Replacement Smart remote « My Humax Forum

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Replacement Smart remote

(6 posts)

voxmagna

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Hi,
The pain of having to juggle switch on, vid source and preset volume on my plasma panel with the Humax remote and its switch on is all getting too much for wifey. I need a smart remote with macros to combine the TV and Humax power up remote commands all on one button.

I've been looking at Logitech Harmony range but some don't appear to have all the function buttons (e.g OPT+) I see on the Humax remote. I know they say these things can be programmed, but I can't see solutions if there are no spare buttons.

Is anybody else using a 'Smart' remote and what are you using?

| Wed 8 Feb 2012 14:07:30 #1 |
gomezz

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Remote controls like the Harmony One have a small screen which can be used to map buttons to functions in a context sensitive way.

| Wed 8 Feb 2012 18:14:08 #2 |
aldaweb

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I'm using an OFA XSight lite which I picked up from Currys for under £20.

Like the harmony remotes it has a screen and is programmed via a web page. When there are not enough buttons for all the functions then the extra functions are programmed in and accessible from the LCD screen via up/down arrows and select/back keys. There are touch screen versions available but more expensive than the lower end Harmony remotes.

| Wed 8 Feb 2012 21:04:16 #3 |
voxmagna

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Thanks, I haven't looked at the Xsight Lite, but I am looking at other models in the One for All range. It seems to me that many of the universals need to catch up with pvrs and add some extra buttons. Already I find the buttons I use most with my Humax are the info button and the Media button. I've used the opt+ button a few times too. One gripe I have with the Humax remote is being black, I can never find the guide button in dim light. I know some universals have backlit buttons, but finding a decent universal with this feature has been hard. The Harmony range seems a bit overpriced and there have been quite a few negative reviews.

They aren't producing anything at a price I can afford yet, but something like an ipad or pda with icons on a touch screen you can customise would be nice. I guess the problem will always be access to an everchanging database for the IR code tables.

I would have been happy with the Humax remote if it hadn't frozen on me a few times and could have learned the on/off control of my other devices in a button macro. A part solution would have been to have it switch the plasma on without any of the other TV functions. At the moment 'others' using the Humax remote to power up the plasma display, forget to select the recorder to view live TV ( and have the chase feature available), then mess up the HDMI source selection and preset volume level by hitting button 1 for TV channel 1.

| Thu 9 Feb 2012 10:47:31 #4 |
myhumax

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Harmony is the way to go: http://myhumax.org/blog/?p=336

Special £25 on the 600: http://buy.logitech.com/store/logieu/en_GB/pd/ThemeID.26070100/productID.178206700/

| Thu 9 Feb 2012 11:24:47 #5 |
voxmagna

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Just to follow up. I didn't like some of the newer offerings. My main gripe is they are still sticking with the concept discrete TV, stb, dvd player concept with some extra addins like surround amps etc.

I didn't find any at the lower price end that specifically covered a stb-recorder having a dedicated button and both stb and pvr controls loaded through one Humax specific dataset. No buttons marked up for recorded media searching or opt+ media management either. So I thought if I have to mess about re-allocating functions to buttons marked with something else, why spend a fortune? I'm also not keen on the flashy information displays either. They eat batteries. I noticed the first models coming out were Alkaline batteries, then more expensive re-chargeable models were released. Been there before. No design concept for preserving battery life, so throw in a charger raise the price and there's something else to find a mains plug for!

I bought a One for All URC-7960 for £15 on Amazon. I had to set it up as a Humax stb then teach it the recorder buttons, and there were some spares to use for the media and opt+ functions.

However, the curious thing is the real power of this remote comes not from the crappy user manual in a million languages supplied, But a single reference to 'Extra Features' documentation which you find in their website download! Now you can create Macros or assign a sequence of button presses on different devices to one button. Wow I get to have the on/off button now switch on my Humax and TV! Even better, I can throw in the HDMI source select for the TV. But for reasons below it only works after each power down. That's fine for those that mess up by putting the TV back on to direct off air channels - switch off always goes back to HDMI source. There is no web access required for this older model, but then I don't like the idea of relying on a web Url, or a manufacturer moving to a charging business model at some later date anyway.

Not sure if I will get a reply, but so far I've not found a macro 'wait' command. You need that if you want a source selected a few milliseconds after a device is powering up and open to take the IR command for an input source.

If you want a cheap no frills but powerful smart remote and can spend the time getting into the button learning and macro features, I don't think the URC-7960 is a bad buy.

| Mon 13 Feb 2012 19:50:12 #6 |