OK guys a little help here. I am considering buying the tsu3000. I have seen mixed reviews on this unit. The wife has pretty much ok'd the purchase. What I want to know is are you all happy with the remote based on some of the reviews I have seen. Has any firmware upgrades fixed some of the problems surrounding battery life or the functionality of the unit.

So what is it...a yea or a nay on this remote...

I am quite happy, specially after the firmware updates, but the purchase of the docking station also improved things for me. It seems it learns codes much easier with the docking station battery pack...

Also as others have mentioned, the learning curve is steep, but hang in there and you will be happy in the end. I give it a "YEA!" ;)

I went from a Sony 2000 and I agree that the learning curve is steep, particularly if you want a lot of customization. However, I give it a huge yea, it's apples to oranges against the Sony. For me it is everything I need in a remote (although I would prefer color, I just can't justify spending the $ for it).

Once you get past the nightmare of setting it up and the customization with all its bugs it is a godsend for those with a dozen separate remotes.

Go for it.

I just went through the same exact scenario. My wife was telling me to go ahead and get it, but I waited a week reading this and that... Eventually I decided to get it and so far I'm very happy with it.

I haven't got into the pronto edit software yet. I just set it up with the built in "Brand" type programming, and then relabled a lot of buttons and learned the missing ones from my other remotes. It pretty much does everything I want it to do in this form. Eventually I will customize my interface and add some macros, but I really like it so far.

By the way, the first thing I did was upgrade to the latest firmware so I can't comment on improvements.

One of the key things you should get is The Ultimate Pronto Guide. It will certainly help you with all of the startup aspects.

Dave D'Arche
http://PronotGuide.com

Since the firmware upgrade, I'd give it a thumbs up, but with reservations. Although the contrast improved with the upgrade, the screen is still dim. The software is cumbersome and has a steep learning curve. If you want to do original graphics, you need to be familiar with one of the advanced graphics packages, all of which also have steep learning curves.

Figure that you will put in anywhere from 10 to 200 hours getting the Pronto where you want it to be.

The difference between the 3000 with docking station and 7000 is around $350. If you are going to put in say 40 hours custom programming the unit, that $350 doesn't look so large - less than $10/hour. You will be MUCH happier with the 7000.

I would call it more of a learning PLATEAU than a curve. I stared at this thing off and on for about a week, hopelessly lost. Then suddenly, it finally clicked for me about how the structure and programming for the ProntoNG worked. (And before you ask, OF COURSE I didn't read the manual. I'm an engineer, after all!)

Once I determined what I wanted, it took me about four solid hours to set up a basic configuration I liked. Since then, I tinker with the software on my laptop during commercials, modifying the interface and adding little functions and macros.

I now consider tinkering with the ProntoNP a new mini-hobby. (I guess based on the ProntoPro contest results, I'm not alone in this hobby!) Also, my wife very much likes the simplicity of the graphical interface and the reduction from six remotes to just one.