Review: Gyration Air Mouse

The US company Gyration pioneered the gyroscope-based motion-sensing technology that has been the basis of several products, including a prototype of Nintendo’s Wii sensor.

The Air Mouse is the first Gyration product to launch in the UK since the company was taken over by French device maker Movea.

The device’s main function is that it lets you control a cursor on screen simply by waving the mouse in the air. This is clearly useful for presentations, but it does take a bit of getting used to; you have to learn to flick your wrist for fine control rather than swinging your arm.

You can also use it as a standard mouse on the desktop. It is comfortable to hold, small and slightly humpbacked, with a little compartment holding a USB wireless dongle that you plug into your
notebook or desktop.

On the underside sits a power switch and a button that you press for mid-air control. There are two ways in which this button can be used. If you hold it down the cursor moves with your hand until you release the button, allowing you to locate the cursor correctly before left- or right-clicking.

Double-clicking the button, however, locks the mouse into mid-air mode, but this can make it harder to click the right spot.

The upper side of the mouse has the usual left and right mouse buttons along with a scroll wheel; in addition there are three other buttons that you can program for different tasks in different applications with the aid of the simple software utility.

This is a lot of buttons for a small device, so you need nimble fingers to take full advantage of it, but the whole thing packs into a neat little bag, making it suitable for travelling. If you’re willing to invest some time learning how to use it, the Air Mouse has some practical uses.