Whether you are a professional, student or part time presenter, having someone on your side during a presentation always helps. With the Spotlight Presentation Remote, Logitech’s got your back.
Read on for our full review.
Founded in 1981, Logitech products are distributed in more than 100 countries worldwide both through retail channels and partnerships with PC manufacturers. We recently reviewed the Harmony Elite Remote and also their Z337 Bluetooth 2.1 Speaker System.
UNBOXING
The Spotlight Presentation remote comes in a small package with everything neatly in place. The Spotlight Remote control itself is a flattened cylinder 143mm long (including removable rubber tail) and just over 25mm wide. It is 10mm high and our first impression was that it looks and feels great. The slate coloured Spotlight remote has a two tone grey finish – Smooth grey metal punctuated by a slightly rubbery darker grey for the “advance” button and for the battery plate located on the underside of the remote.
Three neatly arranged buttons towards the top of the remote are where the action is. The buttons are cleverly delineated by their physical position, size, colour and texture. Central is a large advance button with smaller pointer and previous buttons above and beneath respectively.
The front of the remote contains an otherwise hidden white LED which comes to life when plugged in.
At the opposite end is a small rubbery tail with a raised “Logi” Logo. Pulling on this rubber loop releases a USB A dongle which can be connected to any non-Bluetooth enabled computer. With the tail removed, the Spotlight’s hidden USB C charging port is also revealed which is used for charging the remote control.
Other than the aforementioned grippy plate featuring the Logi logo, the underside is unremarkable. Not only does this plate cover the removable battery but it also subtly adds to the Spotlight’s comfortable feel.
Strangely, the Spotlight package is light on instructions. An End of Life Battery Removal leaflet is included as is sheet of Safety and Compliance information. No manual is included other than a multilingual one line “Charge before use. Download software and learn more on logitech.com/spotlight”.
Along with the remote itself and the minimal paperwork, a USB C to USB A charging cable is included which along with a neat storage pouch rounds out the Spotlight Presentation Remote Control package.
SETUP AND USAGE
Following the one line instructions, we plugged the Spotlight Remote Control into our MacBook Pro via a USB A dongle. Thanks again Apple.
Once plugged in, the Spotlight gave a quick double vibration and the LED in its tip began pulsing.
We followed the instructions and after browsing http://logitech.com/spotlight we downloaded the “LogiPresentation” software and also an actual PDF setup guide.
The Spotlight remote can connect to both Windows macOS devices via Bluetooth where available or can be otherwise paired using the included USB dongle. Once paired successfully, the Spotlight remote provides a short reassuring haptic vibration.
We tested the Spotlight on both Windows 10 and macOS Sierra and found that even without installing Logitech’s LogiPresentation software, the remote’s main functions worked perfectly: The advance button advanced slides in both Keynote and PowerPoint (macOS and Windows) as expected and the previous button did the same.
Also, without software installed, the top “pointer” button acted as a mouse click when pressed and when held (and waved about) as a mouse. When browsing PDFs within Firefox or Preview for example, the advance and previous buttons on the Spotlight remote advanced or went back a page.
Of course, to get all the functions the Spotlight remote had to offer, Logitech’s LogiPresentation software needed to be installed. The software, like the packaging and revamped Logitech website was well designed and easy to use.
With the LogiPresentation software installed, the top pointer button could be used as a literal “spotlight.” When pressing the pointer button with the Logitech software installed, the screen dimmed which created a spotlight effect wherever the pointer was, well.. pointed. With the software installed, the advance and previous buttons could also be customised to operate as volume controls or even custom keystrokes.
Beyond this, a timer can be set to provide haptic feedback at a user set interval.
As we aren’t professional presenters and rarely have to present in front of an audience, we decided to test the device with a group of upper primary (elementary students for our American readers) school students.
After four days (and approximately fifty presentations) here’s what the students had to say:
- “It’s easy because it doesn’t have a hundred buttons and only has three so it’s easy to remember.”
- “Helpful and easy to learn.”
- “Neat, useful and if you are stressed while presenting its nice to hold on to”
- “It doesn’t distract people watching the presentation”
- “Not as big or bulky as a keyboard and you don’t have to look down to use it.”
- “It’s good because you just press the back button if you make a mistake and the spotlight
- was good too.”
After only a brief introduction to the Spotlight Presentation Remote, the students were able to use the forward/back buttons and spotlight functionality with aplomb.
During four presentation days, the Spotlight remote worked flawlessly. While a few children fiddled with the buttons during presentations and accidentally clicked slides, the vast majority found it extremely helpful.
Also worth noting is that after about 50 presentations, the battery still identified as “fully charged,” so at face value we are happy to endorse Logitech’s 3 month battery life claims.
SPECIFICATIONS
Dimensions: 131.3 x 28.1 x 12.1mm
Weight: 49.2g (including battery)
Charging cable length: 140mm
Lithium Polymer Battery: 85mAh
Battery Life: 3 months
Available Colours: Slate, Gold and Silver.
LEDs: Battery and connectivity
Motion Sensor: 3D accelerometer and gyroscope/motion
Connection Type: Bluetooth and 2.4Ghz Wireless
Wireless Range: Up to 30m
Warranty: 1 year
System Requirements: Windows 7+; MacOS 10.10+;
Limited Functionality: Chrome OS, Android 5.0+ and Linux
Presentation Software Compatibility: Keynote, Powerpoint, PDFs, Google Slides and Prezi.
CONCLUSION
While the Spotlight Presentation Remote is certainly a niche product, it’s sleek design and ease of use make it a perfect addition to a professional presenter’s toolkit.
For educational institutions, the long battery life, durable design and relatively inexpensive cost are a great way to introduce students to formal presenting.
Not everybody is a professional presenter but with Logitech’s Spotlight Remote, we can all present professionally.
The Spotlight Presenter is available now direct from Logitech in slate (as tested), silver and gold for just under $200AUD. For more information, please visit Logitech’s Presenter website.
Highly Recommended!
