Hi,

Im quite new in all this stuff, but am alright with new electronic equipment, etc. I want to buy a remote for my parents, I dont have the details of the stuff they have, but basically it is to use a (philips) flatscreen tv, dvd player, vhs player (yes, they still have one), a freeview box, and maybe a (philips) music system (they dont use it much, but might as well get rid of all the remotes!)

Now, my dad is not completely foreign to electronics, so it doesn't necessarily have to be a completely idiot-proof remote, but user friendliness is a plus. Im not really looking into having other special functions, but that is because I dont really know what's on offer, and I want a cheap remote (im a student, should explain everything...)

I have had a look in the forums and most people speak about the harmony remotes (as user friendly) and URCs (which are harder to program). My initial idea was a kamaleon 6 in 1, which seemed pretty cool, and is cheap (30-40 pounds), but they dont seem to be mentioned around, any reason? The reviews on amazon are good...

So, long story short, need a user friendly universal remote for 4-5 devices, under 50 pound (maximum), which is about 100 dollars... Ideas?

Thanks!


EDIT: I forgot, I would rather avoid philips if possible, although I would like to know if they are any good (long story, but it would help!)

Kameleon's aren't great remotes. URC's aren't that hard to program, if you're OK with electronics. Not quite as much of a no-brainer as a Harmony, but still easy enough.

$100 isn't much...especially if you want it to be PC programmable. URC's MX-700 is about $150. Harmonies vary in price range depending on which model, although all of them should work for you.

I'm guessing you are in the UK?

If so, the Harmony 525 should fit the bill.

the appropriate forum for the Kameleon is the One For All & Radio Shack forum. You won't see it mentioned elsewhere.

I think the reason you don't see us (regular RCers) talking about it, is that it has a nice screen, but is very limited in programming. It does not have the flexibility many of us want

Thanks for the replies!
I will have a look at the harmony and the URC remotes, see how they are..

One thing I wanted to add is that, I will probably help set the remote up, but although my father can tinker a bit with electronics, the main feature Im looking for is ease of use (I have a mum too :p) The reason I'm looking for a cheap remote is that, at least in theory I just want to get rid of 5 remotes, and as long as the universal remote can do what the other 5 can in an intuitive manner, that should be fine (so,for example, kamaleon's feature of hiding the buttons you dont need seemed pretty neat..)

In any case, could someone just roughly outline what costumization options harmony remotes, and especially URC remotes, have that make them more attractive, and how useful are they in practice?

(Just as a reply to one of the posters, yes, I'm in the UK, but my parents are in spain... Im assuming it makes little difference, but I'll be buying it here and then taking it back).

Again, thanks for the prompt replies!!

Another thing. I have been reccommended on another forum thread the URC-8910 with a JP1 cable. Price-wise it definitely seems a winner, my only worry are the comments that say it has very low memory. I just want it to do what the old remotes can do (and its mainly standard stuff), but I will have 4-5 devices I would want to work from it (admittedly, the dvd player and tv, + maybe the freeview box will be the main ones)

So.. will this be an issue, and what are your thoughts on this option?

If you're not looking for discretes or complex macros, a non-PC programmable one seems to be what you want.

Perhaps you should look at URC's MX-500 or URC-200 then. Much better than a one-for-all in my opinion.

you can go to logitech and take a test drive

you can also click on review to get some reviews from Daniel (owner of the site) unfortunately they are a bit out of date (older remotes) , but you can get a good idea of URC and Harmony

(ps for Harmony they dropped the TV guide)