Best presentation remote?
Throughout June I`ll be lucky enough to teach a university course for the first time. Though the registration is floating around 58 right now, it could go as high as 90. Anyhow, I`ve requested a lecture hall with a full presentation system so I can run PowerPoint. Since I don`t want to hunched over the keyboard the entire time, I`m looking at purchasing a remote.
So, who here suggests what? I`ve been looking at this Keyspan, which a prof I know uses and it seems to work well for him, though I`ve read some less than positive reviews on-line about its long-term quality. I`ve also seen this Targus for sale quite a bit (and a bit cheaper than the Keyspan), but does anyone know if it works ok with OS X even though only Windows is officially supported?
Anyone have opinions about either of these products? Can anyone suggest anything else I should be looking at? Thank you in advance!
So, who here suggests what? I`ve been looking at this Keyspan, which a prof I know uses and it seems to work well for him, though I`ve read some less than positive reviews on-line about its long-term quality. I`ve also seen this Targus for sale quite a bit (and a bit cheaper than the Keyspan), but does anyone know if it works ok with OS X even though only Windows is officially supported?
Anyone have opinions about either of these products? Can anyone suggest anything else I should be looking at? Thank you in advance!
Comments
Originally posted by torifile
If you've got a bluetooth enabled powerbook and a bt enabled phone, you should check out Salling Clicker. It's not a "remote" per se, but it does the job very well and doesn't require line of sight.
Unfortunately, I have neither, though I have thought about Sailing Clicker. I`d be more than happy to buy the Bluetooth dongle (I have an iBook G4) but the slection of Bluetooth phones here in Canada is, to be diplomatic, weak and overpriced.
Sure, I have to go to the PowerBook if I need to revisit a slide, but I write my presentations (as best I can) so I don't have to. Where necessary, I put arrows in the slides, so I don't need a laser pointer either.
Hope that helps. If you have any questions let me know.
Originally posted by HOM
I used the Keyspan extensively over the course of 4 or 5 months. Aprox. 20 presentations a week. I loved it. It worked great with both PP and Keynote, the clicking was responsive, and once I got accustomed to the mouse movement I was very proficient at using it as my only input method.
Hope that helps. If you have any questions let me know.
How was battery life? Also, since its RF, does it work as advertised: line of sight between the remote and the receiver not necessary? Oh, and what about the mouse movement needs getting used to?
Originally posted by Gabid
How was battery life? Also, since its RF, does it work as advertised: line of sight between the remote and the receiver not necessary? Oh, and what about the mouse movement needs getting used to?
I changed the battery once when I was using the remote.
It did not need line of sight to work and I was as far as 45 feet away from the receiver with dozens of computers all connected via WiFi in between me and the receiver. There was a delay when I was this far away, but not significant.
The remote uses a thumb pad to do mouse pointing. It takes a little while to get used to pointing this way, but if you've played Nintendo you'll pick it up quickly. Also there is a click lock with the scroll switch for dragging and dropping.
I would suggest a day trip to Albany to try it out at the Crossgates Apple store.