In Search of the Best Programmable Universal Remote?

option8 asks: "Now that i have more components in my living room than I have room on the coffee table for their remotes, I'm looking into getting a programmable universal remote. I've looked at some of the spiffy touchscreen jobs, like the Philips Pronto and even some of the new color remotes, but it seems to me that spending more for my remote than I did on my DVD player is overdoing it somewhat. Also, all I've found are ones with windows support for building screens. Are there any out there that I can use with Linux?" There was a previous Ask Slashdot on this subject back in '99, anything new to report since then?

Comments

Sony RM-AV 2100

[WinDoze]

Here's a review of my choice. It's not fully programmable in that you can't add or remove buttons, but there are tons of available functions built in. The back-lit LCD is nice. And for $90, I can live with having to use a few mislabelled buttons.

Re:Sony RM-AV 2100

[wizarddc]

I have this, and I love it. You can add/remove buttons, but not make your own buttons. The LCD is split into a grid, and each grid box has about 4 different labels. You can set a button by basically pointing your real remote at this remote, and hitting the button you want to program on the universal remote, and then hitting the button you want to use on your real remote. Besides the number pad and the arrow keys, every other button is programable, even the volume buttons, such as I can set the volume buttons for the sattelite box to use the tv volume. Also, each piece of equipment can have 2 "pages" of buttons. So say you dvd remote has more buttons than the lcd screen has, there is a "secondary" button on the top left corner that swap back and forther for that device. I have my TV, Sattelite, DVD, VCR and Stereo hooked up to use this, and I'd be lost without it.

Re:Sony RM-AV 2100

[DaSyonic]

I have one of these. I have had it for about 9 months. Here's my opinion/review of it.

First the positives.

• Lots of buttons, Each is individually programmable. Also support for alot of devices.
• Backlit feature works
• Learning function works flawlessly (It's the only other remote that can operate my kenwood - tried many learning remotes, this is the one that would work.)
• Better than expected battery life - Still yet to have to change the batteries, with 9 months of daily use.
• Customizable. From beeps, to backlit strength, to auto shutoff time; it's more than just a generic remote.

But it also has some problems.

• The buttons are small
• Cant navigate by feel, You MUST look at the remote. I've gotten good at knowing where to press, but its easy to mess up, and often annoying.
• Not enough macros. You can use 3, maximum
• It's big. It doesn't fit in your hand very nicely.
• Expensive. I got mine at Sams for a good deal though

This is complementary to my existing remote, I still use the TiVo remote for just casual TV, but the Sony 'Remote Commander' is also by my side, and I can use it exclusively, whenever I choose. It's a good remote, and a good choice if you can live with the drawbacks.

OmniRemote/

[wayn3]

For those with a Palm Pilot, OmniRemote is an excellent universal remote application. It makes Palm IIs with the 2MB upgrade card useful again.

Re:OmniRemote/

[Milican]

And if you own a Handspring Visor you can get a springboard module for External IR. The External IR is much stronger than Internal IR, but hardly ever necessary. The only time I would recommend buying the module is for Visor Edge models. I have an Edge and it doesn't work reliably for much further than 5'. You can see Pacific Neotek's tests here.

So I'm kind if in the market for External IR, but I'll wait til the latest version of OmniRemote comes out first (in beta now.. and has been for an eternity).

JOhn

Palm

[BubbaFett]

I guess you could always use your Palm. It's about as programmable as it gets! Some Palm remote projects.

Lexicon

[cnkeller]

For those of you who are perhaps, more discriminating buyers, I offer the Lexicon 700t. I used to sell medium to high-end audio/video while in college and we couldn't keep enough of these (and their predecessors) in stock. Be prepared to pay though, they weren't cheap as I recall. Custom buttons with bitmaps...how cool.....

Pronto

[JLester]

I thought the Pronto was expensive too, until I bought one after installing a full home theatre system. With the complete customization and programming ability, you can make your system do anything YOU want. I have programs set so that you press one button to switch receiver inputs, switch TV inputs, change audio settings, etc. when changing to a different source. Press "Watch a DVD" for example and the TV switches to the DVD input, the receiver switches to the DVD input, the receiver switches to Dolby Digital mode, the DVD player comes on (if it is off) and starts the movie. You could also have it dim the lights and do other things if you'd like. Awesome, and you do it all with one (virtual) button. Much easier for my wife and family to operate. Ecost.Com is the cheapest I have found for buying them.

Jason

Remote Central

[Keith Mickunas]

Remote Central has reviews, forums, and for those that can use them all sorts of custom files. Its the best source for any information relating to remotes.

Radio Shack 15-1994 with JP1: The Ultimate Remote

[Spire]

Get yourself a Radio Shack 15-1994 6-in-1 Smart A/V Remote, hack it with a JP1 Interface, and for under $50, you've bought yourself an infinitely customizable IR remote (with X10 capability!), and with all nice tactile hard buttons to boot!