Just plug in the USB receiver and it works. No additional software drivers required.

 

The Keyspan Presentation Remote is a small, but substantial, device that wirelessly commands presentations in both Microsoft PowerPoint and Apple Keynote, part of the iWork suite. The remote includes just enough buttons - including mouse control - to be useful without being too complicated. It even has a laser pointer built in, which is great for highlighting slides or playing with your cat. The only tradeoff to the remote’s simplicity is the lack of full button customization - nearly everything else we could want is included.

 

The USB radio frequency (RF) receiver fits inside the remote for clever storage. Presenters eject the tiny dongle, plug it into a computer, and push its small Connect button. The remote then syncs, and because it’s RF, it worked several rooms away from our
Mac. Unobstructed control reaches about 100 feet.

 

Aimed (figuratively, not literally) at education and business users, the remote has large Forward and Back buttons for advancing through slides. These work well to navigate presentations, and another button instantly clears the screen. Two additional buttons control your presentation’s volume. When you’re not giving a presentation, the rocker-style wheel lets you scroll through documents, and a joystick moves the mouse and has left-click and right-click (or Control-click) buttons.

 

Fine mouse-pointer movements are difficult with the oversensitive joystick. A gentle nudge of the stick moves the mouse pointer a small distance, but we often overshot our target. Higher pressure on the joystick moves the mouse pointer faster. We got used to the control eventually, but we wish the pointer followed an acceleration curve, where its speed increases the longer it’s pushed.

 

The remote’s only other problem is its limited button customization. Advanced users can’t manually reset button functions. Instead, the Keyboard & Mouse pane in System Preferences lets you assign a dedicated F5 button, which may be enough for most situations.

 

The bottom line. The laser pointer is the most entertaining - and our most tested - feature, but it’s just a bonus to the rest of this great RF remote.

 

COMPANY: Keyspan

CONTACT: www.keyspan.com

PRICE: $59

REQUIREMENTS: USB, 2 AAA batteries

No additional software required. Simple design. Enough buttons for most tasks. Includes mouse control.

Buttons can’t all be reprogrammed. Fine mouse movement is sometimes difficult.