Slashdot Mirror
Sony's $700 Linux-based Remote Control
SlashdotMeNow points out a remote control to consider if money is no object: "The NAVITUS from Sony has a 64k colour touch-screen with tactile response, 32MB of RAM and a 200MHz processor. Looking at the photos it looks like a sexy little beast! It uses Linux as an OS and you can customise just about everything about it by linking it up to your PC. Hell, this thing is more powerful than my iPAQ. Useful for replacing your TV, DVD, sound system and other home entertainment system remotes, it can also control your lights and air conditioner. ... Just be careful using the Memory Stick slot - you don't want to get a virus on a device that controls your whole house!" Of course, that would have to be a Linux virus ...
Yes, but does it support OGG Vorbis?
You want to know who isn't running Firefox 2.x? They spell it "definately" and "rediculous".
What is the point of paying this much for such an mundane object like a universal remote. Has society become so lazy that even several specific remotes is too much a hassle? Control that fan, control that ac, control that tv, control that toilet. Remotely controlling anything is a good thing? Just one more thing so we can sit on our big fat nerd ass. Now that is insane.
While that sure does seem like the ultimate remote, who in their right mind would put $700 down for something as simple as a remote? Maybe it's just me, but wouldn't lowering the price quite a bit make 'em sell like hotcakes?
Can you restrict access to, say, changing the channel depending on priviliges?
And just how the hell can you log in on a remote control anyways? What would the command prompt look like?
Striking fear in the authors of godawful fanfiction, I am here, appearing in darkness, Tuxedo Jack!
A baker's dozen.
I think this is a cool thing, but I wouldn't mind buying a remote control based on the Contiki OS instead. Contiki also allows remote administration over the net, and also has pretty icons and a GUI. Given the requirements of Contiki, the device would not need to have megabytes of memory and could be made significantly cheaper. Perhaps a $7 network-enabled remote control would see a wider audience?
Mmmmmmm Sounds like FUN!!!!
"Hey cool, I just turned off all their lights... lol"
"Oh shit, they did the same to me..."
I can just see it now... The war of the Linux Remote Controls.
Who's the uber l33t? Only you can decide!
Technology amazes me. Granted it's been a steady stream for years of constantly improving technology, but this device jolted my mind. To think a PC with these specs used to cost a couple grand. Hmm... I guess I don't have a point. Oh, I know...but can it play Doom 3??!ONE roffle`~~... but seriously, this thing can play Doom 1...it's 1/3 of the way there.
cheap labor conservatives - they want to keep you hungry enough to be thankful for minimum wage.
What the hell? I thought linux was free.
Last time I listen to you GNU/hippies.
I think that it would be cheaper to take advantage of the fact that just about every PDA out there has a built in IR transmittor. Just program it to act like a universal remote and you can save yourself several hundred dollars. Heck, if I were bored enough, I'd do it myself. I do know that it's possible to do it with a Lego Mindstorms Control Brick, so this should be doable, if not easy.
"Anyone who attempts to generate random numbers by deterministic means is living in a state of sin." -- John von Neumann
with the lastest exploits in kernel, i wonder why people still choose linux
At least I wouldnt loose it at that price - I guess...
... hacking a 3COM Audrey to do the exact same thing. It runs QNX natively, but I think you can put Linux on it. There are discussions from time to time on AudreyHacking.com but I don't think anyone has (yet).
:) Oh, and if anyone does, you gotta post about it on Slashdot!
The Audrey has a touch-screen and IR port built in. You can get em pretty cheap from e-bay, sometimes even new in the box. Since 3COM no longer offers the service that is required to run the Audrey, you can get em fairly readily (noone has any real use for em).
Probably pretty time-consuming to try to hack one to be a remote like TFA describes, but might be worth it for someone willing to expend the energy!
bash: rtfm: command not found
The poster mentioned this was more powerful than his iPaq. Why the hell would Sony offer this (expecting it to be a success?) and not brand it as a PDA? Their Clie's offered remote-control functionality - in addition to being a PDA - and costed a whole lot less than this thing.
So the gut reaction turns out to be right - $700 for a fucking remote?
I've got more mod points and GMail invi
Excellent, as handhelds.org are trying to engineer a useful, cool linux handheld platform (in addition to the excellent offerings from you-know-who) Sony have given the world a cool toy.
:-)
Nothing sells in westernised world like hype and pricing, and I think they are doing a favour to Linux by pricing this up as they have, it is aimed for conservative sales I guess - not many poeple have such a wired up setting that would really benefit from such a powerful device.
What is funny, is that this device is more powerful than the moon landing computers - and it is a remote control! Can anyone else cite an overkill of technology?
Of course, it can probably do some great things like scheduling and some additional linux dvd players, tivo's and other household appliances might become the next craze, all because Sony have given them all a remote control that can talk to all of them.
The saddest thing is, the lack of bluetooth... or at least it would seem... also batteries might be a problem for such a device role, but I guess it hasa docking station you can seat permanently beside you chair...
Although I guess most slashdotters would take it out of the house, and go IR-wardriving, looking for devices to control!
#hostfile 0.0.0.0 primidi.com 0.0.0.0 www.primidi.com 0.0.0.0 radio.weblogs.com
Netcraft confirms it, Linux trolls are dieing. Slashdot's clique of giggling/conspiring school girls, Linux trolls harp over minor issues in windows as they ignore huge, gaping holes in Linux. Like a dog in heat humping an uncomfortable human's leg these unfortunate souls believe that if they just push hard enough, they can fuck the whole world before they lick their own groin.
Sad Trolls
While pretending to run or in some cases actually even running the now defunct operating system these trolls post hypothetical flaws of windows that they don't even understand. While attempting to convince potential users that the incredible inconvenience of Linux is worth the negligible advantage of Open Source Software they cite 'facts' that make one wonder if these trolls have ever even used a computer, much less Linux.
One thing is clear:Linux trolls are dieing.
Asia
Home to 3 trillion people, Asia was seen as a possible breeding ground for Linux use thanks to its widespread poverty and poor hygiene. This potential coup for Linux was averted, however when Microsoft entered into a rampant piracy agreement with the people of Asia worth an estimated -$34,000,000,000.
Global Ramifications
As a result, the proponents of this hard to use and poorly designed operating system have had to resort to sad measures. The most common is the "pretend to know Linux by mocking Windows trolls while really not even knowing either operating system well" troll. While usually guaranteed to garner some mod points, these trolls have been called out of late by a group of Windows trolls who know they are full of shit.
The fallout over the hivemind mentality of these sad and confused youngsters has led to the collapse of what was once a glowing beacon to trolls everywhere. Once held up as a symbol of individuality and defiance of the rules, Linux trolls have now been associated with the very conformists they purport to despise. These people that say whatever will make them look cool at the time threaten the already iffy credibility of true Linux trolls.
Fact: Linux trolls are dieing.
I thought it was a little steep, but after reading this:
"Tactile Response Display
Most touch screens are lifeless and inert. It's often hard to know whether or not your command has even registered. The NAVITUS remote is dramatically different. Imagine an LCD screen that actually presses back against your fingertip to confirm each command. With TouchEngine(TM) Technology, you're operating with confidence."
I realised that turning on the Playboy channel will never be the same again. And it runs Linux... sound like a geeks wet dream to me.
My Kenwood remote that came with the system does everything this does, and cost 150$. I can program it for any type of IR remote and if I can't find / don't have the code Kenwood will program the remote over the phone for free. It also does home automation if I want it too. Why pay 700 bucks?
TV1$ Playboy Channel: Access denied
TV1$ man chmod
You are going to have the materialistic mega rich who after buying this stuff are gonna confirm the fact that they are just out there to pump their lives full of materialistic crap pefore they die. May be priding them selves on how sophisticated and character filled they are by the amount of technological crap hey own.
This is a gross generalisation and I know that it is going to come back full circle one day but $1400NZD for a remote?
isnt their some otherway to spend your money on a more worthy cause???
I have been really wanted to see a remote like this or the other multi-everything lcd screen sony remote that was out...but with missing feature:
I want a touchpad key board and in a perfect work, a trackpad.
For the last month or so I have been really thinking about a linux based HTPC, and if I could get a really sweet remote sized (or close enough) device like this, that could also let me use a keyboard type interface and work, well I would be extremely happy.
So here's to hoping this remote is one step closer to that.
He must be new at this...
Instead of creating ever more powerful remotes, slowly reaching the level of PDAs, why not just control your stationary gadgets by using your PDA as a remote? For example: http://www.killefiz.de/zaurus/showdetail.php?app=9 19
I've thought about how it would be fun to write a nice remote control program for it, but there's no time for that yet.
Lets see: $599 for one license of Linux and $101 for a remote control. Good deal! Sorry, can't resist :)
I can't imagine what sane mind would try to market something like this! Let's see...
1) remote should be take anywhere, put anywhere device, as this thing is a huge power-hog, it needs no rest on the charging stand when not in use.
2) remote controls basically sends a relatively short sequence of bits to an infrared LED when a certain button is pressed. It does not need a 200MHz processor or a 65k colour screen to do this. In fact, this gets back to the battery / power thing - you can make a remote control that functions perfectly that can last a year on two alkaline cells.
3) if you really want customizability, the remote itself doesn't have to do all of this! it would be much wiser and cheaper and easier (more later) to simply have the remote be programmable via, say, a computer - it'd be like writing to a cheap FPGA, if you want the remote to be that powerful. as for easier - programming a remote on a well designed application on a computer monitor would be much easier than doing the same on the tiny remote display, no?
4) and it's like... twice the price of my TV! geez... fuck, i might as well write an app for my palm to control the TV via the infrared port. Heck it might be cheaper too...
My life in the land of the rising sun.
...you'll have to buy a new one.
Power Requirements: Supplied AC power adaptor: DC 4.5V (dedicated connector). Built in, rechargeable and non-removable Ni-MH batteries.
Is there a good reason they make built in batteries instead of removables?
Who (other than people who have way too much $$$ to spend) seriously would buy this?
$700 ($932.40 CDN) for a hand held, limited PC to control you devices?
It's not like they're including the hardware so that you are guarenteed that it will control your lights and A/C.
Heck, i can buy a half decent PC for under that price
Personally, I'd rather have one of these (better image here)for $119 CDN (so thats like $50 US), which doesn't run linux, but has a nice display that changes depending on what device it's using and save my money for other things.
Are Sony releasing the source code?
:-) I mean, not the supplied version, but a custom version, and actually use it - with an IR keyboard adapter...
:-)
What really would be the most fun misuse you could engineer with this? Running quake? 200mhz... is possible ~10fps...
Running linux?
I don't think you could make a beowulf cluster on these, it has IR tranmitter, but no receiver... USB - could be 'networked' via usb I suppose...
I guess when you can watch movies on your remote control, you might need a smaller remote control, to control your remote control... and you know that that will end up having a Gb of RAM
#hostfile 0.0.0.0 primidi.com 0.0.0.0 www.primidi.com 0.0.0.0 radio.weblogs.com
This thing is so freaking powerful you could watch a streaming dvd on it.
So, what's that TV for?
Can you watch TV on it?
On the remote itself?
For $700 I hope so.
Morphing Software
$700....
I dunno, I think I'd just get up to change the channel on the set rather than fork over that sort of money. And this is coming from someone who will search the room for 30 minutes looking for the remote while the TV remains off, as I'm too lazy to go turn it on manually.
my ipaq 2215 has a program called nevo that does all that with the IR port.. and it's twice as fast and goes for about 300 now
for the Linux guru's to start an "OpenNAVITUS" project, complete with remote terminal and gui console for a Freevo setup!
You are confusing me with someone who cares.
Cool it does magic too for only $700? I'm a gonna get me one of these!
does it run Linux? Oh wait...
surely I'm not the only one...
Machine9dotNet
Who on Earth would ever buy a Ferrari?
I have a windows-based universal remote control. The advantage of that over a linux one is that it automatically makes every product in your house match in a lovely shade of "blue screen of death."
Does this mean that we have lost all will to demand better products? Instead of making products easier to use or more compatible, we are being offered an expensive way of wading through the clutter.
How about implementing an industry standard for remote controls similar to, say, the v.9x standards for modems? I know it's far-fetched, but it's worth a try.
On a different note, what if people manage to hack into these remotes and take control? Worse yet, what if they keep the channel fixed on Fox "News"?
"...who search the reason of things
Are those who bring the most sorrow on themselves." --Euripides, The Medea
It's scary to think that this individual remote control has more computer power than the on-board computer of the Apollo spacecraft back in the day.
"There is no spoon." - The Matrix
I just can't figure out what justifies that price tag. There is no way any remote control should cost this much, let alone *this* remote. The feature list is underwhelming. This paperweight-in-training shouldn't cost more than ~$150.
The key to these sort of speciality devices is the user-interface design. If Sony holds true to form, they'll have tried to fold in way too many functions, with way too little thought on how to make accessing those functions intuitive.
Plus, when you spill a beer on it and short it out , it's really gonna suck.
This remote may belong in a "smart home", but it'd be one with a really dumb owner.
---anactofgod---
---anactofgod---
"Equal opportunity swindling - *that* is the true test of a sustainable democracy."
I've got one of these, and it's fantastic. My TV, amp, DVD player, Direct TV receiver, and PVR now all have the same remote. It has enough "extra" slots that I can get IR light switches and/or power outlets, and program it to work them as well. Best feature: Via the learning function, I don't have to switch back and forth between "TV", "PVR", and "AMP" to change the channel, start recording something, then turn the volume up, I can put them all on one screen. You can't program it via your computer, and it doesn't have a color screen, but it's the coolest birthday present I've gotten in years! And it was only $100...
Twinkies sure taste good for something that is 68% air.
I've got TV Remote Controller for the Ipaq. It also handles DVD and Stereo components.
:-)
What I found interesting is that I have two Aiwa Hi-fi's. This when set to "Aiwa stereo" controls both of them, but the original remotes only speak to their respective models.
ObFun'nGames: If you're in the UK, get this software, walk into a Tesco's and turn off all their flatscreen TV's using the Panasonic TV setting
sounds hot. can i help you beta test the virus?
wouldn't lowering the price quite a bit make 'em sell like hotcakes?
Great idea Einstein. Sell them below cost and make up for it in volume.
Stand up, walk, extend arm, apply pressure with finger, etc.
http://www.cafeshops.com/i_love_bees check that mousepad out, awesome
I take it back about the remote control deficit. We have a Bose clock radio that has a remote control, for those times when I just can't be bothered to reach all the way across the bed.
http://www.rootstrikers.org/
I just can't figure out what justifies that price tag
Don't be so hard on Sony. We all know where $699 are going. That leaves them $1 for covering development, production, shipping, service and a profit margin. Pretty impressive, if you ask me.
Maybe it's just me, but I'd prefer the simplicity of a $12.99 remote from Zellers.
Must have 5+ years experience in programming remote controls and configuring consumer electronics. Proficiency with all major manufacturers of mid-grade consumer electronics a must. In addition, familiarity with 2 or more high-end manufacturer's desired. Educational requirements: Must not be old enough to have a high-school diploma, though exceptionally talented older engineers may be considered. Strong references from parents, relatives and neighbors required. Competitive pay commensurate with experience.
Please help, my VCR has been blinking "12:00" for three years now!
---anactofgod---
---anactofgod---
"Equal opportunity swindling - *that* is the true test of a sustainable democracy."
I can't beleive in a thread about extreme remote controls no one has brought up Steve (The Woz) Wozniak and the CL-9 C.O.R.E or the Tyrone beam booster. Oh well, it is 2:30am(UTC/GMT -5 hours) any real geek is coding. not staring at slashdot waiting for the jolt high to wear off.
If the question is how many DIFERENT devices it can control then: Since this is a computer sending diferent signals, I bet it covers the whole posible spectrum then I might presume it can control them all. Wouldnt you agree, there is a big computer there. If it is how many devices then it is stupid.
to use my Sharp Zaurus PDA as a remote control for my music/video library. The Zaurus would just run a web browser over a WiFi card in the CF slot. The server with my Vorbis and video files would run a straightforward web application that I'd browse with the Zaurus. I could search for titles, look at artwork and lyrics, and whatever; and there would be an XMMS-like control panel that would let me play stuff through the speakers and on the monitor. No need for a CD player or DVD's or anything; it would all come straight off the hard disc and out the audio and VGA ports.
...when many people in the world die of preventable disease and malnutrition? Buy a $30 universal remote and donate the remainder to UNICEF.
Disgusting excess.
Am I the only one who thinks a screen that displays only 9 buttons is a bit too small? The one thing I like about my current setup (5 remotes side by side) is that every function is available instantly, without hunting through menus or using three-fingered salutes.
... that costs twice what my tv costs...
Why not get a full fledged PDA, or even some mobile phones now, which have all the funtionality needed to do this and then some?
Donte Alistair Anderson Roberts - hi son!
Karma: Chameleon
Just because you think spending $700 for a remote is excessive doesn't mean there isn't a large number of people who wouldn't buy it. Not everyone wants to read their email, take notes, play games, surf the web, etc... on their remote. Sometimes, they just want to be able to easily use their home theater system and make it easy for their wife to do the same.
Why pay $700 for this remote? It doesn't sound like it actually DOES anything a programmable lcd remote had for $150 can't do.
Don't get me wrong, embedded linux is always good. But this is just another example of Sony ridiculously overcharging for their products... like they always do.
dude, you're two posts down from the beowulf cluster joke... that happened to use the word imagine.
(although, in your defense, it was at -1)
It is big, but it keeps my 5-6 other remotes in the drawer.
Macros are great, when watching DVD you usually have to first turn on the DVD player, switch input on the TV, switch the TV to anamorphic 16:9, switch the surround receiver over to the DVD input and set the correct surround mode. With macros this is one button.
You can create some custom labeled buttons for each device. It is possible to mix and match from the different devices, e.g. I have the TV aspect ratio button also on the DVD panel.
It has hard buttons for the most common operations, like channel hopping, volume and arrow keys.
The IR is strong! It works from under the blanket when cuddled up in the sofa.
The girlfriend likes it :-)
About $90
Let's think about this for a minute
$699 for the linux license
$001 for the report
====
$700 total.
Not a bad deal at all...
-- Is "Sig" copyrighted by www.sig.com?
- Two way communication, ie. you could see the CD track/play time and so on when using the remote in a separate room with Beolink speakers.
- Backlit touch screen.
- Rechargeable batteries.
- When you put the remote on the table, it would automatically raise the control panel (with a noiseless motor) for easier access. It would straighten out when you picked it up so you could hold it like a normal remote.
Hell, this was 1991! Screw the fact that the Sony remote has a 200MHz processor and runs Linux. I want something as good as this! Please! Alas, Bang&Olufsen stopped making these. Another great product down the drain.I don't want any hotcakes either.
Oh come on, you could be reading a dupe about Kevin Rose load testing Gmail.
John
I dream in binary.
there's something a big fishy about that photo of the interface that makes me feel a bit uneasy ...
i mean ... the icons are "LD" (i'm assuming 'laserdisc' ???? who in the HELL has a laserdisc player???) ... as well as 'tape' (puhleeze) and 'DAT'... (for a home stereo system????)
at that rate, i'm surprised they don't have 'DCC' or 'CD-i' in there .....
none of those "hacks" have anything to do with linux. Those are service mode commands and "backdoors" that are written specifically for those devices. Whether or not a device has linux is irrelevant in terms of whether or not it is "hackable" by typing in service codes already programmed into the device.
Most of my remote controllers dont need to change batteries for long time. What's the point to recharging in every few days for such remote controller?
For $700 it better damn well import magic apprentices, whoever they are. Hell, for that price, one of those apprentices better give me a blowjob.
For that money I would expect a better design, it looks clumpsy oldfashioned for me.
At least all the Clie research didn't go to waste.
But then again, that thing is so ugly compared to later Clie's.
You suck at the capitalism. An idiot that would put $150 into a remote is almost idiot enough to pay $700 for it. Economists at Sony just analysed that the optimum point was at $700.
Of course it would NOT have to be a "Linux virus", Linux viruses in general are of course impossible, however a virus targetted at a specific Linux build is quite possible, so yeah be careful putting that Memory Stick in - the lack of generic Linux viruses does not make you safe.
I'm sure it can be hacked if you're good. Turn it into a nice little PDA and check TV listings from it!!
The Philips iPronto TSi6400 actually does this - has 802.11b built-in and automatically updates a program guide on the remote. Also has a web browser. Linux-based OS too, I believe.
... does it run Li- oh wait, it does.
Visit http://ringbreak.dnd.utwente.nl/~mrjb/growingbettersoftware to download your free copy of the book
Imagine if it ran windows ce. You'd have a BSOD on your remote.
"Honey, change the channel!"
"I can't, the remotes frozen! I have to reboot the remote the control first and load up Microsoft Channel Explorer 6.0 before I can do it."
-- Somebody stuck somewhere in a big world wide web that I can't escape from
Why must they keep using the memory stick! It's dead Jim! Stop beating the dead horse!
This remote is obviously positioned to compete with Philips' Pronto line of universal remotes, the nicer models of which can do both IR and RF, and Philips also sells an RF-to-IR transcoder to allow use of the Pronto in RF mode even for your IR devices. Being able to use the Pronto all over the house is nice. This Sony remote doesn't seem to support anything but IR. A $700 universal remote should be ashamed to be IR only.
Is there a Linux-based FOSS version of the iPod?
John Kerry is a Joke!
Here it is
When Argumentum ad Hominem falls short, try Argumentum ad Matrem
Anyone here remember the Cloud Nine CORE remote? It was shaped like the letter "T" and had gobs of programmable buttons. Designed by Steve Wozniak (yes, Woz, the guy who designed the Apple I and Apple II) as part of his CL9 company shortly after leaving Apple.
The CL9 CORE was **insane**, it had two 6502 CPUs and the manual was a huge binder full of technical specs and sample code. Programming was done in assembly and/or a BASIC-like language. The CORE could communicate with damn near any IR device and do just about anything imaginable. It was the emacs of remote controls. Many of its owners loved it, many of its owners couldn't even figure out how to turn the thing on.
This new Sony remote reminds me of a modern CORE.
BTW: Woz later gave away his many IR patents and design idea to General Magic, the group of ex-Apple engineers that made the over-engineered and unstable Magic Cap PDA platform.
LOL your a moron if you buy this, just buy a $120 pocket pc + remote software. and has more memory, is more powerful, and can run more apps.
"Hello, I have a problem, my RM-NX7000 has done all kinds of strange things while I was on vacation!"
"How long was your vacation?"
"Six weeks."
"When was the last time you recharged the batteries?"
"I don't know, before the vacation, or well, the thing works now, so I guess she who took care about the cats has recharged the thing some days ago.""Well, that explains it, probably your NVRAM battery has run down too, and then certain setting bits can flip, meaning that the device starts acting weird. If you send it to us, we can put in a new battery. It just costs $100 plus shipping & handling."
If you want to use remote control software on a PDA, get an old Handspring Visor. The Visor's IR is, for some reason, a lot more powerful than most (in fact some people found they had to move back to beam to other handhelds because the visor's signal was swamping the receiver), and I could easily control my TV from 20 feet.
Sony also released a model of the Clie PDA with an enhanced IR just for this purpose.
Imagine if it ran linux. You'd have dependancy problems on your remote
"Honey, change the channel!"
"I can't, the remotes frozen! It says I need remote-0.1-02321331r5 and we've only got remote-0.1-02321331r4.5. but remote-0.1-02321331r5 is incompatible with infrared-0.4, so we'll have to use infrered-0.4 instead"
Running emacs!
Get thee glass eyes, and, like a scurvy politician, seem to see things thou dost not.--King Lear
WOW!!! you mean my u1tr4-l337 1iNuX-h4x0r b0x can get viruses too???
HOLY FUCKING SHIT, PEOPLE!!! it's posible to write malicious code for a platform other than windoze!!! WE ARE ALL FUCKED!!!
And here I was going to walk around thinking Linux was absolutely perfect today. But, you have saved me. Fuck - joking is dangerous stuff!
P.S. "How well can that software work when there aren't any Linux viruses in the wild for the author(s) to provide protection against?" is one of the stupidest arguments I've heard in awhile.
For all things related to remote controls:
h tml that controls everything with all the extra buttons and macros. It controls everything, learns, and you can download new info as more and more devices hit the market. I do have 1 problem - it won't learn my Mecotek DIVX player controls. Not even off/on, but is still a great purchase. I picked it up on eBay for $120.
http://www.remotecentral.com/
They have some comments about this new SONY:
http://www.remotecentral.com/av2500/index.html
Personally, I don't like the touch screens for remotes - tactal feel is as important as functionality.
I much prefer the Home Theater Master line of remotes. I have an MX-700
http://www.remotecentral.com/mx700/index.
Let's face it, a universal remote isn't unless you can throw the old remotes away. It has to replace every button and function completely and the MX-700 does for me, including my THX receiver!
I have a lot of devices including a quirky Echostar PVR. I wanted a universal that had all the buttons I needed and was seriously programmable so it could control all of my devices. After a bunch of research I discovered that the JP1 model control, generally from One For All or Radio Shack, has a huge internet fan community and if you get the right one you can buy or build a cable to program it directly from your computer.
It doesn't have a touch-screen, but it costs something like $20 and I have been completely happy with it. It takes a little hacking to get it just right, but hey, this is slashdot, right? That's like some kind of advantage...
Search for JP1 on Google.
Syntax error: loose != lose, affect != effect, then!=than
Looking at the photos it looks like a sexy little beast!
What planet was it that you were from? You need some high-octane design lessons Apple
with that kind of power, you could probably replace the TV, Sound System and DVD Player themselves...
I wonder how long it is till they build a small device that you can plug in the TV.
I have got a PC at home hooked straight in my amp and TV so that I can watch DVD and DivX, listen to MP3s and CDs and play games (MAME mainly)
Black holes occur when God divides by zero.
My Clie NX-70v already has a universal remote, and it's a fully functional PalmOS PDA, with other toys like a still/video camera, an MP3 player, a voice recorder, and a full (but tiny) qwerty keyboard.
And according to Amazon, you can get the things for under $120 now. Don't you just love the radical depreciation on a device you paid four times more for barely 18 months ago? *sigh*
But anyway, yeah, the remote. It's fantastic. Going out to eat with a whole bunch of friends, and the restaraunt puts you all in a private room with not one, not two, but three televisions obnoxiously drowning out conversation with sports & news? No problem! The same thing happened to me last week, and the Clie was able to turn off all the televisions right from the table, even when the TVs were 20 or 30 feet away. This only worked, of course, because I happened to have my Clie with me -- but then, it's a PDA, and I almost always have it with me.
The device described in this article, aside from being several times more expensive, is also several times less likely to have general purpose use outside of your living room (unless you're in the habit of going around town turning off televisions, but that isn't a very common hobby). If you're going to spend that much money, why not get a general purpose device?
The Clie I have isn't the only one that has the remote, either. The PEG-T665C also has one, as did the PEG-T415, and it seems like all the models in the NX/NV series (the folding clamshell ones like the NX-70v) have it, too. Even the fanciest of these should be available for a couple hundred bucks cheaper than the Navitus, and all of them are more capable. Shop around! :-)
DO NOT LEAVE IT IS NOT REAL
My X10 remote uses RF (not sure what band) and is "universal" but it doesn't have DVR functtions or PIP. My Sat Receiver is UHF but its remote doesn't have X10 functions, and is the wrong band for my X10 receiver.
When they make a remote that will handle my VCR, my X10 wall wart receiver, 2 Sat receivers set at different IDs 1 is a DVR, my TV, my PC, and have an SSH client. Oh, and all of my entertainment equipment other functions, then, I'll pay $701 dollars.
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About five years ago, a friend of mine spent about 300 UKP (about $550) on a flashy universal remote control with touchscreen and user-definable operations and button sets. It was the fabled dogs danglies. Unfortunately, it suffered from one major drawback (apart from the price). While you could set up wonderful sequences like turn on the TV, DVD player, set the amp to AUX, dim the lights, close the curtains, etc, there was no way of the remote knowing if the target device had received the signal correctly. If the cat walked past at the wrong time, or you simply weren't pointing the remote in the right direction, you'll find everything turned on but the tv. You'll then be listening to the movie starting while you're jabbing the remote looking for the tv control screen.
When all these devices support a common, open, bi-directional messaging system, then I'll consider it, but at this stage.. feh!
What about a beowulf cluster of linux remotes?
-- I was raised on the command line, bitch
MY handspring Visor had some software (Shareware?) that couldbe used as a learning remote... and it worked great across the room. The only problem? No real buttons (that PDA touch screen), I had to hold it sideways (IR port on the side) and I had to use my freaking PDA to change the channel! Convergence isn't always good...
Enter, the Sony RM-VL900- the coolest learning remote. ITs got real buttons. And it learns EVERYTHING. SO for $60 bucks, I have a macro capable super-tacular learning remote that is so easy, even my wife had no problems adapting to it.
This $700 remote is for people with large cash endowments and no physical endowment. For everyone else, there's a $60 remote.
In the future, I would want to not be isolated from my friends in the Space Station.
Where is the source code to this remote control? Does the GPL apply to this sort of thing? If so Sony could be in trouble soon...
...in bed
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Im not sure if it has a remote input (its in a closet somewhere currently) but I dont see why it wouldnt, since all the functions are electronic buttons on the front anyway.
Tm
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Its gonna be a lot of fun watching him try to figure this one out!
-Copyright law #69:Whenever Mickey Mouse is about to enter the public domain,copyrights get extended by 25 years.
Most linux based devices have crappy half-assed looking interfaces. I'm sure that image is photoshopped in, but having played with a zaurus, there is just something off about the quality of graphics used in the interface (type, layout, iconography, etc). It's not so much the UI itself, but the quality of graphics composing the UI.
And, personally, I'll take the iPronto over this thing any day of the week. I currently use a harmony, which I love, but it gets a little cumbersome and confused some times.
Ya.. but according to that article, it costs almost $900 more than the sony(although that was 2 years ago). Also, it seems to be big and square, where as, the sony could fit in your hand like a regular remote.
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This is competition against the Phillips Pronto line.
Anyone who has set up a serious home theater system (and I have set up a couple) for 'normal' people know exactly what kind of a remote nightmare that can be. Totally programmable remotes that are just remotes can totally take the training aspect of the project from impossible to merely slightly painful.
The last home theater setup I was involved with we spent over 100 hours in Pronto programming. That may seem insane, but now a couple of retiree's can use their $10000 home theater with a 60" HD TV, et al. We did things in the Pronto that it is impossible to do in any of the software available for Palm/PPC, or even on things like the Harmony.
On the more flexible remotes every single button/control can be a macro if you know what you are doing, and you can put in custom IR commands to get to features in your equipment that are not published, or available on the included remote. For instance Sony TV's have IR codes to go directly to a specified video input, but it you learn from their included remote you can only flip between them in order. On an advanced system hitting a button that pulls up input 5 specifically saves a lot of training headache.
If you look at this remote and think 'holy crap that is expensive!' then you obviously haven't ever priced out these sorts of things before. From the picture and the specs it seems totally in line with its true competition. Especially since there are Pronto's that retail for more than $1000 that include WiFi.
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Steve
Yes, the iPronto runs Linux. MontaVista had a nice press release on it at one LinuxWorld expo or another.
Question is - anyone find the shell yet?
So can someone help me clarify this GNU/GPL licensing stuff.
Since Sony is using some port of Linux, don't they have to post the source code for it too?
Goals are deceptive - the unaimed arrow never misses.
I just can't figure out what justifies that price tag. There is no way any remote control should cost this much, let alone *this* remote. The feature list is underwhelming. This paperweight-in-training shouldn't cost more than ~$150.
Some people have different budgets. When you're spending 10 to 15 THOUSAND dollars on a home theatre, what's another $700 for a great remote?
Jason.
You can justify the cost of expensive techology in so many different ways. But there is no justification for a $700 remote. How much better can it honestly be than a $20 remote? Unless this thing sprouts little legs and arms and washes the dishes while I'm watching TV, it's way too much money for its basic function.
Regular Meta Moderators are not more likely to get mod points.
Sorry, but "Linux virus" is almost an oxymoron. Have you see one, anyone?
There you are, staring at me again.
in soviet russia houses control you
presmike
However, if you're selecting remotes based on how many colors the display has and whether it runs Linux, I think you're beyond my help, though :-) Go ahead and spend your $700.
My boss actually picked up one of these. It is by far the coolest little (big?) remote that I have seen. It controls all of his X10 gear thru an X10 IR receiver and everything else he owns. Only problem, when its off its charging cradle and under normal use the battery lasts ~2 hours.
From the linked page:
Alas, the seething racial tension running through world of sorcery and magic leaves no corporation untouched ... I can't believe that Sony has stooped so low that they are now importing underpaid, immigrant mages to run our miracle gadgets.
And the sheer gall of these people, calling their employees color mages! That kind of language may have been appropriate in the 1950s, but this is 21st century America where we believe a mage's color is a secondary characteristic and has nothing to do with his/her personality, skill, intelligence or hireability.
I feel deeply for those poor color mages, forced to create skins. What's wrong with the skins they've already got? This kind of intolerance, from a major electronics manufacturer, makes me seething mad.
FREE THE COLOR MAGES! BOYCOTT SONY!
If it had a two-way link with everything and could figure out the configuration of all your gear, that would be something. As it is, you'll spend forever setting it up, and probably won't get it right.
There's a future for a home master control, but slapping a GUI on a one-way remote is a dead end.
If appliances used two-way IrDA links with some sane protocol, you could do more. The remote could talk to anything you point it at,find out what it was and provide a suitable GUI, and get info back from the device. Now that would actually be useful.
$700 and you don't even get the channel guide on the controller?
Forget color screens and all that stuff - I've used em all. The answer is the Harmony remote. Tactile buttons for use under the sheets during those cold months, activity based vs. device based, easy to set up via web based wizard, thousands of devices listed with users adding more daily.
Really, for the $200, you can't go wrong.
It's possible, but it's not common by any means.
In that model of replace less useful with more useful, if Palm or competitors would figure out that with a consumer IR emitter* that for $120, they have a billion low end palms that are perfect Remotes (with a little simple software) and happen to hold address books and appts, etc.
*consumer IR is a slightly different wavelength, but it's fungeable with IrDA - but more important, it's modulated at between around 35k and 40k.
Smart folks have used the audio outputs of decent quality devices (unfo Wince based, usu) with a frequency doubler or tripler. Throw wave forms at it and it spits IR out.
RE: the desires of the parent post:
- Mac OS X will certainly let Apple Script control its programs. It's almost "mom-able" to let a bluetooth (phone, say) trip macros.
- any bt or WiFi device that talks to your computer can emit events. You're job is to xlate the event into a control signal to your program(s). Eg. "Next Song" or "pause".
- Why would you allow you or someone you know to run windows?
Barring a simple PDA with consumer IR and $50 of software, there's the hackers way which is WAY overkill (but isn't that how we started? Computer controlled model railroads when most kids were happy with a transformer and $70 of train+track?)Perhaps when you and your BT phone get out of range (30' typically), the music will pause.
"Windows: The OS for the rich and stupid"
This isn't hard. It's not even rocket science.
Just computer science.
My adicon ocelot is a $150-$200 device that speaks and hears IR, X10 and can expand to A/D, DA and digital IO.
And serial.
To my BSD box (and bsd is dying, yeah... yeah...)
It's got the single worst Windows interface to program it (macros: IF event then action1, action2, action3 perhaps GOTO another thing. I borrowed a windows laptop to get it to do something before I got the Unix tools so I could use vi to edit my "programs".
X10 or IR button (or with IO hardwired button) trips of a macro that can be as fancy as you want.
Webpage emits a command to a TTY to the Ocelot serial port to make a command.
$200 PDA speaks to Webpage via WiFI, I press "movie time" and the lights dim, the TV, DVD, amp and amp to subwoofer disguised as couch turn on.
Cost?
$100-$200 (or more) for WiFi aware PDA.
$175 for Ocelot.
$300 Unix box that also runs mail for 60 people, etc, etc
--------
Profit!
Can this thing survive a 1/2 metre drop to the floor?
I wish Sony could just tack an extra $100 onto each of their components so that they'd talk to each other and I wouldn't need 5 remotes or one incredibly expensive remote to operate them.
I mean, I've already got a TiVo that can display menus and options. Why can't it just talk to the other components via a firewire cable or something and negotiate how things should work? If the dvd drive has a disc inserted, it can tell the TiVo what happened and the TiVo can switch the video and audio input to the dvd player. If the dvd player detects that the disk has 2.1, 4.1, 12.8 omni-stereo surround, it can tell the TiVo, which will select the best one based on the speaker setup that is plugged in. Why can't all the video and audio be transferred over a single data bus that the components share, rather than having a zillion input/output plugs?
If the components were just a little smarter, we wouldn't need these complex remotes.
Honestly.. it always feels to me like the video/audio component companies are too busy putting more flair on their boxes and coming up with stupid control devices than they are in just making them easier to use.
i'd rather give my kid $700 to change the channel at my beckon call then i would have a remote AND get done with the allowance
-- Checking emails and kicking cheats `till the day I die.
The last comment is silly. If GNU/Linux were as prevalent as M$ Windows, does anyone really believe that the number of vulnerabilities would be less?
And at $700 a pop, even rich folks are going to think twice about misplacing it.
"You might as well get your son a ticket to hell as give him a five string banjo." -unknown minister
It's a fine programmable remote control
Well, it's actually a small computer running DOS. But RemCom will use the (powerful) IR port like a universal RC.
All for less than $50
Yeah. Would you choose a neurosurgeon who pokes around people's brains in his spare time? I wouldn't.
And it's a PDA that has been crippled to only run the remote-control software, that is.
Finding any more braindead idea is going to be very hard.
(the "tactile" display sounds pretty nifty though, perhaps it will spread to all touchscreens with a little time...)