One billion. That's a lot of mice. And that's exactly how many mice California-based Logitech has shipped since it launched in 1981 (see its first mouse abovve.) It's a staggering number, especially in light of the fact that 1 billion is close to the number of active computer users in the world at the moment (though, as Logitech happily points out, that number is likely to be a lot close to 2 billion by 2014).

"Since the first click of the Logitech® P4 mouse in 1982, Logitech mice have played an indispensable role in the evolution of the personal computer," the company's CEO, Gerald P. Quindlen, said in a statement issued this morning. "During the last few decades, the way people use computers has changed dramatically - what was once strictly a business tool has become highly integrated into our personal lives. Logitech has continually pursued innovations to meet those changing conditions, introducing - in the last five years alone-the world's first laser mouse, hyper-fast scrolling and the nano-receiver."

The company will celebrate the milestone with a contest on its blog following the manufacture and sale of the 1-billionth mouse.