What's the BEST remote for use with SageTV ?

[sudipto]

I should have clarified this before ... my main problem is not finding a remote with ENOUGH buttons ... my problem is finding a remote with ENOUGH buttons that are LABELED INTUITIVELY.

I already have the LiteOn Airboard, and I understand how you can assign keyboard shortcuts and then teach those to a learning remote control. However, my main issue is not that.

My main requirement is a remote control that has all the buttons I need WITH AN INTUITIVE FEEL CORRESPONDING TO THE COMMAND. For rexample, when I want to bring up the program guide, I prefer to use a button labeled "Guide" and not something like "TV/Video" or "Surround" Similarly, for marking programs that I like or don't like, I would ideally have a "Thumbs Up" and a "Thumbs Down" button like the TiVo remote or the URC-6131 (that I mentioned above) has.

Am I being able to clarify my problem here ?

I have a bunch of universal learning remotes that I can program to use all different commands of SageTV ... the problem is finding a remote that has all appropriate buttons WHOSE LABELS MAKE SENSE FOR THE APPROPRIATE COMMANDS.

The Pronto is probably my best choice, since you can create your own buttons and label them whatever you want; but it is still too expensive for me. So until I can afford it, I need the next best thing.

The URC-6131 remote seems to have the most number of buttons that closely match SageTV commands (at least the frequently used ones). For example it has buttons like PVR Menu, Guide, Info, Thumbs Up/Down, Skip Ahead/Skip Back, FF/RW etc ... all of which map to corresponding SageTV commands. So when I am looking at the remote, I don't have to "remember" which button does what.

I just want to make sure this will work well with IRMan and Girder before I go pick it up.

My local CircuitCity has this for $17.99, so may be I will pick it up anyway and try it out ... however, if anyone here has used this before, it will be good to get the confirmation.

[mrseidler]

That is the best idea and I never thought of it. I have an ir keyboard that I use for one of the clients (Book PC w/no serial port) and a learning remote that I use for the cable box, vcr, tv, and audio. Put em together and viola!

[andrewswright]

Originally posted by sudipto
the problem is finding a remote that has all appropriate buttons WHOSE LABELS MAKE SENSE FOR THE APPROPRIATE COMMANDS.

I agree completely. I had been using a Sony universal remote with the USB-UIRT, which worked great. The buttons, however, weren't labelled appropriately. This drove my wife nuts, and made the system essentially inoperable by babysitters, visiting family, and friends.

The MCE remote has all the buttons I need and is very intuitive. I looked at the one-for-all remote. While it has the appropriate buttons, I felt that the ergonomics and appearance of the remote were sub-par. It does have thumbs up/thumbs down buttons however, which the MCE remote does not.
Andrew

[sudipto]

Originally posted by andrewswright
I agree completely. I had been using a Sony universal remote with the USB-UIRT, which worked great. The buttons, however, weren't labelled appropriately. This drove my wife nuts, and made the system essentially inoperable by babysitters, visiting family, and friends.

The MCE remote has all the buttons I need and is very intuitive. I looked at the one-for-all remote. While it has the appropriate buttons, I felt that the ergonomics and appearance of the remote were sub-par. It does have thumbs up/thumbs down buttons however, which the MCE remote does not.
Andrew

Yes, the MCE remote is very nice. It has got a nice contour that fits great in my hands. I do own one of these remotes.

It has most of the buttons needed for Sage, but a couple important ones are missing. Also, if I picked up another of these remotes, I think it will interfere with the one MCE remote receiver that I already have.

So I picked up the URC-6131 last night. I will try to get that setup this weekend, and will report back how that works

[IKK]

I currently use a pronto tsu2000 Picked up a refub about 2years ago for less thn 150. Good guys still sells them at over 400. Anyway I also have an airboard. I was able to teach it all the commands, and downloaded a free program to make hotkeys so I can turn on Sage with the remote. I am trying to look for a simple remote with complete learning capabilites and see if it will take the airboard commands. I like MCE mouse but I read it wont accept other commands. How would you program it to shutoff the tv. Anyway this simple remote would be for a sage client in the bedroom no need for the Prnto. It will also have an airboard for surfing the net in bed.

[bisbjerg]

Has anyone thought of using a Pocket PC. I know it has a very limited range (~10 feet) but still - it wouldn't be impossible to write your own fully customized PPC application with a nice layout, to control SageTV in conjunction with an IR-receiver. And considering the number of devices out there.
The Philips Pronto series of remote controls are very nice, but the prize... woahh

[justme]

Has anyone thought of using a Pocket PC

Oh yeah. There are two pathes to follow:

1)WIFI:
1a)You can use NetRemote(Free) with a WiFi enabled PPC. If your PPC lacks Wifi most PPCs support the use of CF Wifi cards. This method gets past the IR transmission limit. Though to fully exploit all the capabilities(not just Sage control) you would probably want to install Girder as well and use a USB-UIRT(or other supported IR transmitter).

1b)Jeff or someone else builds a Client for the PPC. Something that can just control Sage would be good, but something that could actually view transcoded streaming files from the SageTV server would be great. But I think both of these are a long way off, at least until after Sage2 is fully released(nonBeta public or private).


2)IR transmission from your PPC:
2a)PDAwin software($15) works well and has the ability to use Pronto CCF files to make beautifull custom displays on a PPC. As for range, PDAwin supports a third party "CF card"(site was down as I post this) to extend the IR range to match a convential remotes range. The CF card also uses consumer infrared diodes, where most PPCs use an IR diode that emits light of a slightly different frequency. This is part of the reason most PPCs have such short IR range when used as a conventional remote.

2b)One other option is to Mod your PPC, so that it includes an internal CIR diode. This results in ranges of ~ 50 feet. This is the best infrared based alternative(IMO) if you have the knowledge. As it leaves your CF slot free and maintians your PPC's appearance. The obvious downside is that you have to be willing to open the case and solder. Also the circuits and connections vary by PPC model. But there are a lot of people who have done this. I'm getting ready to do it to my Dell Axim X5.

I'll stop now before I take the thread too far off course.

[mrseidler]

I've actually used a Palm remote program where you can make your own buttons and it learned signals, etc. The only problem was that the screen size was too small to fit all the buttons that you would need. Plus the range wasn't that good and they aren't very ergonomic.

[lava9611]

Originally posted by sudipto
So I picked up the URC-6131 last night. I will try to get that setup this weekend, and will report back how that works

So sudipto, how did this remote work for you? I was planning on picking this one up if you had success with it.

[sudipto]

Originally posted by lava9611
So sudipto, how did this remote work for you? I was planning on picking this one up if you had success with it.

This remote actually worked REALLY well with IRMan ! It had almost every button with meaningful labels and functionality that SageTV offers.

I needed to spend a little bit of time to figure out the correct device code that will emit unique IR signals for most buttons (not all buttons are active in all device modes), but finally I found a mode (Sony Sat-PVR, device code 639. I *think*) that worked the best. In this mode everything I needed worked except for the volume buttons, but that too could be fixed by using the "volume lock" feature that this remote offers.

HOWEVER ... having said all these good things about this remote, I must say that I am NOT using this at the moment. After using this remote for a week or so, I reverted back to using the Hauppauge Silver remote that was included with my PVR-250 card ... and here is why ...

While the URC-6131 has unique buttons for pretty much every command that SageTV has, the same advantage becomes a disadvantage when using this remote in a day to day use of SageTV. When I started my search for an ideal remote for SageTV, I was primarily looking for one that would support all (or most) commands ... what I didn't realize at that point was that you do NOT use ALL the commands ALL the time. So having an unnecessary set of buttons that you *may* use once in a while, makes the day-to-day usage of SageTV with this remote more complex than necessary.

The Hauppauge SIlver remote is almost perfect from this point of view. It has just the right set of buttons for most of the functionality I use daily, and I can get to all the other somewhat less used commands thru the "options" button.

So, the bottom line is, if you are looking for an ideal remote -and- if you are new to SageTV, do not make the mistake of trying to find a remote that will do EVERYTHING. Use Sage for a couple of days and see which functions you are using most often ... then pick a remote that will have just the number of buttons for those many functions ... but not too many.

In most cases, I strongly think that the Hauppauge Silver remote will work best. It also has the unique advantage of being the only remote that is supported by Sage right out of the box, without you having to do any customization or fiddling with Girder.

[nicktripp]

I like the Sony remotes with touch-screen LCD displays. They let you make your own "soft" buttons that can fire off learned commands or macros. Seems like the way to go for me...

[ErsatzTom]

I love the idea of the fully programmable lcd remotes but I just couldn't believe that they would have a good "feel". I almost never even look at my TiVo remote, it's like touch typing. Also, with a physical button, you KNOW when you have successfully pushed it. The combination of having to visually locate buttons and no physical feedback has keep me from blowing the money on one, but I would love to hear first hand experiences from people who have used them on a regular basis.

[nicktripp]

Ask me after Christmas then.

[IKK]

Philips has come out with a dvr learning remote. My dad has a diffrent lower model with no DVR and it learns codes from the remote. I am looking at trying one of these out for $30 at any store if it does not work I could always return it. With my airboard, commands learned into it, it should be great, has all types of tivo buttons. And it has a back light for all the buttons. The model is Philips PMDVR8 here is a pic. http://www.shop-fast-easy-electronic...ocale-us.html. If anyone has one of these please give us your thoughts.

[IKK]

Sorry bad link for the above remote here it is.

http://www.shop-fast-easy-electronic...locale-us.html

[IKK]

Its not taking the whole link not sure why anyway just type in PMDVR8 in amazon.com you should be able to find it.

[Gunn]

Originally posted by IKK
And it has a back light for all the buttons. The model is Philips PMDVR8

On Amazon.com, the reviewer of the remote says that it does NOT have backlit buttons, and thats the only reason why he gave it 4 stars instead of 5....just FYI.

[JJarmoc]

I use a tivo remote.

[sudipto]

Originally posted by JJarmoc
I use a tivo remote.

Do you have a TiVo also ? If so, doesn't the use of the TiVo remote for SageTV interfere with normal TiVo functionality ?

[justme]

I love my Tivo remote so much. My wife wouldn't use Sage til I setup it up to use my tivo remote about 3 monthes ago.

A Tivo remote has a switch(labeled DVR) with two options(1 and 2). By default any Tivo will respond to either position. But you can set it up so that your Tivo will only work with the switch in position 1 and another device(SageTV) in position 2, or vice versa of course. All this was originally for people who have 2 Tivo's so you could control each individually. But it's very usefull for Sage as well.