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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 ...
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!
cheap labor conservatives - they want to keep you hungry enough to be thankful for minimum wage.
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
... 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
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.
yeah, but I can take that same $700 that would have bought this remote and buy Doom 3, a GeForce 6800 pro, and maybe some more RAM.
:)
Have fun changing channels
TV1$ 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'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.
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.
Can you watch TV on it?
On the remote itself?
For $700 I hope so.
Morphing Software
surely I'm not the only one...
Machine9dotNet
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."
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."
The idea is to make life easier and give you more time to enjoy life. Remember the optimism of the 50s.. (at least in America)? The idea was for there to be less time spent working and more time spent playing without sacrificing on the amount of work done. Make work faster.. make everything easier. Having one remote is far easier than having 6. Believe me.. I've got plenty and wish I had this bad-boy. Let's see.. TV, cable box, stereo receiver, DVD player, home automation.. That's five.
I understand your point, though. America is getting FAT and not having to get up from the couch to change the channel certainly isn't helping. However, keep in mind that a lot of people do still get outside and participate in physical activity. I, for instance, play hockey quite regularly, and spend my weekend hiking, going to the lake etc.. I don't need the extra workout of turning my tv on at the tv itself.
So this remote is handy and attractive to manywithout the fear of them getting fat.
What is your penile percentile?
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.
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
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.
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.
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.
Shawn's Tech Articles
Steve
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.
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.
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!