Logisys Remote Multifunction Panel

Performance:

Another problematic item we found with the Logisys Remote Multifunction Panel was the length of the different cables. The length was substantially shorter than we had anticipated, so we installed the 5.25" panel in the following system:

Initially, when we had found the broken cable on the antenna receiver, we were expecting to break out the soldering iron in order to make the repair. Surprisingly, we only needed to twist the wire around the connector in order to make a solid connection, and then the remote control worked flawlessly. On this remote, there are merely two buttons, one for turning on/off the computer and then the second button is used to restart the computer. As were were interested in the range of this remote and receiver, we were capable of moving roughly five meters away while still being in the same room before the signal began to cut out. Unfortunately, on the motherboard we were using there was no Firewire connector so we were unable to use the IEEE-1394 ports on the Logisys panel. When within the receiver range, we were able to instantly turn on, restart, and turn off the computer. After the system was on, we found the temperature gauges to report fairly accurate readings compared to a WinMax Global thermal probe which was connected to one of our multimeters. The fan controller also worked great, although we'd appreciate the ability to control multiple fans.

Conclusion:

Even though there are still several significant flaws left in this pre-production Remote Multifunction Panel, Logisys engineers still deserve to be applauded for an innovative job they've done on this multifunction panel. Some of the flaws included no support for 24-pin motherboards, extremely short cables, lack of fan controlling, and no reset/power pass-through connectors. We hope Logisys will be able to address all of the issues we've mentioned today by the time the Multifunction Panel reaches full production or in future revisions for this product.

Pros:

· Attractive temperature gauges
· Accurate temperature readings
· Easy setup
· Remote control functions

Cons:

· Short cables
· No 24-pin motherboard support
· Fan controller only supports one fan
· No fan thermal controlling support
· No reset/power pass-through connectors