Hi I am in NYC and not very "tech savy" I need a universal remote..I have a Samsung LCD TV, a Samsung DVD player, and an Onkyo HTS.. also Time Warner cable with DVR..Help I dont know where to begin and there are so many options..i just want to reduce clutter and manage all units from one remote; also my HTS remote (ONkyo) volume control dies every 3months so i figure instead of buying a new one every 3 months for $20, might as well invest in one good universal..any help would be apprecitated; Karen

Hi Karen & Welcome! I have a few questions that might help you make a decision:
1) Can you point at all of your devices from where you will be using the remote? If YES than an IR remote is fine. If NO then you will want something that has RF capability and is not limited to line-of-sight.
2) Are you controlling equipment in this one room or do you have (or will you have) multi-room or whole-house needs. If you plan on changing the music while walking around the house or apartment with the remote then your needs will be more than the basic options.
3) Do you think you would prefer to set-up a remote using a computer or not? There are good solutions either way but some people have strong opinions. For example, if you have a multi-level home and no laptop than programming on the computer while you run up and down stairs to test the programming is a PITA.

For starters I recommend checking out the Logitech Harmony product line and the Universal Remote. The URC Digital R50 is a good place to start in their line-up and you can see if you need more from there.

Hi Jim..thanx for your response and suggestions; I live in an apt in NYC so no I dont need anything that has capability from another room; and all of my equipment is in the line of sight..I just need one remote for everything, as it is now i use the remote for my audio (onkyo) and my cable remote for everything else, but as i said the onkyo remote volume control dies every 3months.. real pain in the butt..Im sad to say but as far as programming from the computer...well that would set me right over the edge so no, i dont plan on doing that!!

Your needs are very simple, so I would recommend either a "One For All" URC-8820, which can be had on ebay for $10 or so, or one of the "Radio Shack" 15-13x series remotes (ie, 15-133, 15-134, 15-135) or the "Radio Shack" 15-100, which is a very nice remote.

Here's a link to the URC-8820 on ebay: [Link: tinyurl.com]

And here's a link to the Radio Shack remotes:
15-133: [Link: radioshack.com]
15-134: [Link: radioshack.com]
15-135: [Link: radioshack.com]
15-100: [Link: radioshack.com]