Laser - USB - MPN: 9316330403
Strengths: More comfort when navigating a home theater PC from the couch; very responsive; programmable buttons; different functions based on gestures; base can be out of direct view; beautiful design.
Weakness: Has somewhat of a learning curve; somewhat too "large"; some side buttons would be useful, attracts fingerprints.
It seems professional reviewers love this thing while consumers aren't too pleased. My opinion falls in the middle but more to the side of loving the innovation and being pleased with the implementation. Before buying this mouse, I used a laser mouse either on my coffee table or the sofa. Either way, my wrist would hurt after a while. So I was excited when I finally got this. Yes, it does allow you to operate the cursor with your hand in the air by pointing to the screen, or even not pointing to the screen. The comfort it provides is enough reason to get it if you couch-surf. However, I suspect the reason regular consumers aren't too satisfied is that it takes a bit of getting used to the motions. While you can navigate an entire screen-area on a mouse pad, when you're using it in-air, you have all degrees of freedom of movement. This isn't something you wave around like a magic wand. That's why the manual recommends pivoting at your wrist only. So yes, it does tend to lose its centering, either from the user moving too fast or moving past the border of the screen. Centering however isn't too difficult. You hold the back button to freeze the cursor and move your hand to the proper position. Doing this won't take you back a page, which is the normal function of the button. Other buttons include select, volume, left button, right button, scroll up, scroll down, and a touch slider. The touch slider is a little sensitive. Perhaps this is due to my hands. While I don't think I have small hands (can't quite palm a basketball, but close), I've found myself adjusting my grip to comfortably make use of the buttons farthest from each other. Needless to say, air mode is not for gaming on your home theater, but more for casual surfing and controlling your music or videos. There are air gestures that allow you to control the volume and mute. Once you gain good control of your movements, this is a very good mouse for general use on a home theater PC.
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THE GOOD: Media-friendly features in a gyroscopic mouse; extra sensors always know that up is up, even if the mouse is turned sideways. THE BAD: No trigger for gyroscopic mode may make it difficult for beginners to use; gyroscopic mice in general are an acquired taste. THE BOTTOM LINE: The gyroscopic mouse finally gets a mainstream makeover with the Logitech MX Air, aimed at Media Center users.
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The Logitech MX Air Rechargeable Cordless Air Mouse is a revolutionary rechargeable cordless laser mouse featuring Logitechs proprietary Freespace Motion Control technology. As well as functioning as a conventional tabletop mouse, the MX Air hosts the ability to act as an in-air controller similar to a Wii remote. Users can navigate their digital content by swinging the MX Air sideways or even...
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Testseek.com has collected 64 expert reviews for Logitech MX Air and the average expert rating is 81 of 100. The average score reflects the expert community’s view on this product. Click below and use Testseek.com to see all ratings, product awards and conclusions.
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More and more users are gravitating toward media-centric PCs, especially for their living rooms. The trouble with HTPCs (Home Theater PCs) is that there aren't many easy ways to interact with them (a keyboard and mouse on the couch?). The Logitech MX Air, a free space pointer specifically designed for HTPCs, melds the wireless mouse and media remote into one sleek device that's similar to the...
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Logitech MX Air Mouse
Strengths: Programmable buttons with a wide variety of options. Fast response time when changing from desk to air mode or vice versa. Operating range suitable for use in the living room.
Weakness: Not very responsive to linear motion. Difficult to keep mouse orientation in air mode after repeated cursor movement. Mouse settings can not be applied to more than a single set of programs.
We have been using this mouse with a Home Theater PC in the family room. While air mode is definitely a nice feature, mouse orientation is difficult to keep, and cursor needs to be centered on the screen oftenly. To make things worse, centering can not be programmed into any one button, but a side-to-side gesture that does not work very well. We ended up using a mouse pad to avoid these issues and have better control on cursor movement. Another problem is that rechargeable batteries can not be replaced by the user, making the device useless once battery life is over.
This is an interesting product, but still needs refinement.
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