Wireless Control for Presentations?

Bifurcati asks: "I recently bought a Bluetooth enabled Powerbook G4 laptop, which comes with a trackpad. I often give Powerpoint presentations, so I'm interested in getting a wireless controller, to flip back and forward through slides without touching the laptop. Google turns up many options, e.g., Honeywell's, Beamplus and this doohickey. Another option is a combined mouse-controller, throwing an external mouse into the bargain. There are wireless mice (e.g., Logitech's) which need a USB plug-in, but are short range. Or there are Bluetooth mice, like the X-Wing, which are neat and have a 10m range, but seem to be a pain with battery life/charging. Another option is Logitech's Bluetooth Presenter, which is a mouse, PP controller and laserpointer in one (but costs $200!). So many choices! So I'm turning to good old Slashdot. All of you presenters out there, do have favourite remote control devices? What are your experiences with using them? What type of connectivity is the best (wireless, Bluetooth, something else?!) And what about devices that double as an external mouse, or even as a controller for movies, iTunes, etc?"

Comments

wireless controller

[atomic-penguin]

I once saw someone give a presentation with a gyromouse. I checked out their prices, approximately $150 for some models. Kind of pricey, and probably not needed, unless you need to have cursor interaction with your slides. They are so cool though.

what NOT to do....

[TreeHead]

;whatever you do, don't use a *wired* solution.

;i'm responsible for technology at a small college and we work on a tight budget (to say the least). i thought i'd save some money by implementing wired presenter mice with extension cables. now granted, these were the PS/2 variety--which you wouldn't use with a mac--but the wired mice get disconnected from the multimedia computers all the time, and its only a matter of time before the cords all short-out from abuse. the biggest issue w/ wires is the nightmare of someone (yourself included) snagging their foot on the cord as they pass by and yanking the entire laptop to the floor.

;do yourself a favor and stick with wireless. it's actually not more expensive in the long run. if i could go back and spend $150-200 per unit on a wireless solution, i would. it would have saved me (and our instructors) time, energy, headaches, and money (as i will now have to replace the ones we have) that we spent on the wired mice.

;TreeHead