Genius is a company you may not have heard of. Still, they are one of the top computer peripheral manufacturers in the world. Formerly only making OEM branded products, they have been growing and have started to move into the US Market. Not only are they making computer peripherals anymore but also things such as speakers.
When I was in Taipei last year visiting companies across Asia I stopped by Genius and checked out their new products for the next year. One of the products they featured was a thumb controlled wireless mouse. It was really neat.
More recently, they told me they had a new product. The Ring presenter. I witnessed it at CES and was impressed.
Mounted on your pointer finger, your thumb moved across a tiny touchpad. You could click in 4 directions, press the button, and even shoot a laser beam. This thing could be perfect for professionals and those who need to give talks. It could also be awesome for someone controlling their home theater PC.
The presenter comes with a small bag, a micro-USB cord and a USB dongle. The dongle can fit inside the presenter when not in use though the fit is not exceptionally tight– keep it in the bag so you don’t lose it. The micro-USB cord is for charging the presenter.
In my experience, it was very easy to use. There are two modes. Mouse mode and presenter mode. The mouse mode lets you use it like a wireless mouse and the presenter mode lets you use PowerPoint or other presentation software and go through your slides. It is extremely easy to use for presenting and is adequate for controlling a HTPC with a large interface.
Unfortunately, that’s about it. There’s no way in hell you could use this as your normal mouse. It’s not very accurate and the battery life isn’t great. The software is confusing and I kept accidentally triggering the laser pointer feature.
That’s the bad. The good is that for presentations, there is no better mouse. I’ve tried gyroscopic mice, Logitech’s Cube (review forthcoming), and other presentation mice and none pack the same type of features and utility as the Genius Ring Presenter. Still, unless you give presentations at least semi-frequently, steer clear. It’s hard to justify this mouse for something you might only use once a year.
For the business persons and professors however, it’s great.
Genius Ring Presenter – $43.47
