As you know, I am a big fan of the Twitter iPhone app Twittelator Pro. I had been using it happily for a couple of months with only a few complaints.  Continue Reading

Alright I know what everyone is thinking. ‘A review of a middle of the road universal remote control on a gadget site… You can’t hook it up to your computer or program it via satellite or even get your email on it, so of what use is it to me?’ Well I will ease your doubts and answer your questions. What it can do is control your home theatre and do it well and do it without 4 hours of stressful beer-coma inducing setup. It is a remote. A well thought out and nicely implemented remote.

Lets start with the Manual. Everyone has purchased a product that you know is great only to find the manual to be incomplete or misleading or both. Then you spend hours trying to figure out what you need to do make your widget of choice work. This is one area where this product excels. The manual is laid out in order and has helpful pictures to guide you through the setup.

It is nice to get a high quality image instead of some stick figure pointing a rectangle at a square. This actually gets its point across. It is not that we can’t get the point with the stick figure but it is nice that we don’t have to.

So now we are on to the stuff that makes this device different than the rest. The flexibility in Programming. The way that many of us are used to performing this chore is to find the make of the desired device and punch in three digit code after three digit code until you are finally able to control it. This remote has 3 different ways to program it.

Quick Setup Method
Three Digit Code Entry Method
Auto-Search Method

They all have their benefits but the Quick Setup Method is the easiest and the quickest to use. Here are the steps: (Sourced from the Manual)
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STEP 1:Manually or using your old remote, turn on the component you want to program—for example, to program your TV, turn on your TV set.

STEP 2:Point the AVEX R6 toward the component that you want to program (in this case the TV set) and press and hold the component button (in this case the TV button). While holding down the component button,begin to press numeric keys, one number at a time, starting from 1, continuing to 2, 3 … 0 until component (in this case the TV) turns off.

STEP 3:Release the component button to save the code. The component LED light will blink three times to confirm that the code has been stored.

Repeat the above three steps for other components.

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Instead of guessing and entering multiple codes for each brand you are just scanning the popular ones in shorthand and once you come across one that works it is as easy as letting off of the component button and it is saved. I thought that this would not work for at least one of my components but it worked for each one!! I was able to use this method for every piece of equipment in my Home Theatre System.

Here is my list.
Samsung LCD Monitor - LN40A450C1D
Sony Receiver - STR-K840P
Sony DVD Player - DVP-NS77H
Motorola DVR/Cable Box - DCH61416

As you can tell from that list I am not doing this to impress anyone. This is a pretty mediocre list that includes a few different brand names. I don’t have the most popular components and they are certainly not the newest. The Receiver is the oldest of the bunch and every button programmed to its exact purpose using this method.

Now there is a chance that something of yours will not be able to use this feature so the next possibility would be the Three Digit Code Entry Method. That is pretty straight forward. I tried it for my DVD player that I had already programmed the other way and it worked fine. It is the standard drill so I will not outline all of the steps. Just know that the manual does a great job of explaining it.

The next way is the least advisable but may still hold some hope if you have struck out trying the other two methods. It is the Auto Search Method. Basically you point the remote at the component that you are trying to program and you hope that it is able to pick up what it needs to pick up to program. This is not an exact science. If it does not work you have to use the learning mode. I actually used the Learning mode a bit myself. I reprogrammed a few buttons around to make them easier to use. It is really easy and worked great.

The last feature that I am going to mention here is what they call ‘Total Sound’. It sounds really complicated but it is really just the ability to give one component domain over the volume or channel buttons on another component. This is extremely useful. With this you can, for example, set your ‘Audio’ input so that it has volume controls even when you are on the ‘DVD’ input. This way you never have to switch from the ‘DVD’ input on the remote when you want to change the volume during a movie. I also have this set up so that the ‘CBL’ input has Channel control even if you are on the ‘TV’ input.

It also has 4 Favorite Channel buttons as well as Programmable Macros and a slug of other features that I can’t go into here. The bottom line is this remote has flexibility. You can set it up so that it is easy and everything works the way that you want it to. At one time the remote was just a tool to be used by lazy people that did not want to get up and walk to the TV. Now there are multiple functions that you could not perform without the remote. Most of us have at least two components going at one time and it is up to us to control them and still enjoy whatever media we are experiencing in the mean time. This remote helps you do this on the cheap. I have seen prices from $17.00 - $26.00. I paid $20.00 for mine.

Vendor Page
User Manual

The much anticipated demo for Halo Wars hit the XBL marketplace a few days ago, and after trying my hand at the various game types, I still cannot come to a definitive conclusion about this game.  It’s weird.  While I’m playing, I find myself wanting more and somewhat bored.  Then I shut off the 360, wait a few hours, and the itch to pick it back up and keep playing hits me. Continue Reading

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Features:

• Two rechargeable wireless speakers that offers up to 5 hours of play time.
• Individual volume control for each speaker
• Universal iPod dock for playing and charging
• Auxiliary port allows connection of non-iPod devices
• Light and compact for easy transport and storage

Pros:

• Light and compact
• Great sound
• Charges iPod
• impressive range and clarity for wireless

Cons:

• No wireless basestation so it isn’t completely portable
• compact design means it won’t work well for louder gatherings

Windows Family Safety (currently in beta and formerly a part of Windows Live OneCare) is a home computer monitoring service that allows you to control everything from keyword filters (to block inappropriate content in searches and websites) to access controls.  It is quite a powerful program that gives parents some peace of mind when allowing their children to use the computer on a regular basis.  The main features offered by Family Safety include:

• Content Filtering: This feature allows you to set separate filters for each child based on content you do not want the children to see online.  This is basically a keyword monitor that restricts access to searches and sites with inappropriate content.
• Activity Reports:  This feature lets you see all computer activity for each child.  It provides a good high overview that can be drilled down if necessary.
• Contact Management: This feature allows you to set restrictions on who your child can chat with, email, or interact with on their blog.  This has one major flaw however, this control is limited to the Windows Live products (Messenger, Live Spaces, Mail, etc.).  While there are certainly ways to keep your kids from using other services, it may be a bit naive to think they couldn’t get around a feature this limited.

As a user, I certainly have reservations about content controls, but, as a parent, some of these tools will prove to be invaluable.  Now, in my opinion, there is a fine line that must be walked here.  The Internet provides a great repository of knowledge and potential for learning.  I know I am a more rounded individual based on the knowledge I have had access to and chosen to gain from using the Internet to my advantage. I want to make sure my kids have the same opportunities.  I am certainly less about control and more about monitoring.  A product like this will give me the opportunity to keep an eye on my kids and their activity and inform me where I may need to intervene.  The idea of many of these control features put too many restrictions on access and “dumb down” the potential that is available.  As my kids get older, I look forward to helping them harness the knowledge potential available to help them grow.

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