Hello, my name's Tom and this is Proper Honest Tech.
Naming products, especially in the tech world, is a bit of a hit-and-miss endeavour.
On the one hand, companies like Apple are able to create iconic products like the iPhone or
the Macbook, or even simply name an entire product line something generic like 'Watch',
and still manage to build a brand packed with personality. Meanwhile, companies name their
TVs some of the most boring and immediately forgettable things imaginable. I'm definitely
excited at the prospect of buying an LG OLED 55 G 16 LA 55" Smart 4K Ultra HD OLED TV, but the
name can, quite frankly, get in the bin. Or of course, you could be a company like Eufy who,
when tasked with finding a name for their range of robot vacuums, went with RoboVac. Makes sense!
So, in a way, it's refreshing when an email drops into your inbox asking you if you'd like
to review something called a CheerPod. Even better when you find out that the
company that makes it is called CheerDots, so there's definitely a theme going on here.
Oh, and if you've never heard of a CheerPod before,
I'd be willing to bet money that you wouldn't be able to guess what it is, or what it does.
Luckily for you, you don't need to, as I was very kindly sent one by the lovely
team at CheerDots to try out, which I've been doing for the past few days.
So, let's take a look at this thing in a bit more detail.
CheerDots describe the CheerPod as the ultimate, all-in-one control solution for computer users,
and when we explore what this can do, you'll see why they're referring to it
as such. In a device that's about the size of two packs of chewing gum stuck together,
you've got a wireless mouse, a wireless trackpad and a laser pointer, which by
itself doesn't sound very interesting. But it's the depth of control options available
to you that makes this product stand out from others, which I'll show you in just a moment.
But before we do, let's talk quickly about the looks and size of this thing. CheerDots sent
me a blue CheerPod, I thought I was going to be getting a silver one, but I do like this, it's
a nice looking blue on an aluminium product, and the whole thing looks and feels premium. Looking
on their website, you can get this in Silver and Rose Gold as well. The only thing I'd point out is
that the colour of the photography on the website doesn't really match the real life product, so
this might be something you want to keep in mind. If you're expecting a punchy, almost purple blue,
you might be disappointed when this more pastel, baby blue device arrives on your doorstep.
For perspective, here's the CheerPod pictured next to my iPhone XS,
pictured next to my AirPods Pro
pictured next to a pair of RayBan glasses
pictured next to an SSD drive
I could go on, but you get the idea. It's both tiny and lightweight, 2.6 inches long and only
33 grams in weight, making it supremely portable. On top is a large mouse button with a clear
definition between left click and right click, and on the other side is the optical lens and
a couple of tracks, very similar to the Magic Mouse which is the mouse that I use every day.
Then at one end of the CheerPod is a status LED and a USB C port for charging,
while at the other end you've got the function button and the Laser pointer.
The CheerPod comes in nice packaging, with a rather cryptic piece of card
included which I'll explain in a moment, a USB to USB C cable and an instruction book which,
unfortunately, you're definitely going to want to keep hold of.
CheerPod is compatible, so far as I can tell, with most devices that allow a connection to a
Bluetooth mouse. I've not had a chance to test it with loads of devices, but it does play nice right
out of the box with Windows, Mac and iPad. Connection is as simple as pairing any bluetooth
device, and you can then make amendments to your mouse settings like you would any other bluetooth
mouse. There's no dongle, the mouse works directly with your computer which is a plus,
it's one less thing to carry around with you and of course, one less thing to lose.
So, all pretty standard thus far. Where CheerPods differentiates from it's competition, other than
it's size, is the way in which it allows you to use it as either a mouse or a trackpad, and the
range of multitouch functionality available to you, and this is where that cryptic piece
of card comes in, it's essentially a cheatsheet. For example, jumping back to that function button,
putting it in the middle puts the CheerPod in 'ground mode', which essentially means 'mouse'.
You then, if you're anything like me, grip the CheerPod with your thumb and fourth finger,
pushing around as any normal mouse, and then using your index and middle finger to click.
Scrolling is done with one finger, scrolling up and down on the trackpad element as normal. You
can right click as normal, and if you hold down with 4 fingers and push up or down,
that's the equivalent of a multi touch gesture, allowing you to flick between apps.
Then, if you put the CheerPod into this function, that's called 'Air Mode',
and essentially makes this a portable trackpad. You can hold it in one hand and use your thumb to
move your cursor around the connected screen, you can use two fingers to pinch to zoom,
you can of course click to move to the next slide of a presentation for example,
and if you press and hold the middle left of the trackpad in this mode, you get your laser pointer.
A phrase that I often repeat on this channel, especially with reviews, is that you must consider
your usage case when thinking about whether or not to buy something. In this instance,
CheerDots are pushing this at the business traveller, and you can clearly see why. It's tiny,
rechargeable, looks nice and offers loads of functionality. Plus, if you're the business
traveller who has to spend part of their time standing in front of a room of people presenting
something, a laser pointer and a portable trackpad could come in handy. And I should know,
I spent a decade before I started this YouTube channel travelling all over the world delivering
corporate classroom training, so I know what it's like to sit in an airport bar with your laptop
trying to quickly finish a deck, and having small, portable gear is essential in those instances.
But, another phrase that I can't help but think of with this product is,
"just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should".
And, in this instance, I believe that just because you can create a product that does
everything whilst being absolutely tiny, doesn't mean that you should. Because,
on paper, this is a phenomenal product. Yet, in reality, this is a decidedly average one at best.
The mouse functionality works ok, but it's super limited in what it can do compared to say, a
regular Apple Magic Mouse, which isn't that large, and so I don't think would be all that cumbersome
to take away with you. I found that when using it with my iPad, the mouse worked significantly
smoother than it did when using it on my Macbook, where everything felt a bit stuttery and scatty,
even with the mouse sensitivity turned down. Scrolling up and down through pages was difficult
due to the tiny amount of travel space that your finger has compared to a normal mouse.
I honestly think that, if you're considering this as a mouse, you'd need to be 100% sold on the idea
of owning the smallest mouse possible. If that's your usage case, then this could work for you.
The trackpad function is, in my opinion, worse than the mouse function. It's good enough for
those moments where you're stood up and you want to perhaps quickly click on something during a
presentation. But, the alternative, which is to step over to your computer and use the included
trackpad on your device is inevitably going to work considerably better, and let's face
it, it doesn't look that bad. You can see in this footage, that the CheerPod is about one fifth the
size of the trackpad on my Macbook, and part of the reason why the trackpad on my macbook works
so well is because it's so big. You've got loads of room to play around with multitouch gestures,
versus the CheerPod where, you simply don't. In this instance, I feel like
the CheerPod being so small is actually counter-intuitive to what it's trying to do.
It would be a bit like trying to control your Macbook with the old Siri remote from
Apple TV - it would probably work, but it wouldn't be particularly enjoyable.
It's worth pointing out that, in both ground and air mode, you've got to learn a whole bunch of new
gestures to make the most of the functionality of this thing, the vast majority of which
aren't especially intuitive, hence why that instruction manual and cheat sheet
are so crucial. Perhaps with more practice, I'd be able to more easily recommend this,
but I feel like in this day and age, technology needs to be intuitive.
If I need weeks of practice to make this work, it's probably not for me.
The laser works as, well, a laser. The dot isn't that large,
and it's not all that bright, but it does function as a small, portable laser.
It's a shame, I really wanted to like this product a lot more than I actually do. And, it's not a bad
product as such. It's more a case of it being a jack of all trades, and a master of none.
Because, if you're the kind of person who wants a presentation tool, something to move you
forwards and backwards through a PowerPoint, with a laser pointer for when you need it,
you can buy something for much less than this, that will do that specific job quite a bit better.
Likewise, if you're a travelling laptop user who wants a mouse, you could pick up a small,
yet very functional mouse, again for less money, that will do a better job overall.
I'm fortunate in my line of work, I get sent quite a bit of stuff for free by companies.
When this happens, I have to remember during the review, that I've not paid for the device
in question, and that my judgement on value still has to take cost into consideration,
as most people will of course be buying this. And honestly, at the $99 RRP that the company has for
this, I can only recommend it to people who want a nice looking, yet not particularly functional,
tiny mouse, and are willing to pay a super premium for it. At the $49 price that this is currently
reduced to, looking at the company website, it's definitely easier to recommend, but again to that
very specific niche customer who values size and portability over and above everything else. If
functionality and ease of use is important to you, I think you'd be better off looking elsewhere.
So there you go, my thoughts on the fantastically named CheerPod by CheerDots. Not quite a
reason to cheer in the end, but certainly an interesting little device to play around with.
Thanks as ever for watching, if you found this video useful, do please consider leaving
me a like, and subscribing to my channel for more content like this in the future.
See you on the next video.