Keyspan Presentation Remote Pro

This product is only available in USA but since where I live (not USA) has limited options for presentation remotes but I wanted a good one, I went thru much trouble to get it and it was all worth it.

I was relieved to find that the "move slide forward" button is controlled by pressing the button, unlike my previous one that required scrolling which is extremely inconvenient. The design looks very nice as well. In fact, the best looking remote I've seen so far. And not to mention all the other practical functions such as "black screen" and "volume control".

But the reasons why I still gave it a 4 instead of 5 stars are because:

1. The "start slide" button always starts from page 1 no matter which page I previously exit. I want one that could start from wherever I leave off.

2. It'd be even better if it comes with a timer. I did buy another one with a timer but it works backward. I prefer one that works just like a stopwatch.

3. I know I'm getting greedy but it'd be really nice if it comes with a case as well. Now I use my other remote control's case to carry this one.

Despite these minor complaints, I strongly recommend this product to others based on my comparison to other remote controls I'm also using. This is by far the best so far.

This presenter does it all. It fits easily into your hands and has all the buttons you need. Why limit yourself to a presenter without mouse and volume control and without a scroll wheel for word documents that you might want to scroll through?

I have seen others complain about the mouse button being hard to get used to, but I like it. Gently move the mouse slowly across your page or push harder and zip over where you need it without your audience falling asleep waiting for you to get there.

Ever used a remote with buttons that are hard to push (certain Targus models...)? These are the perfect size and tension.

Shiny, sleek, functional, excellent design, simple layout. This thing works. I was advancing slides with this thing from behind a wall the range was so good.

Lastly, I love the fact that I don't have to switch modes to use all the presenters features like you do with other models on the market. Plenty of features, all well placed.

There is a reason there is nothing less (so far) than a four star review on this presenter...

Tremendous value for the money!

I read all the reviews of the various presentation remotes. I liked the timer function on the Logitech model but I ultimately decided on the Keyspan Presentation Remote because of some comments about how the wireless receiver plugged in and the built-in mouse capabilities. I don't expect to use the wireless mouse capabilities much but the feature didn't seem to get in the way of the standard forward/backward functions and could come in handy for some future use.

I was very pleasantly surprised by the size of the Kensington Remote. It's about 1.25" wide by 4.75" long and less than 1" tall. With the rounded corners it fits easily and comfortably in your hand. My thumb falls very naturally on the forward/back buttons and it is easy to operate without looking at it. The laser pointer button is just under the forward/back buttons.

The receiver clicks securely into the remote when not in use and there's no way to put it in upside down or backwards. Windows XP SP2 recognized the receiver immediately and installed the proper USB drivers automatically. I then turn on the remote, launched a presentation with the "F5" button and moved forward and backward through the slides with the arrow buttons. For those who prefer there is also a small, spring-loaded click-wheel on the side. At the end of the presentation I clicked the "black screen" button.

My only complaint is that I wish it came with a small nylon case to protect it in my laptop case. Overall I think the Keyspan Presentation Remote is the perfect presenter tool to free you from the computer keyboard and allow you to concentrate on your presentation and audience.

I bought it for a conference presentation, as my old Targus remote was unreliable. This one is nice and small without being TOO small. It works as advertised. the joysick mouse is a little hard to use due to its size, but with practice should be fine. The laser is a little weak, and a green laser option would be wonderful. The one design difference I'd recommend is to put the fwd/back buttons at the top of the remote rather than the center, but I understand its current configuration is to put the mouse buttons in the expected place above the mouse. I like the blank screen toggle button, and would love to see a white/black blank screen option, probably would have to be a different button, but fine. A short form dongle would be great too--like some of the new bluetooth dongles. All in all, very happy with it and would buy it again, especially with the suggested changes.

This remote has been outstanding. Great range...super simple to use...great size.

Here is a tip for Keynote users on the Mac. The remote is set up with non-programmable buttons, so the F5 button (designed for PowerPoint) doesn't work for starting your Keynote presentations...but it can. The trick is to change the keyboard shortcut in Keynote for Play Slideshow from cmd-option-P to F5. On Mac OS X v10.4+ you can go to System Preferences > Keyboard & Mouse and then the Keyboard Shortcuts tab. Click on the + icon to add a new shortcut. Choose Keynote as the application*, 'Play Slideshow' as the Menu Title, and then when you get to the Keyboard Shortcut box, hit the F5 button on the remote and it should insert F5 in the box (making sure, of course, that the USB receiver is plugged in to your Mac). Click on Add and you're all set. The next time you launch Keynote the new mapping will be in effect and you can now use the F5 button on the remote to start your slideshow. Hold down the F5 button for about 7 seconds to send ESCAPE, thus exiting the running slidehow.

Fantastic!

*Keynote may not show up in the pop-up list of applications because it is inside the iWork 06 or iWork 08 folder inside the Applications folder. To find it, just scroll to the bottom of the pop-up list and choose Other... You can then navigate to /Applications/iWork 08/Keynote to select it.