Logitech diNovo Mini
by Logitech
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Logitech diNovo Mini
Customer Review: Great solution for a HTPC
Summary: 4 Stars
I recently purchased an HDTV for a monitor, as I am sure many people are doing as HDTVs drop in price, which was great for watching downloaded tv episodes and movies, but without a good solution for the keyboard and mouse something felt off. I was considering getting a wireless keyboard and mouse set, but then the problem is managing batteries for both devices and having to find a place to store the full sized keyboard. I did have this device in mind but the original price tag really turned me off and I probably would never buy this at full retail price, but when I saw it was on sale on Amazon I had to bite. Even on sale the price was higher than I'd like to pay(for any type of keyboard), but I figured why not splurge for the convenience and that really is what this device is about.
I was expecting a slightly higher quality device from logitech, but this does feel a little light even with the battery in. The retro clam shell design isn't too pretty and the plastic doesn't really seem that thick, I probably would have rather them make the whole thing the rubberized plastic they have on the battery cover instead of some cheap looking sparkly 'silver' colored plastic. The hinge for the case feels pretty solid and has a nice stiff feel, but seeing as it's made of plastic I can only imagine the tightness of the hinge will slowly loosen and the lid will start to wobble. On to the quality of the actual keyboard and touchpad. At first I didn't like the touchpad. It didn't feel very accurate or responsive but with more use it became very fluid and accurate, but I suppose that could have just been from the package sitting on my cold porch then me opening the thing up and using it before it was even back to room temp. I really like the feel of the keys, they have a nice grippy plastic covering and provide a nice firm click when pressed. The backlight is alright it switches colors to let you know if you're in directional or touch pad mode, but the main downside for me is that there isn't a key that is illuminated all the time to press for backlight in the dark and you can not read the alternate button uses that are painted on and above the keys. To me this is terrible for anyone new to the device since the shortcuts and fn keys become pretty useless until memorized. While I was not much of a fan of the construction or design choices, I do feel the actual keyboard works great and offers some great features but it could use a bit of refining.
The set up is extremely easy as most Logitech devices are. Plug in the bluetooth dongle pop and install the drivers. The software interface is extremely easy to use and gives you the option to custom map 3 buttons to do shortcuts for you such as open your browser, media center, or do other customizable options listed in the software. One of my favorite features of the software is the ability to check battery life and you can display battery life in percentage or ammount of days left. Which also leads to my other favorite feature it comes with a rechargeable battery cell, the thing that turned me off from a lot of other wireless devices was that they used AA or AAA batteries. Over time that leads to using a lot of batteries or atleast making sure you had 2 sets of rechargeables to cycle through.
Usage wise, this device takes some time to get used to, if you have a smartphone think about how foreign it first seemed and then how second nature it became to use. Once you get used to the device you'll find yourself switching the tracking pad modes and hittin shortcuts without thinking about it, but for a while you will kind of struggle. I probably wouldn't use it for chatting, but it's great for web surfing and doing other basic operations.
In conclusion, I'd highly recommend this for anyone who has a tv hooked to a computer that you use for media. As I said in the beginning the price is a bit steep even when on sale, but you pay for the convenience of having a self contained input device. Though I definitely wouldn't say this is a mandatory or necessary item for an HTPC, but if you have the money to spend I'd say go for it.
Customer Review: Two years now and still love it
Summary: 5 Stars
I've had this now for almost two years, and while Logitech had to replace it with a new one (and it was a brand new unit, not a refurb), that doesn't lessen my favorable review.
I use this for my Media Center PC, in addition to a Logitech Harmony One remote. I also have the Mac thin bluetooth keyboard and trackpad for when I need to do "real" typing since this really isn't a good way to do normal typing.
My Harmony One is what I use mostly for the day to day work, but I don't like the phone style letters, for example when I'm trying to jump in my movie list. So for that I pull out the Dinovo Mini so I can actually type the name. I also use this for when I'm redoing the media center recorded shows, to convert them to an MP4 format to save space for my 7 year old's cartoons, to copy and paste the show titles from the descriptions into the file name for when I file them into the appropriate folders.
The construction is surprisingly well done, and a striking appearance. So small it fits easily anywhere, and the battery really does last a month between charges. Hinge is easy to open, and the buttons have a great positive tactile click so you know when one is depressed. I almost never have any failed input with them.
The touchpad works great, but you may want to increase the movement rate so that you don't have to slide your thumb over and over and over to get it to move across the screen. Even at about a 18 to 20 foot distance, with the receiver plugged into the back of my mac mini that I use to run Windows 7 Media center, behind everything in the cabinet, the signal is great.
Makes it so nice to be able to minimize my media center window, hop into internet explorer, and check my mail and such, or to jump into Explorer and look for that file I wanted that's on my home server.
There are only three programmable buttons for actions you can set yourself (I set mine to close program, open IE to my mail, and restart system), and one thing I found with the newer revision is that what used to be the green media center hot button in the bottom right is no longer media center, and cannot be changed, it just opens up media player... I assume that is because more people use it for things other than media center, so they didn't want to lock it to one particular less popular app... But it would have been nice if we could've changed that when desired.
It can also be used for the PS3 but I haven't tied it into mine at all as I really have no use for a keyboard on my PS3.
Every month or so I plug it in overnight to the charger, and I'm set for quite a long stretch of use.
My original had to be replaced about the 11 month mark because the mouse button no longer was working. Logitech was very good about the return, and I had a new one within a few days, no problems and no charge. This one has now gone for that long and a little more, and the button still works fine.
I did get the bluetooth mac keyboard and touchpad for when I want to do real computer things on here, but those are too large and impractical for just media use. And while this works well for media center or HTPC use, it's still not as practical as a full fledged remote due to the lack of programmability, but while it may not be my main input device for my normal viewing, it is essential for the times when I need to put down the remote and use a mouse. I've had many other keyboards I used before this, including the microsoft media center one that uses the IR conector, but none have been as convenient and easy to use as this for those times.
Well worth the price.
Customer Review: PC Media Control Center That Doubles as a Keyboard
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
The coolest part of this device is how it lights up when you touch any key, as well as the Blue Tooth USB receiver that is no larger than 2 USB jacks. So there isn't any bulky receiver taking up valuable desk space, or laying on the floor. The Lithium Ion battery only needs to be charged once per month. That enables you to use it as a standalone item, just like any remote. To charge it you plug it into the included AC adapter. A cradle would take up valuable space so this is an excellent solution.
For HTPC (Home Theater Personal Computer) it makes an excellent remote control center. It also has a dedicated (Windows) media control center button. By the way I was reading a high end professional review, and they touted Windows Vista Home Premium with SP1 with the Media Center built right in, as being the best application; simplest and easiest to use for automatically recording TV, playback etc. With the advent of the TV converter boxes coming out right now, converting high def into analogue so you can use it on any TV. Get the $40 coupons out right now so you only pay 10 or 20 dollars for the converter. With a signal as weak as a set of rabbit ears, you get satellite level digital quality video and sound. Check it out. That is fodder for another post.
I love the Logitech DiNovo mini, but along with the small size, come some limitations. They keyboard is small enough to fit in the palm of your hand, but if you have hopes of finding the home row, and typing the way you do on a regular keyboard, forget it. Twin thumbs works fine of the keyboard, but a thumb is not the ideal appendage to use on the mouse dial. This is a combo pad with glide over mouse cursor movement control, and a complete rocking will make tab choices. The dial is large for such a small unit, but a wide thumb approaching the surface at an angle doesn't give the unit much to go on. A finer tipped impression is what is required. I find it a lot easier to use the mouse surface with an index finger, giving me a finer tipped point, then it is to try and use the wide side of my thumb. It works as well as any laptop mouse control device I have ever used. I'm an independent mouse person myself, and use Logitech MX Revolution Cordless Laser Mouse which is the best mouse I have ever used. It is a revolution. It accurately senses everything for movement. I can do microsurgery using only the cloth arm of my easy chair. I could talk about that for an hour. Back to the DiNovo mini.
I noticed that some were critical of the deep tinted see through cover being made out of plastic. If it was open, and someone sat on it that could cause it to break. This unit is more like fine China to me, then something I would be tossing around the room. I admit the surface looks shiny and smooth, and could be apt to scratching over time. Logitech includes a nice wiping cloth to keep it clean.
The PC is rapidly becoming the media center for watching TV, recording, and playing music, DVD playback, video recording and YouTube production, the list goes on. This mini makes a nice addition to your arsenal, and is the first thing I grab when I want to pull a gloat over my system. It currently is the number one selling item in multimedia electronics, according to the Amazon sales rank at the time this review was written. Highly recommended.
Customer Review: It's not a bad concept
Summary: 3 Stars
My friend bought a diNovo mini and it seemed like that must have accessory for a home theater. I bought one for myself and I felt I had to write a review. While the design and concept of the diNovo mini are good, there are a few concerns that have me rethinking my wireless keyboard. The diNovo mini is a great little keyboard...when it works. I find that I have syncing issues from time to time. These can easily be fixed by pressing the red button on the back of the diNovo mini and the red button on the adapter. Not big issue until you have to do it a few times within the hour. This means I have to get up to do it. I'm not trying to be lazy here, but it does get tedious reaching to the back of your computer to do this every time.
If you type a lot and/or type fast, then the diNovo mini is not for you. I know the layout of a keyboard as I can type 80 words per minute+, but I kept finding myself with my eyes glued to the keyboard. It doesn't help that there are no indications of your 'home keys'. A simple dot on the 'f' and 'j' keys would have made typing so much easier on the diNovo mini. Also, trying to type in the dark can be a nightmare, especially if you are punctual. The keys light up which is a very cool feature, but there is no light button and you can't specify how long the light stays on for. This means that you must press a key in order for it to light up. Certain keys like the ' and the " do not light up which means typing "don't" and "quotation marks" is painful in the dark.
I kept finding that my keys stopped working, however the trackpad continued working. There are times when I would have to plug in a usb keyboard just to chat. Again, a re-sync would fix this and the keyboard would come back every now and again. I also found that at times, the trackpad would go completely ballistic when using it. There were other times when the cursor would be delayed which got really annoying. The right click on the diNovo mini is oddly placed (by pressing fn and the the OK buttons together). Also what I think is a deal breaker on this device is that there is no scroll option. There are page up and page down buttons, but those can get annoying on certain webpages when they don't align up. Dragging anything with this keyboard is pointless. The trackpad doesn't allow for lengthy drags of anything.
This keyboard isn't all bad. When it does work, it is a dream to play with. The fact that it is small is convenient too for home theaters. Imagine using a Blackberry Bold to control your computer. If you can master the keyboard, then you should be pleased. Typing from the keyboard isn't impossible, although I still prefer a normal keyboard for long typing (ie. this review). The battery life on this device is amazing, although it isn't as good as Logitech claims. It is also rechargeable and usable again in 10 mins or so which is nice. You can also use this keyboard on a PS3 although, I have not tested this.
I wouldn't recommend this keyboard if you are used to a normal keyboard and if you chat a lot online. This keyboard is a good concept providing you aren't too fussed about some of the problems that it might give you.
Customer Review: By Far The Best 'Mini' Keyboard on the market and it works with the 360!!!
Summary: 4 Stars
Before I get into the pros I'll jump right into the con (only have one) The biggest flaw of the keyboard is the click pad.It is usable but the accuracy of it is not spot on. For instance if you are in a browser and you want to close out of the browser and you navigate with the click pad sometimes the click pad will put you in the general area but not directly on target which can be a bit frustrating at times. No matter what settings you adjust or edit this is the one flaw that can not be corrected. You have to take another second to correctly place the cursor where it needs to be and even that can get tricky. If you know that going in you will be just fine.
As for the pros you can read all of the other reviews---it's small, sexy,sleek, innovative and great for HTPC setups. I'm using it alongside the Acer AspireRevo AR1600-U910H Black/White Desktop PC (Windows XP Home)I have loaded HTPC software such as XBMC, Mediaportal, and Boxee. However, Boxee seems to work the best and everything seems to work seamlessly with the dinovo mini. The clickpad and directional pad actually shine in this setting.
From here I had to test the device to see if the two big rumors were true. The first rumor was that this keyboard didn't have a scroll wheel. That rumor is true. However, the rumor that the keyboard doesn't have a scroll feature is false. If you are in a browser or any other window that has a scroll bar on the right hand side you simply need to switch the click pad to the directional pad (arrow keys with green backlighting)and HOLD the direction in which you want to scroll and voila it will automatically scroll. That way you don't miss/skip certain information as you would with the page up and and page down buttons.
The next rumor was that this device didn't work with Mac systems (which mac users found out fairly quickly it does work with mac). However, Xbox 360 users were left out in the cold. Well I'm here to let you know that the device does work with the 360 as well. Unless My 360 has special powers (which I doubt it does)you just need to stick the usb stick that comes with the keyboard into the 360 while still in pc mode and you have a remote and keyboard for your 360.
Overall, this is a great keyboard that I would recommend for anyone that has a tolerance level for a spotty touch pad. With that being said, I give this product a rating of 4 stars. I also haven't had any issues with the bluetooth losing connection or any of the other issues mentioned in other reveiws other than what I have mentioned here. Nevertheless, as with any product every user will have their own experiences. I'm just glad my experiences thus far have been good ones. Therefore, I can't wait until Logitech releases part two of this product (that is if they ever do). If not I will certainly be happy with this purchase and I suspect you will be too if you take that 'chance'. Until next time my amazon friends!
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