Need a New Universal Remote Control? There's an App

Need a New Universal Remote Control? There's an App for That

You remember the (intolerable) Adam Sandler movie Click, don't you? His character in the movie is an overworked executive who wants some way to gain some control over his life; and then god answers his prayers with a universal remote .... one that will actually control his universe. The remote control they used in the movie really looked quite cheap, if you ask me. For real godly remotes, let's look at two examples now. They certainly look the part, and they have great names too (how does Phillips Prestigo sound) and at this level in the evolution of the universal remotes, there certainly are no lemons. But what we want to know is, is there really a remote control out there that will allow seamless control over your (entertainment) universe without getting in the way?

Let's look at the Philips Prestigo first. It comes with the usual promise that it will help you manage the clutter of remotes that constantly floats about your couch and living room (I swear there are a couple there from TVs that I got rid of eight years ago). And it promises to do this in a painless and user-friendly way. The Prestigio costs $200 at Best Buy, and it simply looks great with a color LCD touchscreen that's nearly as big as the one on my iPhone. And it can learn controls for 20 electronic devices. It's a long shiny sculpted piece of black ebony, and it looks delicious - and would still if it didn't have that impressive LCD that displays channels by logo in a way the Logitech Harmony still can't. It can learn commands from any remote you aim it at, and I love the fact that it doesn't need to be hooked up to a computer for the learning process. But I still have found a reason to complain. It tries to not be overly complicated - by giving you only a few buttons to worry about. That doesn't make any sense though, because there are lots of functions to control, and only a few buttons. That invariably means that you need to go through menus and double- triple- function buttons. It would just be easier to keep all the dedicated remote controls right there on your couch, and get to the function you have in mind with fewer button presses.

Next up is a far more workable idea, and this one is not exactly a remote control. It's an app you buy for $10 for your iPhone, and it magically transforms the device (that has probably put down roots in the palm of your hand) into a wonderful universal remote. It's called the Bobby; now how exactly does the iPhone control any infrared-enabled TV or DVD player? The answer is, it doesn't. You need to buy a piece of equipment for that, called the Global Cach Network Adapter (it'll set you back about $100). When you click a button on the likeness of a remote on your iPhone screen, it sends out a wireless signal to that adapter, that sends out the infrared signal that you need.

The company has hundreds of virtual remotes for standard entertainment units stored on its database, and you just pick all the ones that you'll need, and download them to your app. And then, you click away. There is an interesting feature here that could be pretty hysterical - it uses the iPhone's accelerometer. You can use hand motions when holding the iPhone and your gestures control your equipment. While there are some limitations to this, I'm pretty happy with having a universal remote control where I won't even have to buy an extra piece of equipment to hold in my hand. Of course, anyone else in the room will have to borrow my iPhone each time they want to change channels, and that could be a bummer.