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| StealthSwitch |
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The StealthSwitch.. it's package says "The World's First Desktop Cloaking Device", but we will see if our sensors pick up anything worth a Geek's money.
StealthSwitch ReviewProvided By: StealthSwitch What do you Get?The Goodies:It comes in a typical "Open Me if You Dare", indestructible, need the Jaws of life Blister Pack. At first glance it appears to be a simple product, very few parts. There is pretty much the main StealthSwitch unit and then a USB to PS/2 adapter.
What does it Do?Finally someone stands up for the office slacker!If you do anything private on a computer or deal with volatile information; for example hacking into top secret databases ( don't we all do that daily? ) or assigning end of the year payroll bonuses, then you know that sometimes you don't want someone to walk in the room and see what your doing!
This is the very reason a smart individual came up with the StealthSwitch! At the most simple level the StealthSwitch is a physical switch that when pushed will hide all open applications or windows on your screen. Now you Geek's may think "Oh big deal I can do that with the Start+D key" ( Start+D Minimizes all windows ) ,but the beauty of this device is that it does not just Minimize the windows. The StealthSwitch actually HIDES the program completely. It even removes the running programs from the TaskBar! The StealthSwitch can do much more than just hide all open windows. It turns out that it's quite configurable. Using the included software to configure it; Heres a few of the features and options: Features & Options:
Is the StealthSwitch itself, Stealth?Try to say that three times fast. Okay back to the subject, Physically it is a small triangular shaped black "push-switch". It does have a very Stealth look to it and being Black helps it to hide in the shadows.
It is designed to hide under your desk and be pushed with your foot. There are also three small, thin padded feet on the bottom of the unit so it won't scruff your precious floor. The StealthSwitch uses a six foot cord so it can reach most places but you better check that it can reach your foot before you buy it. I think a 9' or longer cord would have been a nice feature. Now I thought to myself, "Why didn't they include sticky adhesives so I can place it on maybe the side of my desk?". After much thinking I realized it really is best to just have it next to your foot, also if its loose then you can just kick it farther under your desk if someone has to peek down there. ( I highly suggest NOT kicking the StealthSwitch or any other gadgets ;] ) If you REALLY want to be stealthy, I would suggest removing the sticker on the bottom of the StealthSwitch that tells you what it is. That why when your nosy, prying, investigating, arch-rival goes snooping around your computer and finds your StealthSwitch; they won't even know what it is. All I know how to do is play MineSweeper, can I operate this StealthSwitch thing?It was very easy to setup and install. The StealthSwitch plugs in to an available USB port, and if you don't have a USB port the unit includes a USB to PS/2 adapter. In the case you don't have a USB port; using the adapter you plug it into the PS/2 keyboard port instead. Where do you plug your keyboard in then? The USB cord is actually split and has a female PS/2 plug. You just plug your keyboard into that and you are all set.
After it's all plugged in, it's ready to go. All you have to do now is install the software and drivers. The drivers and software load quickly. Installation was a breeze.
Immediately after the installation you will see the StealthSwitch icon in your System Tray. If you double click the icon it will open the configuration window. The configuration does not provide every option us Geeks would want but it does have enough options to make the device very useable. For example instead of just hiding all the open windows, you can hide Specific windows or even open an application when you hide all open windows. This enables you to close those 5 games you were playing while at the same time reopening your work application or files. ( I can feel your excitment from here, you solitaire playing, mine sweeping slackers! ) Oh yeah the sweet cloaking sound is very cool. Sounds just like your a Klingon Bird-of-Prey cloaking to get the jump on those Federation goons. You can turn that sound off though, it does get annoying and is a bit odd when someone walks in and they hear a SWOOOSH sound then they see nothing on your desktop. So Does it Work??Yes I have to say it works and it works quite well. Pictures are so much better than words. Observe these before and after pictures of my Desktop.
This is pretty much what happens when you push the switch. All the windows dissappear! If you look real close you will even notice that it hid my custom windows toolbar I had setup on the top of the screen! I also had the main taskbar open so you could see that it even removes the open programs from the taskbar. Another good thing I noticed is the speed. No matter how many programs I had open or what I was doing; it successfully hid all the windows in the blink of an eye. The only delay I experienced is with the Mute Master Volume When Hiding Windows option, the volume would not mute immediately but takes about a full Second. A minor setback - "Hides All Applications"The packaging and web site of StealthSwitch in several places claim that it will close "Any Application". The definition of "Application" in computer science is "A Computer Program with a User Interface". In Fact: It will not close Every application. After extensive testing, I have seen that it will close pretty much any application that resides in a Window. I had no success in closing any application that was Not in a typical window. I could not hide several popular current games that you would play Full Screen such as Battlefield 2, Neverwinter Nights, The Sims 2 and more. **UPDATED** In my correspondence with the inventor of the StealthSwitch, he said that the StealthSwitch will work with any standard windows application. Any application that can use a Minimize Button should work just fine. As for full-screen games, he said the following : "The problem with the full screen games is they use some non-standard video drivers. They generally change the screen resolution along with the drivers. The StealthSwitch was designed to have an almost instantaneous response which we couldn't achieve if we had to reset the resolution and video drivers." He also stated that the next packaging would be changed to read "Works with all Windows Applications" to provide a more correct statement. ************** Review SummaryThe StealthSwitch definitely is a useful tool! It will hide your windowed applications with lightning speed and is very easy to use! The main operation is just pushing the switch with your foot and configuration all happens from a simple configuration window accessed from the system tray. The StealthSwitch will be a boon to many office slackers and people who need computer privacy in general. Some users will find an issue in that the switch fails to hide most full-screen applications but I don't believe the majority of users will need that feature. Despite that simple problem, the StealthSwitch is very practical and useful! At this time of this review the StealthSwitch retails for $40 USD but you can find it many places for $25 - $30. For what is worth, thats not a bad price! TechAbsorbed recommends the StealthSwitch!
FINAL RATINGS
StealthSwitch generously donated their product for review so we could tell you all about it! Read more about the StealthSwitch or buy one at StealthSwitch.com |
Ever get caught playing your favorite PC game at work? Ever need to hide whats on your computer screen quickly? Whatever reason your hiding something, we all have a need for privacy on our computers and now there is a unique gadget that can help us maintain that privacy. 
