Devices like NUCs and handheld gaming PCs push the limits of small devices while running full desktop operating systems. Taking it a step further, one modder stuffed a complete Windows 11 system into the mouse. Although not entirely successful, the experiment demonstrated interesting engineering solutions.
YouTuber Electo recently posted a video documenting his attempts to fit a mini PC into an input device, resulting in a mouse that functions as a standalone Windows 11 computer. While it's limited in what it can do, it's impressively miniaturized for a PC with an external display.
Ileko starts the video by 3D printing a giant mouse that looks like an Intel NUC, complete with an oversized scroll wheel and a decent-sized screen on the front. Instead of connecting to a standard keyboard via USB, this outrageous-looking device uses lasers to project a virtual keyboard from the left side.
In order to reduce the size, Electo Company stuffed the core of a small microcomputer into the keyboard. Having tiny computers built into keyboards became standard in the 1980s, and London company Pentaform is launching a $150 biodegradable keyboard in 2022, but the Electo's keyboard has some weird additions.
First, he installed all mouse functionality on the keyboard, requiring users to move the entire keyboard to move the cursor instead of using a touchpad or an external mouse. A second, perhaps more useful hardware quirk is a tilting projector that can display video inputs from a few inches to around 100 inches. If the keyboard is fixed, then a projector allows the keyboard to be used in a variety of environments where a traditional screen is not available.
In the end, the YouTuber crammed a tiny computer chip the size of the palm of his hand into a mouse that's only slightly larger than a standard mouse. Electo then resoldered an HDMI cable to support the screen that's only a few inches wide when connected to the front. Instead of a full-featured keyboard, he mounted the essential gaming keys on the sides: W, A, S, D, Space, Shift, Control, E, and I.
The result is more than enough power to run Minecraft, and Electo was tested on all three modified PCs. Unfortunately, they all suffered from thermal issues that ultimately led to performance degradation. The giant mouse was so hot to the touch that even the chassis began to melt. The smaller mouse-based computer could barely run Minecraft at slideshow frame rates, but could briefly stream various games via the cloud. Unfortunately, Electo didn't test whether his creation could run Doom.
Despite the flaws of this experiment, with a few tweaks, a PC housed in a mouse could become a viable ultraportable option. Additionally, a keyboard projector can also become a multifunctional display with the right equipment.