The concept of the CombiMouse has been around since 1999. Despite its rather bizarre appearance, the peripheral seems to offer a genuinely functional alternative to the standard keyboard and mouse. Ari Zagnoev's project has now reached its "evolution" phase, arriving on the crowdfunding site IndieGoGo. The project is seeking to raise $20,000 to develop pre-production prototypes and conduct a thorough, independent evaluation at Curtin University in Australia.

"The Combimouse is a combination keyboard and mouse. The right part doubles as a keyboard and mouse. When you grip it, it becomes a mouse and specific keys switch to mouse click buttons.

You don't have to move your hand off the keyboard to operate the mouse. You just drop your hand, grip it and move the mouse making Computer usage more efficient and less tiring. This is the main advantage of the Combimouse.

The right part works and feels exactly the same as a regular mouse. Thanks to patent pending technology, the right part doesn't move around during typing."

Providing that this phase of the project is successful, CombiMouse plans to launch a second crowdsourcing campaign to finally get the product on store shelves. At the time of writing, the CombiMouse has raised $3,723 and offers a variety of funding levels ranging from $10 to $500. This provides prospective users an opportunity to place a de facto down payment on the $110 peripheral and receive a number of other rewards.