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Logitech Cordless Presenter

Logitech Cordless Presenter

List Price: $199.95
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: WOW! Nice Device for the road warrior
Review: The fact that you can now interact with your audience and still maintain control of your laptop presentations makes this a great way to polish your presentations.

The set up with the s/w on the CD was a bit confusing, but the device works even when you are not pointing it at the laptop. It's is a bit bigger than it looks and what the product literature makes it out to be, but they ship it with a nice neoprene carry case that will help protect it from the bumps on the road.

This will get a lot of use on the road with me.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: This device is a presenter's dream!
Review: The Logitech Cordless Presenter turned out to be far more useful than I realized when I ordered it. I've always had 3 problems with remote controls for my PowerPoint presentations, and this device solved them all:
1) Most remotes are finicky to use and have limited range. The clickers are sloppy, and they are infrared, so you have to point at the laptop or projector. The Logitech has a 30 foot range, and is non-directional! What's more, the control response is crisp and precise.
2) You can't control your presentation with most remotes, so you have to return to the laptop when something goes wrong. With the Logitech, I can easily backup if I go past the slide I want. Since it shifts from a "presentation device" to a regular optical mouse by flipping a switch, I can put it on any surface and close my presentation and open another without returning to the laptop.
3) I don't want to have a laser pointer in one hand and a remote in the other while I talk. This device is both!

It could be a bit smaller, but it's sexy-looking and easy to use. The installation is a breeze, and -- unlike the other reviewer -- I never came across anything confusing in the set-up or the manual. I speak professionally on the restoration economy, so the Logitech Cordless Presenter is a lifesaver for me, and worth every penny.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Slick Device, Not Supported on Mac OS X, but It Works
Review: This presentation remote fits comfortably in my averaged-sized hands. The control buttons are easily accessible with my thumb. After a bit of practice, using the laser trigger on the underside with my middle finger is also quite comfortable.

Logitech does not offer support for the Cordless Presenter on Mac OS X. Like some others here, I initially could not move backward in Keynote presentations, whether in presentation or mouse mode. Installing the Logitech Control Software did not help in my case. The Cordless Presenter does not show up as a supported device. But after an hour or so of experimentation, everything is working. In fact, I have more control over Keynote than Logitech supports by default for Powerpoint. Here's what I did to get the controller to work with Keynote 2:

1. Install USB Overdrive.
2. Use the USB dongle supplied with the Cordless Presenter instead of your Mac's built-in Bluetooth connection. (This makes the computer think you have a USB mouse instead of a Bluetooth mouse, so USB Overdrive can manage the Cordless Presenter. Once the long awaited Bluetooth version of USB Overdrive is available, this step may not be needed.)
3. In USB Overdrive, set up application-specific settings for Keynote (left-hand pane). Make sure you make the following changes only for Keynote and not for Global Settings.
4. Configure the left mouse button to send the keystroke "Return". (You'll get a dire warning here, but as long as you have a track pad, its button will work for clicking within Keynote))
5. Configure the right mouse button to send the keystroke "[".
6. Configure Wheel Up to send the keystroke "+".
7. Configure Wheel Down to send the keystroke "-".

Now within Keynote you will have to use your trackpad when editing and starting the presentation. But once the presentation is started, you can use the Cordless Presenter (in mouse mode) to move forward and backward through slides. In addition, the up-down arrows on the Cordless Presenter will bring up the slide chooser and let you quickly scroll through your slides--great for answering questions or skipping part of your talk. To leave the slide chooser, just press the left button.

I hope someone finds this useful. I gave this product only 4 stars because of the hoops you have to jump through to use it on a Mac. However, the ergonomics and build quality are great. Windows users won't go wrong getting the Cordless Presenter, and adventuresome Mac users should also find it to be a nice addition.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: questions for mac users
Review: UPDATE for mac users:
So mac users should skip this product. It will work with your mac's built-in bluetooth or with the supplied dongle. However, you'll only be able to move fwd in your powerpoint presentations, and not backward (button 2 does not work). I tried manipulating button 2 with the Logitech os x software and 3rd party software as well (gamepad companion and usboverdrive). Nothing gets button 2 to work. Other users have reported the same issue (do a google search). I've emailed Logitech and posted to their User Forums, and have recieved no answer as to whether they ever plan to add Mac support for this device. So unless you want a half functional device, for a premium price, I would skip this product if you're a mac user.

It's a shame since it's the only bluetooth presentationd device, and the RF devices seem mediocre at best. I have switched to using my bluetooth cellphone (Sony Ericsson T610), some free software (Romeo), and the $20 laser pointer attachment for sony ericsson phones. It's much more flexible, and definately has a cool-factor to it.



Original Review:

I would love to purchase this, but cannot find answers to these questions. I have a mac ibook g4 running os x 10.3.5 and built-in bluetooth:

1. Will this device work using my mac's built-in bluetooth, or will I need to use the supplied USB bluetooth reciever?

2. I've read reports of mac users with 1 button not functioning. Is this still the case?

3. Will I get full functionality with Powerpoint 2004 ?

If you have answers to these questions, please email me ! mpinsk at gmail.com


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