• by August 25, 2000

Just as the little calculator attached to my mouse pad began showing signs of exhaustion, the tech world came up with something far more complicated - a mouse pad with rotating ads and a credit card reader.

This new gadget is definitely worth a mention on these pages, because it is advertising-supported and could make buying stuff online a whole lot easier for your target audience.

Here's how it works: web users order a MySmart pad from http://www.mysmart.com for $5.95 and MySmart sends them a mouse pad that includes 20 buttons which, besides connecting users to specific websites, also connect to email, special offers (advertiser sites) and other destinations.

Users also get removable inserts, which slide in and out of the pad and contain - what else - advertising.

Additionally, MySmart Pad has a slot that can read the chip on the American Express Blue, and other cards, potentially making buying stuff online safer and more convenient. I have to admit that this feature is what caught my attention in the first place, and yes, I did order one.

But, as cool as this sounds, there is a dark side. As Rafe Needleman, Editor of Red Herring's Catch of the Day says in today's column, the MySmart Pad didn't exactly strike him as "a product that the world really needed," and several of his readers already responded saying they would gladly pay the same $6 to rid themselves and their workspace of any ads.

But isn't that what people initially said about every unconventional ad vehicle out there?