NAMM 2017: PageFlip Dragonfly Page Turner Review

Aloha!

Sorry this post is a little late, but I wanted to share a little about a cool product I tried out at the 2017 Winter NAMM show in Anaheim. At this show, the founders of PageFlip introduced their new Dragonfly 4-pedal controller, and after seeing it I was definitely impressed.

The Dragonfly is a device that helps musicians manage their sheet music and chord charts by simple pedal clicks. I first saw similar products in action at a stage show in Las Vegas, and I loved the idea of being able to view the music on a tablet and control the page turns wirelessly. After speaking with the founder of PageFlip I had a lot better idea of what was going on, and I was very impressed.

PageFlip is based out of New York City, and they were founded in 2002 by people with backgrounds in occupational therapy and engineering. They were not happy with what was on the market and sought to develop better page-turning technology that was more affordable. Their products are a godsend to people with disabilities and musicians, and over the years they have refined their products to be easy-to-use, versatile, durable and quiet.

The latest product is the Dragonfly, which can connect via Bluetooth or USB to your iPad, Android device, or computer. To make this work you will need a compatible app on your device, and there is a huge list of apps on the PageFlip website (a few of the popular ones are ForScore, OnSong, and Newzik). You will also need digital versions of your music, and there are plenty of services out there that can scan your music in if you cannot figure out how to do it yourself. This unit has four pedals that can be programmed to do pretty much whatever things you would like, such as turning pages, switching songs, volume control, and control of multimedia content. Here is a list of Dragonfly features from PageFlip:

- compact 4-pedal design with standard dual pedal footprint

- four illuminated pedals for use in dim locations

- five programmable pedal modes for a completely personal experience

- 30-minute inactivity period before entering sleep mode

- wireless (Bluetooth) or wired (USB) connectivity options

- silent operation

- sturdy, hefty design for durability

- operates for about a year using two AA batteries (or AC adapter)

I had a chance to try out the DragonFly at the show, and it worked marvelously. The pedal has a very sturdy feel to it, and the pedals are laid out logically. The pedals have a nice feel and there is no annoyingly loud click when they are selected.

For $129, the Dragonfly is a great deal, and it includes a one-year warranty and the excellent PageFlip customer service. If you are working in the orchestra pit or on stage it is a must-have product, and if you have limited use of your hands it would be a great way to be able to still read your favorite books or control your computer. By the way, if you do not need to control as many functions there are some less expensive models in their line-up, so you might want to poke around their website some to see what you really need.

I think the PageFlip Dragonfly is a really cool and useful product, and I am going to purchase one of these pretty soon. For more details or to see their full line of products, head on over to pageflip.com

Mahalo!