Microsoft released its first computer mouse in 1983. Called the Microsoft Mouse, it went on sale on May 2, 1983, and marked the beginning of Microsoft’s hardware business.
The device was designed for MS-DOS-compatible computers and originally used a DB-25 serial connection. It had two green buttons and a steel tracking ball, typical of early mechanical mice. Alps Electric of Japan manufactured the hardware for Microsoft, while the product was sold as part of a broader software-and-hardware push.
The first Microsoft Mouse was bundled with software that could include early versions of Microsoft Word or Notepad, along with a tutorial, a piano program, a game, and the Doodle graphics application. Its initial price was $195. The mouse did not become an immediate mass-market hit; pointing devices became far more visible after Apple included a mouse with the Macintosh in 1984.