Customer Reviews

Griffin Technology PowerMate 1040-PMT USB Multimedia Controller and Input Device (Aluminum, PC/Mac)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

If so, the Griffin PowerMate is just the thing for you. In addition to being a nearly-neverending source for suggestive yet lame humor, it's also the first "cool" control peripheral I've bought that actually proves useful (he says, looking meaningfully at a closet full of various Microsoft controllers that all seemed like really good ideas at the time).

The PowerMate is, basically, a knob. A big, machined aluminum knob that looks like it fell off an expensive piece of studio equipment. It sits on a slightly rubbery translucent base that gives it excellent grip (on my glass desktop at least). There are two blue LEDs hidden in the base, more of which later. The USB cable is somewhat dinky (maybe 18" long) but it does come with an extender that adds another 3' or so. The desk footprint of the unit is tiny - it's maybe 2" across.

The knob works with all recent versions of Windows, MacOS 9 and MacOS X. I've only tried it with the last of these, so your mileage may vary, but by the looks of the manual the only thing missing when used with Windows (and with some types of Mac) is the "soft power on" feature. Push the knob and the machine starts up. Note that this only seems to be a feature that works on recent PowerMac G4s, if the document is to be believed, and even then only if the PowerMate is plugged directly into one of the machines USB ports (i.e. not into one of the keyboard ports, or a hub).

Both Windows and Mac versions of the software are "application sensitive". This means that you can define specific behaviors for the knob when specific applications have window focus.

The default behavior is to turn the volume up and down, while pressing it mutes/unmutes the sound. If that was all there was to it I'd have been unimpressed - I've got keys on my keyboard to do that. However, it comes with default mappings for a number of applications (iTunes, iMovie, Internet Explorer) that changes its function to be something more suitable.

You can map any of a number of actions (left turn, right turn, click, click and left turn, click and right turn) to generate either an arbitrary repeated keypress, a cursor movement or to instruct the application to scroll up or down. The rate at which the PowerMate generates keypresses can be varied, as can the knob's sensitivity. So, for example, in Internet Explorer turning the knob scrolls up and down the document while clicking pops up the "Open Location" dialog, while in iTunes you have control over the volume (which is separate from the system volume control) and clicking plays/pauses the music.

What's really nice is that you can change these settings, and add new ones for your own applications. I rarely change the volume in iTunes, so I mapped that to the "click and turn" actions, and set the normal turning of the knob to scroll up and down the list of songs in my library. Note that you may need to twiddle with the repeat rate to make using the knob "comfortable" - I found that unless the repeat rate was set to the slowest possible, I tended to overshoot the song I was trying to select.

I've also added settings for Mozilla (specifically for scrolling up and down, clicking the knob to open a new tab, and I've mapped the click and turn actions to the back and forward buttons) and I've got plans to map most of the major applications I use. In short, if you've got an application that has keyboard shortcuts for any sort of scrolling or slider (or even for any sort of button you may want to hit repeatedly), you can use the PowerMate to do it.

Turn it into a zoom knob in Photoshop, or use it to control brush size - obviously there are limits in tools like this where you've got several thousand keyboard shortcuts and only five actions to map them to. I'm not sure if you can connect two PowerMates simultaneously, but if you can this could combine with Photoshop to provide the makings of the world's most expensive Etch-A-Sketch.

There's also apparently a "game mode" where each turn a single keypress rather than a stream. The manual suggests it could be used for Tempest or Space Invaders, my mind suggests it might (in regular mode) have possibilities for strafing in FPS games.

Oh, I almost forgot about the glowing. As I mentioned right at the start of the review, the translucent base hides two blue LEDs. When used as a volume control the brightness of the base directly reflects volume level. The rest of the time it can either be a solid blue or (settable from the control panel) set to pulse at a user specified rate. Pulsing is also the default behavior (on my PowerMac at least) when the machine is in sleep mode. The combination of the power light on my PowerMac, my Studio Display and my PowerMate all pulsing on and off in sync is quite impressive in a darkened room. Clicking the PowerMate adds to the ways you can wake a sleeping system too.

All in all, a really nice little gizmo with a bunch of different uses at a reasonable price (it might seem expensive compared to, say, a mouse, but you're talking nicely machined aluminum here, not cheap plastic), to say nothing of the sophistication such phrases as "my knob glows blue in the dark" can add to conversation at dinner parties.

I really enjoy having this controller attached to my OS X iMac - the blue glow is very cool, and everyone who sees it says "Wow, what's that for?".

However, it's not as useful as I hoped it would be. I like to use iMovie and Final Cut Pro a lot, and hoped that the Powermate would work as a jog-shuttle contoller for quickly selecting frames and edit points. Well, the Powermate control software does allow mapping of keys to the left/right movement of the Powermate, but it's not quite enough to make it super useful. You can't set edit points for example, and the frame advance and rewind isn't very fast or easy to use.

Yes, it does make a great volume control for iTunes. BUT the nature of the Powermate is that it controls either the entire system or a specific application depending on how you have set it up, so it's possible to get confused and start scrolling through a webpage rather than adjusting the volume as expected. And don't forget that iTunes and the computer as a whole have separate volume settings - which one are you adjusting?

After a month or so of use, I find I use the Powermate to do these things:

1. Wake up my iMac when it's in Sleep mode
2. Impress friends with it's pulsing blue glow.
3. Er, that's about it.

It's still cool, but if you want a shuttle controller for video work, buy a dedicated shuttle controller, not the Powermate. If you enjoy having a lump of machined metal that glows on your desk (like I do) the Powermate is still worth getting.

Note: the driver software for the Mac was recently updated to version 1.5, which addresses some issues I listed above. For example, it's possible to make the Powermate ONLY work as a volume control, and avoid some confusing behavior.

I bought the Powermate a week ago and am very happy with the hardware. It looks great, it feels great, it works great. It is a little light -- tends to move around on the desk a little more than I'd prefer. But overall, I'm happy with the hardware. However, the software had been a problem.

In looking through the web, it seems that a lot of other people have software problems with the Powermate. In my case, the Powermate isn't seen at boot-up and requires unplugging and replugging the USB cable. This action (re)loads the driver which didn't get loaded at boot-up. But sometimes it does. Hit or miss...


To see if it was a driver issue, I downloaded the latest driver from the Griffin web site, version 1.5.3D for Windows. Other than the unplug/replug problem, everything else seems fine. I'm using the Powermate to control my HTPC so I use volume up/down, Mute, the long click for DVD Pause (space bar), and click+turn to change the channel up/down on my HDTV tuner in my HTPC.

Note that I am running WinXP SP2 and other people have reported problems with the Powermate and WinXP.

Also note that Girder is a popular remote driver for many classes of devices. However, I couldn't get the Girder driver to work with the Powermate using Girder4 and latest Girder Powermate plugin. Other people also reported similar problems with this also.

I've emailed the Griffin support people a couple of times but so far they have not replied. It appears that other users have had similar experiences with Griffin's poor customer service.

What I would like to do is have 2 Powermates, one on each side of the couch, so that my wife and I can control the muting of our HTPC. Macs were shown with 2 (and even 4) Powermates using the new version 1.6 driver, but Windows is still at version 1.5.3D of the driver on the Griffin web site.

So I found the iMON Knob which is a similar device, but not as nice looking. It is also available here on Amazon. I don't know if I can have two iMON Knobs, but at this point I'm pretty sure that I can have one iMON Knob and one Powermate. Anyway, I'll post those results once I have the iMON Knob in-hand.


The bottom line is that the Powermate will either work great or it won't work at all.

= = = = UPDATE

I've now had the Powermate for 2 weeks and the iMon Knob for several days (see my iMon Knob review here on Amazon). The Powermate and the iMon work fine together. I am much happier with the iMon's software quality, but I still like the Powermate hardware better. But for now, one of each is working fine attached to my HTPC. The Powermate software is still flakey at boot-up and I have to unplug/replug the USB cable. Also, Griffin's support has been nonexistant -- I've tried emailing and telephoning. SoundGraph (the iMon folks) have much better support.

So if you need two knobs attached to one computer, 1 iMon Knob and 1 Powermate works fine; wth the known problems with the Powermate's driver at bootup.

This was among the best USB controller devices I've ever used. I've had it since Mac OS X 10.2 days. However as time went on and driver updates for this device became less frequent, it became unstable. Griffin has not updated the PowerMate driver software for 2 years. Their FAQ support page for this device has not been updated for that long as well. And now it is at a point where some features work and others don't. Sort of a hit or miss scenerio. Forget about getting this device to work on the new MacIntels. Oh Griffin, where art thou. I guess they are lost in the world of iPods. For that is all they develop for these days.

This has got to be the coolest thing I have bought in the past year. Beautiful brushed aluminum knob that is just the right size for normal adult human hands. The bottom is a translucent rubberized plastic that does not slip across your work surface when you're turning the knob, but it is easy to move. It's well weighted and it feels sturdy, not like a flimsy piece of plastic.

Two blue LEDs inside give the translucent base a beautiful Mac-esque glow. The Powermate is compatible with Mac OS 9, Mac OS X, Windows XP, Win 2000, Win ME & Win 98.

Great for multi-tasking - use one hand for your mouse, while the other hand spins the knob. The knob can also be 'clicked.'

The Powermate can be programmed (comes with a CD w/ software to program it) to perform varying functions in different programs... from adjusting the volume to scrolling up, down or left, right.

This is a fine piece of industrial art that's also functional. You'll feel like you've traveled forward in time - this is a cool space-age looking doo-dad and it is a very very handy input device.

So many people are probably baffled by this device. They think it is just a knob that does nothing but look cool, but these people are WRONG. You can do so much with this device. It has per-application settings, so you can have one setting for iMovie and another setting for the Finder, etc... You can have this device alter your sound volume, scrub through movies, perform commands. For example, you navigate through your iTunes library. The software is so open-ended, you can have a click simulate a key combo. The software even distinguishes between click and "long click."

I've owned this item for about 6 months now and love it.

It's become an invaluable accessory for my PC Setup alongside a Wacom tablet.

The design looks much like the volume dial found on audio receivers but does much more.

I'll start off by saying that I use this on Windows XP (since people seem to have mixed reactions from different Operating Systems) and found it very easy to configure.

Once installing the included software you're able to assign program-specific functions to each 'button' on the device. At first glance it looks as if it just turns left or right but it actually has 3 additional input options: Click (pressing down the center of the device), Click and Left (Click the button down and (while holding it) rotate it left) and Click and Right. 5 Functions total which is a nice start for most programs.

As I said, you assign specific functions to each program meaning that in iTunes it can be a volume control (using left and right) and song control (Click + Left or Right), in IE it can be used to scroll up and down, in Windows photo viewer it can zoom in/out, in video editing applications it can be used as a jog dial, etc..

I use mine mainly as a volume control, jog dial and zoom tool for photoshop. I find that it helps greatly with these applications (more than you would actually assume) - being able to use this in one hand and a Wacom tablet in the other while working in Photoshop has greatly increased my productivity in the application. The volume control works great for me since my PC audio is connected to a surround sound system across the room and lets me adjust volume levels without switching back and forth between programs.

The blue light is very nice looking and can be customized (such as off when turned to the left (or the volume is off) and full brightness when turned all the way up - it can also be programmed to 'pulse' on and off. The design of the device is also very sleek for its selling price. I could see an apple version similar to this selling for 3-4 times the price easily.

With that said, there is a problem with it. For some reason, whenever I reboot my PC the device acts as if its not plugged in, causing me to unplug and reconnect it each time. I dont reboot often (maybe once a week) so the hassle isn't too bad - for people who reboot daily or multiple times per day, this can be a real deal breaker. Others seem to have the same problem and I havent found any fix for it yet.

With this issue aside, it works perfect for what I need it for. Even as just a volume knob for my uses would have been a nice investment - the fact it does so much more is just fantastic!

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UPDATE 11/02/2007:

After getting my new Vista PC last month, I was interested in how well this device would work. Fortunately Griffin has released a "beta" version of the software for Vista (and XP), and so far it runs much better than the previous versions.
The software itself looks a little different but works much like the original version. The only 2 features that I really noticed are that you can now run multiple Powermates on one system (so if you want one as a volume knob as well as one for a jog-dial, you can do this now (I believe - the software shows "Powermate 1" and "Powermate 2" customization)). The other (and more useful) difference is that the thing actually works now!
What I mean by that is that it will now start automatically with the PC (the big gripe before was everytime you restarted the PC you needed to unplug and plug back in the powermate or else it wouldn't work). This seems to be fixed now, but did bring in a new problem with it:
When you first use the Powermate after letting it sit idle, it takes a second to "wake up" and perform the action. This means that if you quickly turn the volume all the way down it will take a second before making the adjustment. If you change the volume again afterwards it will work fine in real-time as long as you don't leave it idle for more than a few minutes (then it will 'sleep' again and take a second to perform the action you wanted).

UPDATE 11/09/07:
Wow, Only 1 week after my last update and Griffin has released an update to the software fixing almost all of the issues I had (such as the delay in 'waking up').

No response from Griffin Tech support. Very sad.... great product if it worked with my Mac.... but it does not....

I bought this Powermate USB universal controller and installed it on my Dell running XP Professional. My initial reaction: Awesome, but a total waste of money. It is hard to give a low rating to something that looks so cool, but honestly, functionality and software make or break a product. I should have waited for improved software. As the other reviewers have articulated, it works great as an expensive pulsating brushed-aluminum volume control, but that's about it. [the price] for a pulsating volume control seems unreasonable.

Software: I wish Microsoft wrote the driver and software for this controller and created native messages (like the wheel mouse) for this so quality applications could be written. The software 1.4.1 is very hard to use and surely NOT what you would expect in the XP world. The downloaded driver is not signed for XP and XP pops the usual equivalent of "install at your own risk" warning along with the "older drivers may not work with XP". User interface needs a lot of work. It needs an Apply button badly. I thought it will be an excellent controller in the Microsoft (Visual .Net) development environment to switch between numerous documents I usually have open. I set it up to do that by using (Ctrl+F6 and Ctrl+Shift+F6) but, I couldn't get Ctrl+F6 to work consistently. Also, Powermate does not support key chording (e.g. Ctrl+K followed by Ctrl+P) a widely used feature in a number of Development environments, DV editors and keyboard intensive applications. The settings, user and computer actions could have easily been shown in a tree view so all are visible. The current user interface requires a lot of clicks to setup. The driver does not support multiple Powermates. The controller sends messages to the application's main window; it would have been a lot more useful, if they had sent it to the control with focus, similar to how the wheel on the mouse works. Powermate controller needs the rotary application launcher similar to what Sony sells with their jog control. It it very simple to write such an application, I wonder why it was not included.

Customer service: Professional and courteous; Replied to my question about multiple Powermates within a day.

Although the PowerMate looks cool, it was designed for equally-cool Apple computers. There are some driver problems in WinXP where the PowerMate works only intermittently--it will randomly stop responding, and will only resume operation if the USB cable is unplugged/replugged.

When it works, it does what it should. If you are a WinXP user however, you can't rely on it actually working.