Sony RM-VL600 8-Device Universal Learning Remote
by Sony
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List Price: Our Price: $18.95 You Save: $6.04 (24%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Sony RM-VL600 8-Device Universal Learning Remote
Customer Review: Few flaws, great bargain
Summary: 5 Stars
Inventory:
Samsung LN52A550 LCD-TV (6 months old)
Samsung BD-1400 Blu-Ray player (about a year old)
Sony STR-SE391 5.1ch Amplifier (about 10 years old)
Clearplay CP-427-B DVD Player
Original Remotes: 4
RM-VL600 General Observations
We have had Sony universal remotes for years, the most recent being a model RM-V310 which continues to serve us well except there are no codes available for either of the DVD players above (Sony could easily rule the market in low-cost universal remotes if they could find a way to upload new codes via USB to their units... HELLO?! Sony - are you listening?!)
Unfortunately, the VL600 has the same limitation; however, the "learning function" worked flawlessly for both the DVD players above and we have since relegated the original remotes to an accessible-but-obscured storage box. (The remote had functional codes for the TV and AMP above.)
Ending Remotes: 1
Trivia
If you have Sony equipment, the "component selector" is set to power-on the assigned equipment by default - this is a pain because each time you select that device, you hear a "click" and a performance delay while the controlled device "reboots" (thinking that it was just turned "on" again). I originally thought that this was a problem with the unit and returned my first one but learned of this <annoying> feature on page 27 of the VL600's manual; yes, this feature can be easily disabled (p28). (The remote only does this for Sony components.)
While another review did accurately point out that this does not have the typical chapter up/down buttons found on other remotes, most other universal remotes, including this one, relegate those functions to the chapter up/down buttons - a slight learning curve but at least it's intuitive and functional.
One last thing, maybe it's just me but I don't know anyone who uses a VCR any more and even fewer who use the TAPE function, and the few that listen to CDs when a DVD player is available, typically play them on their DVD player. Bottom line, Sony could do well by reassigning the top 4 buttons as TV, DVD, AMP, CBL/SAT and freeing up the next row for macro programming (e.g. A, B, etc.) or to control other devices via explicit code programming. Again, if Sony could find a way to upload new codes to these remotes, they could easily knock the "big boys" of universal remotes off of their overpriced pedestals.
Customer Review: Amazing, easy to use, buy it now......
Summary: 5 Stars
Update 1/5/09
I find that I prefer this remote to any others, even the one that came with my cable box (which I no longer use). The range is better than the original remote as well. I am VERY happy with my purchase.
First a little history:
I have a couple of TV's whose remotes have not been able to survive my children's abuse. Also, I got tired of switching from one remote to turn on the TV, another to play/watch DVD, then my cable, etc.. I saw so many good reviews on this that I bought two, figuring I could return them if I was not happy.
The Bad:
Okay, so I don't really have anything bad to report. You need to read the instructions and all will be made clear. Also, you need a little patience, not much, but a little.
The Good:
So, once I read the instructions (I have never used a learning remote before) I was just amazed! At first I was a bit upset because it did not control all of the functions I wanted.....well, a bit more reading (yes, I'm one of those guys) and voila, I was programming the remote with ease and within 5 minutes had ALL of the functions from my cable remote added to this one. I am so thrilled with this remote, I highly recommend it. I really thought I was getting something that would have freed up one control, I never really believed I would only have to use one remote for everything.....well, I believe now.
At first you might find that the code you enter does not completely control the machine as the original remote. No problem, just a couple of buttons, and a few seconds and you can manually "teach" the remote. I have not enountered ANY problems yet (I still have a couple of other things to program, so if I find any, I will let you know). There was no code for my Philips HD/DVR, so this is the one I will have to set up manually. Sure it's a PITA, sure some might knock it down to 4 stars, but when you see how many codes there actually are (and yes there are some Philips codes), then you will see why I did not knock it down. I figure I am just unlucky enough to have bought a DVR that there is no code for. No problem, I suspect I can "teach" my new remote every function within an hour.....I just need to find an extra hour.
If you have read this far and did not buy at least one of these, you are doing yourself an injustice. I can't imagine how much better a more expensive remote would be, but frankly, I have everything I need in this one.
Customer Review: Effective, Inexpensive... Works well on Olevia!
Summary: 5 Stars
The remote does everything it says it can... and (maybe inadvertently) more! I have an Olevia TV, which is notorious for a poor remote control, and to add to that, no universal remote support (as in, no Olevia codes that can be entered into my old universal remote for it). A very expensive learning remote also failed to work. I've been on a search for months and months to find a remote that would work, and allow me to get rid of the extra remote I needed to operate my DVD player and other devices.
A few minutes out of the package, and I got this Sony remote to play nice with my Olevia! Best of all, it works even better than the remote that came with the TV. The learning feature set-up is very simple. You put the IR end of your original remote up to the IR end of the Sony remote, then go button by button to set up corresponding functions. That may sound like a lot of buttons, but it's very quick. You may find that all the buttons on your device's remote won't match up exactly to the labels on the Sony, but I was able to adapt Sony's buttons to what I needed. I just have to remember which buttons were assigned what. No big deal at all.
Besides being a fabulous learning remote, I tried the standard code-entering feature for my DVD player. That took less than 10 seconds to set up, and that includes scouring through the list to find the code. No problems at all, and now I finally have ONE remote for all my entertainment needs! (You don't understand what a personal victory this is after a couple of years with the horrible Olevia factory remote.)
The remote supports 8 components, and requires 2 AA batteries (not included, of course). It's also well-designed as you'd expect from Sony. It feels good in your hand and isn't a two-hander like some learning remotes out there. The buttons have a good feel to them, and the whole thing is sturdily built.
I also appreciate that the packaging is not one of those impossible-to-open plastic clamshells. It has a cardboard back which was very easy to open without scissors or a band saw.
All Olevia television owners NEED this. It's very inexpensive compared to those fancy learning remotes, and it actually works! Better yet, it's far superior than the out-of-the-box remote.
Anyone else without an Olevia will still benefit from this remote, whether or not you use the learning feature. It's rock solid, and easy to use and set up.
Customer Review: Purchased for Elderly Grandmother...a rare success!
Summary: 5 Stars
I purchased a pair of these remotes for my elderly grandmother about 2 years ago and they were exactly what she needed. Here is a brief rundown on her situation:
1) 90 years old, moderate visual impairment
2) Living alone
3) A/V set up: cable box, TV, VCR, DVD player
Problems I was trying to solve with these remotes:
1) Ease of use/fool proof: No matter how many times we tried to explain she needed to turn "on" the cable box AND the TV, she was constantly confused and frustrated by the remote provided by the cable company. It was supposedly integrated to turn on the cable box and TV, but required the user to press both the "cable" button and the "TV" button.
2) Buttons on the cable company's remote were difficult to depress, difficult to see
3) Changing from TV to DVD to VCR were nearly impossible for her. She didn't try to use them unless guests were there because the tv/cable set-up would always get the best of her after an input change.
4) Grandma ended up being sent to collections after refusing to pay her cable bill because the TV "didn't work." No matter how many times she called the cable company and they walked her through the process, she couldn't accept that the problem was user-defined.
The outcome:
We programmed this remote such that when she pressed "power on" the TV and cable box would tun "on" together and "off" together. We also set up the remote to change channels on the cable box only and leave the TV on channel 3; this alone solved 99% of the problems. Set-up took a little patience, but my tech savvy husband had it completed in no time.
The keys on this remote are easy to see and after a few practice runs she had the volume and channel change buttons memorized. She also appreciated that she could simply hold down the "volume up" or "volume down" button and didn't have to repeatedly press the button. We also programmed the VCR and DVD player to work with this remote but I don't think she ever used it.
While not marketed especially to the elderly, this remote provided a great solution to our problem. If you are caring for an elderly person, I recommend this intervention and only wish we had done this for Grandma sooner. And I'm pretty sure the cable company is happier now too!
Customer Review: Fantastic
Summary: 5 Stars
I had a few universal remotes, but none would correctly operate both my LG hdtv and Sony receiver--especially with volume passthrough. This remote works perfectly. The included program codes got almost every main function, though understandably I needed to use the learning function to program more advanced controls of my receiver, as well as some things on the tv (like ratio mode). The learning function is easy to use, took me less than a minute to get everything programmed I wanted to. Switching the tv volume to operate the receiver's was effortless.
That said, I have an excellent memory, so I know where I put all of the miscellaneous functions I use a lot. There are a limited amount of "free" buttons on the remote to program things to, and the ones that are aren't exactly aptly labeled. It'll work fantastic just for the basic stuff (channels, volume, switching inputs, component power). If you're wanting anything more advanced, you should look closely at the picture and see where you're going to put things ahead of time.
Macros work well, easy to use. You can use 16 button presses, but remember that you'll have to hit the component buttons quite a bit if you've got a lot of equipment (for example, you can at maximum power on/off 8 devices with one button. Device 1, Power, Device 2, Power, etc.) So if you're trying to do a lot of functions, you'll need to optimize your macro by doing all the functions for one device before starting the next. Also keep in mind that many new tv's have a pretty long startup period, so making a macro of (TV, POWER, TV/VIDEO [input select]) may not work properly. There's a way to set a delay, or you can put other commands in between, but bear in mind that it might limit you if you're trying to chain a whole string of commands through your whole home theater. You can also program macros to the component select buttons, which I haven't tried.
Overall, I'm quite happy with it. I"m planning on building an htpc later this year, so I'll try to update with how well it functions with a more obscure remote.