I have a cable box (not satellite) with DVR capability. Most of the functions of channel selection, guide, etc., are in one device, and the transport functions are in another device, for precisely the reason you mentioned: to take advantage of the hard buttons (in this case the navigation buttons) for FF, REW, Play, and Pause. Doing so obviates the need to activate the screen for these functions -- useful when relying on fast response to skip past commercials.