Gyration Air Mouse

The Gyration Air Mouse Elite can be described simply as a mouse version of Nintendo's Wii Remote. The only difference is that the Wiimote tracks movement based on line-of-sight, while the Air Mouse Elite is based around Radio Frequency (2.4 GHz), transmitted to a USB dongle. The Air Mouse Elite is a perfect addition to your home theater PC setup or presentation portfolio. Its easy software setup and mouse interface makes the mouse accessible to anyone new to motion control devices, although there is a bit of a learning curve.

Gyration Air Mouse Cradle

Design
The Air Mouse Elite (1.5 by 2.25 by 4.5 inches, HWD) has a unique form factor, designed more for comfortably handling the motion-end of navigation. Its thin structure may feel awkward for those with larger hands when using the mouse to glide across your desktop, but I found it comfortable enough in limited day-to-day tasks. The top of the mouse is a glossy black plastic that is certain to attract smudges. In between the mouse buttons is a scroll wheel, which felt quite smooth.

Underneath the scroll wheel are 3 customizable media buttons and in the center of these buttons is a designated gesture button. On the underside of the mouse is a trigger-like button that you'll have to press to activate motion sensing.

Features
The Air Mouse is compatible with Mac and Windows OS. The included software CD, however is only for Windows XP and Vista, so you'll have to go onto Gyration's Website to download the Motion Tools Applications. The software is easy to install and comes with a beginner's tutorial to help you get acclimated to the MotionTools interface and the Air Mouse itself. Setting up the gestures and media buttons was easy, thanks to the intuitive interface. You can even set up several profiles with different settings for how you want to navigate. My boyfriend and I each set up our own profiles, each with our unique button and gesture settings.

Within the software you can also customize the mouse to perform certain settings when you are in different programs. For instance, when I was Web browsing, I had the Left Swipe Gesture to mean go back a page, but when I was in my designated media player I had the same Gesture mean mute. You can also set specific settings for your desktop and presentation programs (i.e. PowerPoint).

Performance 
For general use the Air Mouse fulfills its duties. At a 1000dpi, the cursor movement is small and slow, especially across high-resolution screens. For extended use I prefer a higher dpi (about 3,200) like the one found on the Logitech Marathon Mouse M705 .

The Air Mouse comes with a USB dongle for 2.4-GHz wireless connectivity that can transmit up to 100 feet away—perfect for lecture halls. However, if you're planning on carting this mouse to and from office presentations there's no storage spot inside the mouse or the USB charging dock for the dongle. The M705 offers this feature, where users can store the included USB dongle where the batteries are stored.

Gyration Air Mouse Full Set

As a motion-control device, however, the Gyration Air Mouse Elite performs great. The gesture controls feel natural and work well in the presentation and home theater environment. However, it falls short as an everyday mouse, with a low dpi and only okay everyday use. Though it's likely this won't be your primary mouse. Gyration must be applauded, though, for creating an intuitive interface and solid feature set.