The shrinking of technology has made it easier to possess something that used to be big in the size of your hands.  There is very little that doesn’t benefit from being repackaged into a smaller form, except maybe a computer monitor for example.  But by that same argument, monitors have shrunk their width in order to keep up with the times.  Numark’s Mixtrack Edge sounds like something you would name a cellular phone – but the title is very fitting.  It’s thickness has been shrunk down into a size the thickness of an iPad.  Who doesn’t love the size of an iPad, right? As quoted from other review websites who are taking a look at this new device, the Mixtrack suffers from obvious problems that cannot be ignored.  One of them is the lack of onboard EQing.  If you are going to include all the tools to fade channel to channel, why would you omit an important part like the EQ dials?  This means a DJ will have to use a mix of virtual and hardware controls, instead of being able to use one or the other.  Regardless, if you don’t mind the lack of EQ’s, it’ size and price make it something to consider. http://www.digitaldjtips.com/2013/04/numark-mixtrack-edge/

The idea of using some sort of gaming controller as MIDI controller is nothing new.  There have been many successful attempts by regular hackers to use a Nintendo Wii guitar or a Wiimote to act as a gesture interpreting device for MIDI control.  The best part is that these amateurs have shown just how easily a technology can be adapted, given the right set of tools and a good chunk of time.  You would think that these companies are watching the amateurs and their interaction with the gear they’ve produced – and they have.  For the first time in a while a company has actually designed a product around a well known hack; turning a MIDI controller into a “controller” in the gaming sense of the word. The Numark Orbit is a playful step in the right direction and looks like something that belongs with a gaming system rather than a DJ setup.  Still, there are many that see the value in a controller than doesn’t have to be placed on the table to use.  As an added bonus Numark has thrown in a piece of software to help map the device for visual learners.  Toy or not, this device is definitely remarkable. http://www.digitaldjtips.com/2013/04/musikmesse-2013-numark-orbit-demo/

The growing trend in MIDI controller production is the reduction of its final size.  We want a controller that is usable and robust, but we also want it to be as unobtrusive as possible.  Those two ideas can exist in the same realm of possibility – but careful that has to be taken in order for it to be executed properly.  Perhaps the simplest form of this idea is the monome.  A pad that only contains buttons like the Novation Launchpad comes at a meager size and does not take too much desk real estate.  However, the mere shrinking of the internals and pad buttons is all you really need to make it smaller.  Does this make it a better controller? That is tough to say, since you’ve essentially made the controller harder to use (although you could argue that the buttons are now more accessible).  Once the pads reach a certain small size, they become harder to find and harder to use without accidental error.  The QuNexus has been slimmed down into a smaller laptop sized version – but the keys and pads are well within a usable size.  The appeal here is to musicians who are used to the piano key layout. http://createdigitalmusic.com/2013/07/qunexus-slim-expressive-keyboard-in-exclusive-hands-on-cdm-review/

One of Akai’s hottest selling MIDI devices is, believe it or not, a laptop MIDI controller.  Even though they hold the crown for the tightest drum machine pads out there – they cannot help but explore other territory that is modern and new.  Their LPD8 is one of the most recognizable MIDI controllers out there, and it is well known for its sleek look and clean layout.  You get nothing expect two rows of four pads each – which isn’t much consider what other controllers often come with, but it is enough for many.  They liked that design so much that they even decided to take a MIDI concept and turn it into an all-in-one device that could handle tasks without a computer. Imagine the LPD8 with an internal computer and memory slot for samples and a screen.  This is exactly what the MPX8 is.  There probably isn’t such a machine out there that gives off the same small footprint.  It is rather limited when it comes to audio ports and inputs, and some have complained about the woefully slow SD card connection that can take forever to read data.  It’s a small price to pay for a machine that comes in such a small size, since you cannot have it all. http://createdigitalmusic.com/2013/09/samples-no-computer-99-akai-mpx8-combines-pads-sd-card-midi-and-usb-ports/