by Spinlock
WhiningDog.NET
12/03/2002

Introduction

Griffin Technology's PowerMate is a USB Multimedia controller & Input Device that allows you to have an extra set of programmable inputs from your standard keyboard and mouse. It can act as a volume knob, control iTunes song playback and much more. In our review, we'll look at the setup, install and functionality of the PowerMate on Mac OS X 10.2 (Jaguar).

The PowerMate comes in a nicely done package that showcases the beauty of the silver knob. The package is fairly light in weight and comes with an install CD, the PowerMate unit, and a USB extension cord. The extension cord runs about three feet in length and is more than adequate to reach to the back of your machine. For my review, I plugged the shorter 22 inch cord on the PowerMate directly into my USB keyboard. The inclusion of the extension cord by Griffin is a very nice tough especially for those of you who have systems sitting further away from your keyboard and desktop. However the length of the PowerMate cord is more than adequate for today's desktop. This is a welcome relief from typically stingy peripherals out there that sometimes only provide 3 inch cables to connect. The PowerMate's cords allow for flexibility in how and where you wish to install you control.

The PowerMate packaging showcases the beautiful control knob	Contents include the unit, install CD and 3ft. USB extension cable

Installation of the Griffin PowerMate is a snap. You can plug in your PowerMate into any standard USB slot and the base of the PowerMate lights up to show you that it's connected. We'll see further into the review that this light can be more than just a cool feature but also a useful indicator as well. The PowerMate install CD comes with manuals and the standard Mac OS X install package which you double click to execute. The installation requires a reboot - overall a simple and painless process. It's important to note that there are also installers for Mac OS 9.x and Microsoft Windows.

The PowerMate install CD	Installation requires a restart

Once you've restarted your computer you'll notice the PowerMate install placed a preference panel in your System Preferences. This is easily accessed from the "Other" category of preferences and makes perfect sense. From here you can configure the various options for the PowerMate including the ability to select features for each application and global settings.

The PowerMate

The PowerMate is lighter than it looks which is a result of it's anodized brushed aluminum construction. The PowerMate looks like a silver knob, reminiscent of the kind you might find on a high-end stereo system. The base of the unit is a rubberized clear material that grips to the surface. I found that the surface wasn't "grippy" enough and tended to slide a bit on my dusty desktop. In addition, the unit's light weight allows it to be moved a bit too easily. You want the PowerMate to be solid and heavy and be like a fixture on your desktop - though it should be stressed that I had a dusty desktop so you may have a different experience.

The PowerMate's knob allows multiple programmable functions. At the global default this is set to controlling the volume on your computer. Turning the knob to the right will increase the system volume and turning the knob left decreases the volume. The knob also is "clickable" by pressing down on the knob. At the default global settings this will mute the volume on your system. The knob can be rotated continuously to the left or right - meaning there is no notion of maximum or minimum. You can continue to turn the knob left even when there is no more sound.

The turn on the PowerMate itself feels a bit slippery. There is little to no resistance on the knob so you need very little torque on the knob to move it. This is probably a preference difference but it was a little bit "slick" in my opinion. I would have probably preferred slight feedback such as a tactile "click" when a degree was reached. Still this is a minor quibble as the volume register on OS X provides an audible "click" when the volume is adjusted. The push-down resistance on the PowerMate gives some resistance - not enough to be tiresome but more than a standard mouse click would be.

The PowerMate and a quarter shown for size comparison

I took a look at the PowerMate in action with iTunes. PowerMate comes with presets for certain popular applications including iTunes, Microsoft Internet Explorer, iMovie and Final Cut Pro. At first glance the PowerMate seems rather limited in what it can control. By default, rotating right increases the iTunes volume, left rotating decreases the iTunes volume and clicking on the button pauses or restarts play.

However, Griffin has cleverly increased the command functions that the PowerMate can respond to. In addition to the controls above, the PowerMate can recognize a click and turn, and a long click. In iTunes, for example, you can advance to the next song by holding down your click and turning to the right. You can also go to the previous song by click + turning to the left. The PowerMate also differentiates between a click and a long click (the length of which is customizable.) When you hold your click and then let go in iTunes, the PowerMate advances to the next song. In the Finder, the long click ejects the CD tray. This clever use of combinations allows the PowerMate to respond to six inputs instead of three. Ultimately the key to the PowerMate is it's ability to be customized across various applications allowing it to control these applications in different ways.

All of the PowerMate's functions are completely customizable. You can set custom setting per application, have them apply globally, map the functions to various keys or control scrolling like a mouse wheel. You can even set it up so that the PowerMate responds in a "Game Mode". As mentioned before, the PowerMate comes with a pair of blue LED's at the base of the unit which cause the rubberized clear base to glow a dark blue color. This can actually be more than eye-candy as you can set the base of the unit to pulse when the computer is in sleep mode. In addition, you can change the rate of pulse from a slow throb to a frenetic flash.

The PowerMate has many setting for controlling its functions	Click on the image for a short .mov file of the PowerMate pulsing - those of you who want to see an avi file - click here

The big question with the PowerMate is if the functionality it proves is worth the $45 MSRP price tag. In short, it really depends on the applications that you will be using. Despite is well-made features and beautiful look, the PowerMate at first glance looks like an expensive control knob from an average users' viewpoint. Out of the box it does fairly simple tasks, but if you sit down and customize it's controls, you'll find that there's more to it than meets the eye. Those doing specialized tasks, such as video editing will find it especially useful for their needs. With it's presets for Final Cut Pro, the PowerMate proves its worth by allowing for fine tuned frame-by-frame advancing using the control knob. Those used broadcast editing suites often miss the job wheel that comes standard in video editing and the PowerMate is a great replacement for it. It's cheaper than the Contour jog wheel and better looking but has less of the functionality. Unfortunately, in games the PowerMate's functionality is limited to some classics such as Pong, Tempest 2000 and old Warlords games. Ultimately what the PowerMate is useful for will depend upon your application suite and how much time you spend with it.

In short, this is a very cool peripheral that Griffin has put together. Sleek and stylish and cool to boot, the PowerMate is something that would be nice to have to show off your system. However it's not something that is an absolute necessity unless you are into video editing or just really really like scrolling and clicking. The key to the PowerMate revolves around customizing it's abilities to the applications that you use on a daily basis. For you Windows users out there, flung will take the PowerMate for a spin later on in the month and provide a look into whether the device proves it's mettle on that platform as well. In the meantime, you should also check out Griffin Technology's website for the PowerMate. There is a nice page showing you various tips and tricks that you can do with the controller.

We'd like to thank Griffin Technology for sending us this unit to evaluate. If you have any comments, suggestions or questions, please post them in our forums.