Customer Reviews

Universal Remote Control GAMER Remote Control

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This is a great remote that can work with all your components. I use the remote for my TV, PS3, Recordable DVD player, VCR, Direct TV, and for a TV and DVD player in a another room. I can even control the color, brightness setting on a TV that I did not have a remote for. This remote works great once you get it programed correctly.
If you do have to use the learning mode read the instructions carefully. I found myself doing the wrong thing over and over again and it was not working. I called the company's number and was pleasantly surprised when I found myself talking with a tech agent in just a few moments. I had a few stuggles with learning mode. Sometimes you may have to experiment with angles and distance to get the remote to pick up the signal from the old remote.
IT DOES NOT AUTOMATICALLY WORK WITH PLAYSTATION 3. PS3 remotes operate with blue tooth(BT), not infared(IR),so this remote can not even learn the comands from the standard PS3 remotes. There are two ways to fix this. If you insist on full control with the ability to turn the PS3 on and off the solution is an BT to IR adapter costing about $60 dollars. The more cost effective solution is buying an after market PS3 remote (Such as Nyko) that has comes with an adapter to convert the signal from BT to IR. Then you can teach the universal gamer commands from this remote. This solution can cost a little as $13. The only drawback is that you can not power on or off your PS3. PS3 Blu Wave Remote
Get This Remote. If you have any problems with the remote, the friendly people at Universal Remote with help you through it.

My remote was dead on arrival. Would not function or even light up. Replaced batteries, shook it around, etc. If you look at other reviews on other products from this company there is a small percentage of customers that get a dead remote.

I'm getting it replaced because I do like the look and feel of the device, and the manual seems nice. Really would have liked it to work at the first go.

This is a fantastic remote control. I've tried many universal remotes and none beat this one for features and simplicity. I've had it for close to 10 years. Why is it so great?

1) It controls 7 devices, including Xbox 360 and Playstation out of the box without additional programming. You can just about play games with the thing!

2) It's buttons and layout work well for DVR and satellite systems. You don't have to adjust your use and make compromises to use the remote. You've got a guide button, a green start button (works well for "list" on your dvr), back, exit, info, enter, skip +/- (work well for "page up/down"), AND four color coded/labeled buttons on the bottom that work well for Xbox 360 controller buttons but also for DVR buttons. I can't think of anything else I wish it had. It works beautifully for ALL of my components.

3) It learns. If your device isn't listed, or the default button layout doesn't work quite the way you want it to, you can reprogram any button from another remote. I have a WDTV that isn't included in pre-programmed layouts. No worry, I just assigned it to DVD and programmed all relevant buttons from the WDTV remote. All you do is set it to programming mode (hold DVD + ENT for 3 seconds), press the button you want to reprogram, and then point the other remote at it and press the button you want it to learn. Done. Now I can throw my WDTV remote in a drawer!

4) Smart volume controls. Not only can it learn, but it's smart on its own. You can assign the tv or home theater volume to every device. That way, you don't have to switch between devices to adjust the volume. When I'm on WDTV, TV or Cable, I just press the volume button to control the volume on my home theater unit. It is so convenient.

5) Solid state memory. This is unbelievable for such an inexpensive remote. It has solid state memory to remember your programming. What does that mean? It means your batteries can go dead, or get knocked out, and when you replace them it still remembers all of your programming. Once you've got it working for you, you never have to reprogram it again.

That's about it, but that's a lot my friend. It's inexpensive, it does everything you want it to do, it's very simple to use, and it never loses its programming. That's the best combination of features I've ever had in a remote.

Update: 2/9/11 - I ordered 2 more of these because I like my first one so much. As stated by some other reviews, there must be a bad batch. Both of my new ones arrived DOA. I'll exchange them and hope for the best. I stand by my review, these remotes are the best. My current one has lasted for years. But be warned, it appears a lot of them are arriving DOA.

Update: 2/11/11 - My replacement remotes arrived today. One was DOA, the other one works fine. I really only needed one anyway, the other was a backup. I am using the good one in my bedroom. It's absolutely the best once you get it programmed. It turns my TV and Cable Box on & off at the same time. It controls the TV volume no matter what device I'm set to. I just threw a bag full of manufacturer remotes in the closet. I only need this one!

I ordered 3 of these remotes. Of the 3 I ordered, only 1 was working when it arrived. Total waste of time and money.

DO NOT ORDER THESE REMOTES, AS THERE IS AT LEAST A 66% CHANCE IT WILL BE DOA.

I used the learning function on this Universal brand remote to learn the functions from this cheap media center PC remote: [..]

The Universal had no problems learning the commands and using the USB IR port that came with the cheap PC remote. Now I can use the Universal remote to control the TV, DVD Player, XBOX 360, and HTPC.

Must be a bad batch on these because both the original and replacement I recieved by Amazon were DOA. The item is no longer made so it is likely that the last batches floating on the internet probably have the same problem.

I genuninely adore this remote. Whith 7 banks this remote can control anything with an infra-red reciever. Some banks (aud) for instance I have controlling more than one device since every button is programable. With the frequency that I loose things this remote was a godsend because no I only have to keep track of it!

We had three remote controls and an X-box controller for our various electronics. The TiVo remote turned on the TV and adjusted the volume on the stereo, but we needed the TV remote to change the aspect ratio and the stereo remote to turn on the unit and switch modes between TV and DVD player. The X-box controller was for playing X-box games and for watching DVDs, which (especially for a non-gamer) was lame -- I kept nudging the buttons because the controller didn't lie flat and out of the way like a remote does.

I had planned to get a fancy Logitech remote, but decided to save $100 or more and get one that has nearly every capability of the more expensive model. The devices were easy to automatically program with manufacturer codes, and the learning function for individual buttons was simple, although some buttons had to be programmed more than once before they worked flawlessly. But after the initial "learning" period, which took about a day, I have yet to go back and make a correction to the learned functions. Instead, I'm incredibly glad I never have to do the put-down-pick-up dance with my old remotes again.

The video-game console specificity is great; I can use a remote control to play a DVD again, and it's made for the X-box so the ABXY buttons from the controller are right there on the remote.

Unless you absolutely need beginner-level simplicity like the one-button programming the upper-tier Logitech models offer (e.g., "WATCH TV," "LISTEN TO MUSIC"), save your money and get one like this instead.

Warning: This item was DOA [dead on arrival] both on my first order AND on my replacement order.

Warning: In negotiating a return directly to the manufacturer, Universal Remote Control Inc. they have stated that this product is discontinued.

I will update this review when my return through the manufacture has finalized to inform the consumer if Universal Remote Control Inc. can be a trusted company in the future.

Pros:
Truly universal remote.
Standard remote control look and feel.

Cons:
Difficulty training/teaching it codes from some remotes
Bottom (rear) weight balance.

Bottom line: Excellent value for a universal remote.

Who should buy this remote? Someone who wants to get rid of the clutter from several remotes, and replace them with a truly universal remote. Expect to take 20 minutes per remote to teach it (less if included codes work for your devices, none of mine worked fully).

This remote is truly universal in that it can learn codes from any standard infrared remote (not RF/bluetooth remotes). It even has has a few extra buttons for those features that might not be common to all devices.

One of my favorite parts about this remote is that it looks and feels like a standard remote. It doesn't have any touch screens that get greasy and lack tactile buttons.

I have one minor and one moderate complaint with it. The first minor complaint is the rear weight bias makes it a little difficult to hold with one hand and reach the top buttons without the remote swinging out of your hand.

The second and more major complaint was with programming my Yamaha Amp/receiver. The remote had difficulty learning codes from the Yamaha remote (for reference my Sony Remote Commander had no trouble). I had to program each key multiple times (like 5 or 10) before it would finally learn the code, but it did finally learn them. I think it was timing of how long I had to hold down the key during the learning process. All my other remotes were easy, and I just held down the button until the light flashed saying it had learned the code.

If it weren't for the problem with the Yamaha remote I would have given this unit 5 stars.