience. The catches are real too: $1,400, a dental scan, a six-month wait and no snacking while it is in. Your current mouse is safe for now. Your mouth may not be.
Where to get it
The MouthPad is sold only by Augmental, and only to US addresses. It costs $1,400, or $1,900 for two (a backup to swap in for longer days). After ordering, you book an intraoral 3D scan with your own dentist or a local provider (Augmental says most charge $50 to $150), and the custom device ships in about six months. Orders are fully refundable until Augmental receives the scan, and insurance, FSA and HSA do not cover it yet. Augmental’s companion VOX mic pendant, an “invisible keyboard” for quiet dictation, is in beta for $200. Order the MouthPad from Augmental.
Sources: Augmental, Augmental launch news and PCWorld. Video: WorkingNation Educates.
More ways to point and click: the Pulsar Feinmann F01 Noctua Edition and the Logitech Mobi Fold.
