I'm on the fence here. I can get a TSU3000 and docking station for around $300. All of my components are behind my seating position, so unless my IR signal is strong enough to bounce off of the wall, I'll need an IR repeater solution.

Any thoughts on what my remote options are? I do not have a need for a PDA, so this would be a remote only use. I would really like to have a color screen for the cool factor, so thats what would convince me to consider a PDA.

Can someone swing me in the right direction?

Thanks,
Paul

Get the TSU3000 and the RF2IR half of an X-10 Powermid. $325 and you don't need to point the RF at the Powermid.

Actually, I'd probably opt for a refurb TSU3000 for $189 plus $25 for the Powermid.

Does the powermid replace the need for the Pronto RF extender? Could I mount this in a wall and then get an external IR blaster that could neatly be wallmounted facing my components?

Yes, the RF2IR half of the Powermid receives 418MHz RF and repeats it as IR. You might have a problem with the RF preamble sent by the TSU3000 (ID, channel, carrier freq for the RFX6000) but I think that's unlikely as the pulses are shorter than most IR protocols and there's a 5ms gap before the real code.

See the appnote on Direct ProntoPro RF at...

[Link: mbx-usa.com]

You cannot put it inside the wall as it is powered by 120VAC. Sealing it in a wall would violate electrical codes.