Recommended Programmable Remote Controls?

Slashdot Junky asks: "I am fed up with having several different remote controls for my living room A/V gear and have decided to buy a high-end programmable remote to replace them. I have a TWC SciAtl Explorer 8000 DVR box, DVD player, Onkyo HT receiver, TV, and a home brew PC media server connected. I am looking for one that is comfortable to hold and more importantly, capable of DOING EVERYTHING that each of my existing remotes do. So, what remotes are you all using? Why did you select the one you have? What should I look for in my search? What don't you like about it? What do you like? What else should I be asking?" "Once the new remote is programmed, I want to be able to leave the factory remotes in the cabinet for good. I want the new remote to be able to handle even the non-day-to-day tasks like using the TV OSD menu. It should also be easy enough for my non-techie wife to use, too. Although the Logictech Harmony line seems nice, I don't really know much about it. Of course, there are others as well."

Comments

MX-500

[Slarty]

I really like the MX-500. Fully programmable, hard-key, you can hook it up and program it with your PC (w/ some extra hardware, I think, but not too expensive), and everyone I've heard of who has one just loves the thing. It's a slightly older remote, so you can get one for 70 bucks now:
http://www.bluedo.com/bluedocgi/product.cgi? model= MX-500

Also, tip for your HTPC... pick up one of these:
http://www.notestation.com/ack571_2.htm

It's a USB infrared keyboard w/ mouse built in, both of which work perfectly w/ just about any OS, since the computer sees it as a regular USB keyboard and mouse. But the really nice thing is, since the keyboard is IR, you can use it to train your remote to "press keys", and then not have to deal with lirc (assuming your HTPC is running Linux, although you'd have similar issues with Windows). Then you can stick the keyboard in the closet w/ your older remotes and still have a full keyboard available when you need one. It's a nifty solution.