Customer Reviews

3Dconnexion SpacePilot - 3D motion controller w/ LCD display - optical - 21 but

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I've now owned my SpacePilot for about a year and use it principally with Autodesk Inventor. I am at my computer all day, every day. I don't know how I ever worked without it. Everything they say about improved productivity is true and in fact may be something of an understated claim.

I seldom use the programmable buttons but I use the orientation buttons (to right of controller knob) and the function keys (to the left of controller knob) all the time. It is robust and has withstood thousands of hours of use with no sign of any wear.

It took no time to become second nature. It is so intuitive that within days it became an extension of my hand. It is ergonomically very comfortable. Between the SpacePilot and my programmable MX Revolution mouse I have most of everything I need in my two hands at all times. I've moved the keyboard back under the monitor and placed the SpacePilot and mouse directly in front of me. For number entry I've placed a number keypad/calculator immediately to the right of my mouse and I seldom need to go to the keyboard.

When Solidworks went to version 2008, I sadly had to say goodby to my classic Spacemouse--an unsupported serial device. The replacement, the 3Dconnexion SpacePilot, is a welcome replacement. The puck control has less mechanical travel than the Spacemouse, which was easy to get used to. The quality of the device is better than I expected from seeing the images. But the most useful improvement to me is the application-context-sensitive button mapping. When you change applications, the SpacePilot updates its LCD screen to show you how the buttons have been remapped for that application. When you go to Solidworks assembly mode, for example, the buttons change so that you can easily go to insert, mate, rotate, etc. Also there is a special button specifically for "Fit", which is a zoom-all command. Very nice, overall, and as with other 3D mice, facilitates two-handed CAD actions.

I work in 3D Studio Max and the space pilot nearly doubles my navigation speed as compared to using the keyboard/mouse. The customizable buttons are nice, I have a regular preset, a rigging preset, and a modeling preset so far. So when I'm rigging a character I can easily pan around the model and select verticies, adjusting their weights using the programable buttons.

The button placements aren't as good as they could be but bearable, you can actually remap ALL buttons on the device for every configuration you have so you might find it easier to remap the ctrl,shift,alt,esc buttons to custom commands.. or the viewport buttons as those are easier to reach while navigating.

Of course for pure fun factor flying around in google earth with it is a joy, but for that you might as well buy the $60 space navigator.

If you need customizable keys for your work as I do then its definatly worth it and makes navigation a breeze.

I got mine here on amazon for only $270, too bad the price is higher now.

Edit: Looks like the price dropped to 220 now, not bad!
Still lacking ZBrush and Mudbox support, hopefully will get one of those soon, probably Mudbox.

The Space Pilot has totally changed my workflow - I love how it enables me to interact quickly and efficiently with my work. Once I learned the button locations and programmed my own shortcuts, my productivity literally doubled overnight.

The device is well made and sturdy - I was concerned at first that my meaty paws would damage the sensitive input knob but after using it for a couple of weeks I now know my worries were unnecessary. The buttons are crisp and solid, the knob is tight and responsive and the screen is easy to read.

The only downside to this input device is its lack of support as a joystick or game input. After using it, I believe it would make a very effective input device for flight simulators and certain FPS games.

Despite this small shortcoming, I think this is one of the most effective peripherals I have ever purchased (aside from my 21 inch Wacom display tablet). If you are a 3D artist or Photoshop user, you will most likely find the Spacepilot 3D a valuable addition to your palette of tools.

Shane Simon
[..]

It makes scene control much more intuitive and natural than using hotkey buttons or even the mouse. The addition of the dynamically-updating LCD button labels enables the Space Pilot to be a benefit across several applications and for casual users that can't remember all the custom button configurations. The device is ergonomically designed and relaxing to use. I found that the custom defined buttons at the top of the Space Pilot required some reaching to be pressed. Overall, it is worth the price if you live in 3D.

I have over several years viewed information etc. of the SpacePilot. When I purchased SolidWorks 2010 I decided that the next hardware would be 3D control, it took a year to purchase. Now that I have the full use of this product - "It is extremely useful and time saving and so easy to use. Anyone who is considering a 3D mouse device, go for the SPACEPILOT Jim Kelly Design Mechanical Engineer.

I have used this product for a number of months. I have found it to be efficient and well laid-out. I like the feel of the buttons. Everything is solid and crisp. I can not think of a reason to rate it anything less than 5 stars. I would recommend this product, at my purchase price, over the Pro. Product works as described and has been used with both Mac and PC.

It's true about what others have said about this 3D mouse, once you've used it and you'll never work without it. With the newer model out, you can find a used one on auction site under 100 dollars. It's well worth it, unless you're left handed.

I recently purchased the spacepilot after obtaining Autodesk Inventor. I have to say first and foremost that the quality of construction is top notch. The spacepilot is well built and very heavy. Everything seemed to work fine until i noticed a problem with the software. Without going into to much detail, basically the software has a mjor bug in it that 3dconnexion hasn't found or fixed yet. Upon calling I was told buy 2 seperate techs that i should just figure out a way to work around it and that they hadn't noticed the glitch until i brought it up. Now forgive me if i'm wrong but for almost $400 i find it hard to believe that something as simple and obvious as the software would work better. Overall the accessory is well built and worked well. But the software was a point i couldn't work around and so i ended up returning the spacepilot.

I gave this one star, because it does work nicely in Windows. However, the company has been very misleading in its list of supported platforms and applications - and if you browse their forums you'll see what I mean - all the inquiries and problems go unanswered. This is why ultimately - this very expensive paper-weight deserves only 1 star. They've been misleading people for over a year and a half now with the dangling carrot of true mac support - but it still hasn't come. Finally Cinema 4d 11 will allow the knob to work - but none of the buttons work - no short cut keys - nothing - so it really does become useless.