 | | | | 3Dconnexion SpaceNavigator Personal Edition USB |  | Brand: 3Dconnexion
Category: CE
Buy New: £37.75
Buy New from £37.75
Avg. Customer Rating:  (8 reviews)
Sales Rank: 2829
Platforms: Linux, Mac Os X, Windows
Media: Electronics
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Shipping Weight (lbs): 3.3
Dimensions (in): 3 x 3 x 2
MPN: 3DX-700029
Model: 3DX-700029
UPC: 821123700291
EAN: 0821123700291
ASIN: B000LB41BM
Release Date: September 6, 2007
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | Powerful Navigation at entry-level price | | • | Move, fly and build in Second Life | | • | Fly through Google Earth and 120+ 3D programs | | • | Manipulate models in Google SketchUp | | • | Powerful navigation for 3D visualization programs | | • | Ideal for 3D designers, students, artists and enthusiasts |
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| Accessories:
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
3Dconnexion has made powerful 3D navigation affordable for architects, artists, students and anyone who wants to enjoy the 3D experience. Ideal for Google Earth version 4 and Google SketchUp, 3Dconnexion's SpaceNavigator works with more than 100 of today's most popular and powerful 3D applications.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 3 more reviews...
 Useful and quite fun too November 27, 2008
Due to the mixed reviews this product has attained prior to now I decided to wait a few weeks before delivering my verdict, I have been using the product probably 3-4 times weekly for a fortnight now and I can say confidently that it was worth the money.
If you are concerned by the lack of support for some 3rd party applications then I would reccomend going to the manufacturer's website and checking to see ahead of time if the mouse is compatible, I knew that the software I wanted to use was compatible and found it to be no problem setting it up. If you make sure everythings compatible before purchase most big worries will be dealt with.
The product itself is weighty and shows very good build quality, I don't doubt that I could shove it in cluttered drawer, drop it etc and it would stand up to it.
The install process was simple and the software that comes with the device gives enough options to tweak the sensitivity and speed to the desired setting easily and quickly. I especially liked the option to call up the setting panel with a click one of the side buttons when I was first tailoring it to my needs. The only issues I had in installation were getting it to work with photoshop, however this was quickly solved by using the HELP file... yes I am as stubborn when it comes to manuals as anybody, but it did help here.
The device worked as I expected it to so I can't complain at all, however in the first week I did see myself occasionally using the keyboard and mouse combo out of habit, now however whenever I want to edit something in 3D space I will be using this handy tool, it can very easily become second nature.
Summary:
It's not a perfect product, mainly due to compatability, but that's easy enough to check before purchase. Build quality and software are great and the ease of use is very satisfactory.
 Don't bother July 30, 2008
0 out of 8 found this review helpful
I bought this as it resembled the mice we use for 3d environments. It's a very good paperweight and .................it's a very good paper weight. Oh and a doorstop
usual hardware/software denial of responsibility May 8, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Bought this device for use with Alibre Design 3D CAD software. Database on 3Dconnexion website states that SpaceNavigator is compatible with Alibre software. It isn't. Some of the functions work, i.e. rotate and zoom, but pan does not. Very unhelpful support when I contacted 3D about this. Was told no help or support for Personal Edition. When I pointed out that this was not a question of support but of fundamental product description and, claimed fitness for purpose I received a very rude and dismissive reply basically blaming Alibre for the problem, despite 3Ds claim on their website that the Navigator worked with Alibre. When questioned about whether they had tested the Navigator with Alibre and what their findings had been. They said that it was up to Alibre to ensure it worked with their software and that 3D had not tested it. They claimed to have had no contact with Alibre but when I looked at Alibre's forum they were aware of the issue and were addressing it, including having contacted 3D for further information.
Very disappointed with what should have been a good product let down by poor customer relations and the usual computer industry line of blaming another party whether hardware or software for product shortcomings
 3ds heaven March 15, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
bought this for 3ds MAX (9) and ONLY 3ds MAX (9) - after all it is specifically designed for 3 dimensions.
it does work on quite a few 2D applications, but I didn't even install the drivers for those so I can't comment - mouse is fine for 2D, in my opinion.
if you have any 3d applications, you will soon get used 2 how this works and once you do, you'll find it one of the best gadgets available for a pc.
bigger and better versions can cost up to 400, but this only cost 37 and I'll make that money back in my first month just because of the time it saves - no more using the mouse for pan / adjust / rotate / adjust / pan / adjust etc. etc. when trying to manipulate vertices etc. on a 3D object - now my mouse does all the adjustments, and the 3dconnexion space navigator does all the panning, zooming & rotating without ever having to lift a finger.
one word of warning - my 3ds Max has issues with VISTA so has to be run as administrator, if that is the same with you then this gadget has also to be set up to run as administrator, and I mean 'defaulted' to run as admin, otherwise settings get lost/blocked by vista.
apart from that issue, which is Vista's fault, I cannot rate this item highly enough - even my college is thinking of buying some now.
if you use 3d, BUY THIS NOW!!!
Very nice hardware, but... February 12, 2008
9 out of 9 found this review helpful
I won't describe again what this thing is or does, as other reviews have covered that. Suffice to say it's a beautiful object and works very well. I use an earlier version at work for 3D CAD work, and can't live without it, and at this price range it's a bargain.
BUT: For some strange reason, the manufacturers don't seem to want to produce a generic driver for this product. That mean it won't work with almost anything you'd want to use it for, even big name programs like Adobe Illustrator which I'd actually bought this for (although it works with Photoshop). The potential uses for the spacenavigator are huge - games, office apps (great for excel), even things like using to control the volume on your music. You could pan it to move line-by-line through a document and then tilt it to go page by page. It would be amazing, a device as groundbreaking as the mouse was.
But you can't do any of these things. A look on 3dConnexions web forum gives the impression that they expect you to write your own drivers for your own applications, which is an incredibly strange business decision. As this thing is, it's wasted. It's a toy, a gimmick, which is an incredible shame as this should be so powerful.
So, what would be a glowing five-star review becomes a mere three. If you have a specific use for this, fantastic, otherwise it's a very attractive blue-glowing paperweight.
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