All hail the cordless mouse!

Modern computing needs to "liven up", according to human interface device company, Logitech.

"Proud new PC or Mac owners will find that, although the speed and design of their machine has increased impressively, they are still expected to make do with the same basic accessories that they would have been offered a decade ago," the company said.

"While processing speeds now often top 1GHz, standard peripherals provided with most PCs still come in 1980s ivory and still have ugly cords," it added.

Logitech specialises in cordless devices that, as it attempts to persuade us, will "add style to your working environment", operating either over personal area network Bluetooth, radio or infrared.

Cordless desktops, mice and even joysticks, retailing at around £100 a piece, are on offer.

Tony Lock, of research group Bloor, said that Logitech had a niche market and that sometimes users found its cordless peripherals easier than their wired cousins.

"It's down to personal choice," he said. "Time and again you'll see Logitech gear cropping up. Maybe not as a business critical purchase but one that people may try to pass through on expenses or buy themselves, purely out of preference."