Using a mouse with the iPad

We all know that the iPad is a primarily touch-oriented device. Yes, and the touchpad on it works really well. However, having a mouse would be nice for some applications. For example, when your iPad is standing in front of you and you need to write a longer email or make a presentation in Keynote, just using a Bluetooth keyboard is not enough — you need a mouse.

No official mouse support

Unfortunately, Apple's engineers do not think iPad users need mouse support. They are probably rightfully proud of their truly convenient multi-touch interaction scheme and think that introducing a mouse pointer may disrupt it. Thus, when it comes to external input, iPad users can use only Bluetooth keyboards.

Jailbreaking to get a mouse to work

Those smart guys who make jailbreaks for iPhones and iPads also like using a mouse with their iPads, so you can use a mouse if you jailbreak your app and install a free app called BTstack Mouse. It will allow you to connect almost any Bluetooth mouse to your iPad. To do that, you will need to do the following:

1. Jailbreak your iPad.
2. Find the BTstack Mouse app in the Cydia store.
3. Turn your Bluetooth mouse on.
4. Launch the BTstack Mouse app, and let it detect the mouse.

BTstack Mouse also adds a "Mouse" section to the iPad's Settings so that you can adjust some settings such as swapping buttons and changing the mouse speed.