Yes, there's no cloning on the R50. I'm not aware of any software changes that have been made to the R50. I really wish URC would push a bit more in this price range/market segment, because the R50 is a good remote, and close to being very good with some improvements.

The R50 spreadsheet isn't quite as "full featured" as the others, mainly because the R50 is so freeform. Though if you have any suggestions, I'm open.

Thanks for the response, Daniel. Too bad about no R50 cloning.

Just curious...is URC (or any other remote manufacturer) at all responsive to feature requests made by you or others on this web site? Seems to me they could take advantage of all the suggestions (aka " free market research") from the knowledgable people found here.

Regarding the R50 spreadsheet, some kind of macro worksheet, like in your MX-500 spreadsheet, would be nice. Of course, with every button being "macroable", a comprehensive worksheet may be a little unwieldy. However, I suspect that in addition to macros for the System On and Off hard buttons, macros in the traditional sense are most useful for the Main and Device LCD page hard buttons, because they can be custom labeled. So, some kind of template, that could be duplicated for a particular user's visible main and device pages, might do the trick. Obviously, if some clever person finds a legitimate use for complex macros on the other hard buttons, they can customize the spreadsheet for their needs.

Yes I wondered about that too. It is several years from the review and, except for unlit soft buttons, when any buttons are pressed while the lcd is off my new R50 appears to respond normally to commands or macros.

Before and since getting MX500 five or six years ago, I have tried other makes of PC-programmed remote and remotes with no lcd. Eventually came to the conclusion that MX500 was preferable and just needed better access to macros, better labelling for the screen, and a few more buttons. I don’t like relying on a link to PC or a code list so R50 seemed to be a suitable upgrade.

Because of MX500’s macro limitations I had already been using its favourites to combine commands taught to dummy devices’ number buttons for use in extra macros. It was also more evident that R50 favourites would provide the coloured backgrounds for the ‘colour commands’, as well as the accustomed extra device-independent macros. The two lines of text are very welcome and having the possibility of a macro on any button is another substantial improvement.

The US channels do not correspond to any in UK so it would have been nice to be able to load other graphics, but several logos are suitable as illustrations for various macro buttons. I had wondered about going from ten soft buttons to six per lcd page but find that, especially with the multi-background and coloured favourite-macros, selection from just six can be done at a glance instead of needing to study the screen.

The four Colour Buttons are needed but otherwise the hard buttons are sufficient for the majority of single functions. Several can easily incorporate the secondary commands needed for normal operation of some functions like Favourites Guide, or to combine Mute, which involves more than one device. It took me several days of fiddling but even if uploading the data is a bit slow it is really much easier to learn, install, and test on the hoof without having to link to PC and negotiate an inflexible software program.

The improved flexibility has simplified viewing so much that we are already regularly using several TV, PVR, and PVR functions which were too much bother with the original remotes, or even with MX500. Getting to I-Player was not a bind with Mx500 but for some reason the macro seemed simpler to construct with R50.

Yes agreed about the deficiencies of the label editor and that a button shuffling function would help. We have got used to having a uni remote each, so another R50 is on its way and cloning will be missed, but on the whole we have not been disappointed.

PS
Yes with more experience we have...the overlaps and proximity of buttons around the thumbpad, and delay while lcd has to be lit up by pressing a button, are annoying. I have gone back to MX500 and my wife prefers Sony RM-VL610!

SIGH... I have an ancient MX-500 (one of the first generation ones, which no longer lights up and has several parts rattling around inside as well as tape holding the battery door on -- kids are SO hard on these things). I'm about to upgrade some components, and so I have to decide whether to re-program my MX-500 or start over with an R50 or MX-450. Why did they have to mess with what was clearly one of the best button arrangements ever (MX-500) especially for TiVo users? I really like the color screen (though I don't understand why we can't set the colors for each device) and macro editing, but it sounds like the goofy recessed button layout (for critical TiVo transport buttons) is a deal-breaker for many folks.

If anyone from URC ever reads this, PLEASE talk to Daniel before you put out another MX-500 or MX-450 replacement! I'm sure he'd tell you how to make a killer device, once and for all.

Personally, I'd like to see a remote with the features and screen of the 450, the hard-button layout of the 500, four AA batteries, USB connection to a PC (ideally for PC editing as well as backup, save/restore, and updating of the pre-programmed IR database). Better still, let us edit the pre-programmed device button/page layouts on the PC and then load everything back into the remote...

Edit... OK, so I just learned about the R40, which is evidently a newer and updated version of the R50. Goofy naming scheme. But is there an MX-440? Or would that be the MX-880? Or MX-780?

Also, where's Daniel's review of the R40 which I'd love to read before I buy one? I just want to know which model is "the 2011 remote for MX-500 fans". :-)

I'd really like to get more information on the current crop of URC remotes. I've been looking for a replacement for my aging MX-500, which I bought when it first came out (after reading a favorable review here). I've been very happy with it, even if making changes to existing programming is a bit of a pain, but now things are starting to fail, and it's time to move on. Unfortunately, URC doesn't seem to have much information on their web-site on anything newer than the MX-450, and the information here in the forums is usually specific to one issue or another, and sometimes contradictory, depending on how much the poster loves or hates URC products in general.

I'd like to know how the MX-780 and R40 compare to the R50 and MX-450 specifically, or even to the older MX-500, since they seem to be the top contenders right now. I like the design, button layout, and OLED screens on the new models, but how does the R40 compare to the MX-450? Do the new OLED screens improve power consumption over the old LCDs? How about durability and longevity? This could be worth knowing for anyone moving from a B/W to a color device. Does the R40 have on-screen macro editing like the MX-450, or is it more like my old MX-500, where you need to enter it all in from scratch when you make a change? If it does, it could be the perfect replacement. If not, I'll be looking at something more like the computer programmable MX-780. Are there any other things that a potential buyer should know before deciding?

If I decide that the R40 isn't enough, and I set my sights on the MX-780, URC's sales prevention department has put a number of obstacles in my path. First, I live in Canada, and they apparently don't want to sell their products here. I had to order my original MX-500 from the US because there were no Canadian distributors at the time, and now Amazon doesn't seem to want to sell certain URC models to Canadian buyers either.

Then there's the pro vs. consumer model issue. If memory serves me, the MX-500 was intended for the pro market originally also, even though it was ridiculously easy for me, as an end user, to set up. I'm not a custom installer, but I do have an electronics degree, and I've set up every other piece of electronics in my home, without any outside help. I'm not going to pay a custom installer to set up my remote when I'm perfectly capable of doing it myself. And if I decide I want to change a macro at 2:00 on Sunday morning, I'm not waiting for a custom installer to make a house call to do it. I know they want to protect their pro market, but I'd never be a customer for them anyway, so it seems a bit counter-productive in my case. If they won't sell me the model I want, I guess I'll need to find another brand, which is a shame, since they pretty much had me as a loyal repeat customer after my experience with the MX-500.

Anyway, Daniel, if you're reading this, it might be time for another of your invaluable reviews, or maybe even a head to head showdown between some of these new models. What features will a former MX-500, 650, 850 user love or hate when upgrading, and what, if any, alternatives are there, that can provide the same sense of satisfaction the originals did?

I'd be happy to take a look at your Excel planner efforts. Let me know how you wish to send such a file.

That's a fantastic idea. My R50 is on order and I think this is what I'll do. Although I may not hide the real remote page but put it on page 2 or 3 where no one but me will look. That way I can easily access those uncustomized remotes whenever I need to.

Well the R40 and older R50 do not give you the ability to edit a macro. If you want to make any changes to a macro, you have to erase it first, then re-create it with the new script. So if that's truly a deal breaker then you can scratch both of these units off your list. But i'm used to doing this with my stable of MX-500s over the years as well as MX-500s i've used on friends' and customers' systems so it doesn't bother me at all, and it is an acceptable flaw since i love my R40. This is the first consumer remote i've tried that can finally replace my beloved primary MX-500 (which i still use MX-500s in my other rooms - for now). I did briefly have an R50 but i returned it because of i didn't like the way it felt in my hand - it has an odd design and uncomfortable placement of the volume and transport keys. The R40 is way better in this regard and feels like a much more expensive and professional remote.

I just setup my new R40 and, unless I'm missing something, found that it does have macro editing functionality. I created a macro to turn on power to three devices and then discovered I needed a Pause and Input command added. I went to Macros on the Advanced menu and selected Edit Existing Macro. I was then presented with the list of my macro's steps and was offered the ability to insert Pauses, delete steps or add steps. Seemed like full editing to me.

Oh wow you're right! I had the R50 first and wanted to edit a macro but discovered that it was not possible. I guess i presumed the R40 was the same way as my R50. I'll add that to my list of differences between the R40 and R50. Thanks!

It's good to know you can edit the macros on the R40. Although I love my old MX500, I don't make changes to the programming on it often enough to remember all the steps on each macro. Whenever I do, I need to re-invent the wheel so to speak, with a lot of trial and error, before arriving at a working version. It's a small complaint, given how great everything else is, but one I hope to do something about on my next remote. Given the number of years that have passed, users should expect to see SOME improvements after all.

Another point I've noticed on the R40 is the "My Favorites" buttons. I originally thought these were just the standard colored buttons seen on other remotes, and I could use them to store additional macros. I now see that they have been labeled with favorite channel categories "Sports", "Music", "Movies" and "News". This seems a bit odd, considering it's being marketed as "My Favorite Remote". These categories may be somebody's favorites, but they're certainly not mine. What if I want "Educational", "Sci-Fi", "Porn" and "Reality" instead? What if I have some other way of organizing my favorites, or want to use the buttons for something else entirely? It seems a bit odd that a "universal" remote would impose this kind of arbitrary organization scheme on users. Can these buttons be used for something else, or are they only for favorites? If they are just for favorites, I'll probably use different categories than theirs, so I guess I'll find out how durable the lettering is on the labels. Does anyone have more information on what you can and can't do with these buttons?

We should probably continue the R40-specific discussions in the R40 thread so as not to dilute the R50 content:

[Link: remotecentral.com]

I always write down all steps taken in customizing the remote (saved in an excel spreadsheet). It saves a lot of work if you have to make changes (for example a new cable box).

ie.
Receiver code 245
TV code 72

Renamed label 'Antenna' to 'Xbox360' on Main page 2
Added label '3D' on TV page 2

Learned 'TV' remote '3D' button on TV page 2 '3D' soft button

Coded Macro on TV 'Poweron' button
1 - TV On
2 - Receiver On
3 - Cable Box On
4 - pause x4
5 - TV HDMI1 input
6 - Receiver Sat/Cable input

etc...

Yah, that would make sense if I had done it however many years ago I originally set the remote up. I've got wiring charts for all my other equipment, so why not document the remote as well?

Unfortunately, I was a bit of a noob at this then, and didn't think of it. Going back and documenting the whole remote now smacks of effort, and I'd just as soon avoid it - especially if I can get a new one that has the ability to edit everything in software or right on the remote. No need then to document it, other than backing up the remote afterward.

Go to the R40 thread in a few days, I just got a mx-450 and a R40. I will do
a review of how they compare before I decide which one I want to keep.
I am pretty sure it will be the R40 as I don't need RF and the R40 has the ability to
relocate buttons on the OLED screen.