remote control
Difficult choices: TiVo or air conditioning - VIDEO
Davis Freeberg dug up this video by YouTube member Brainfreiz, who's struggling with that unusual question. Turns out his air conditioner remote control operates on the same channel as his TiVo remote.
Brainfriez is asking for America's help deciding which appliance to keep. Of course, there's probably a simpler solution. Find the IR receiver on the air conditioner and put some masking tape over it. Then get off your butt and turn the AC on and off manually. I'd recommend doing the same with your TiVo, but that'd just be silly.
Sony Ericsson cellphone/remote control combo

Pushing the limits of product convergence to the point where they just don't make any sense, the mobile phone maker has apparently filed for a patent on a device that combines a television remote control and a cellphone. Because god knows I like to take my TV remote to work with me.
I suppose if it's a universal remote, you could program multiple devices into your phone and control the TV at your office with the same device as the one in your living room. But really, has anybody ever asked for a device like this?
[via uberphones]
The tvCompass remote control has more buttons than your remote
Sure, those new SideShow-enabled remote controls look pretty cool. But what if you don't want to leave your computer on all the time just so you can do nifty things like check out an electronic program guide on your remote control?The tvCompass remote control includes 802.11b/g, a 2.2-inch QVGA LCD, and a speaker for listening to audio alerts or sound files. You can control multiple devices, and can even receive equipment codes and electronic program guide data over the air. Your data can be backed up to a tvCompass network server.
You can also use the built in WiFi to access games, videos, and web content directly on the remote control.
No info on pricing or availability just yet, but I'd say it'll make the Logitech Harmony remote look cheap.
[via Mobile Magazine]
It's a remote control you can hug
I don't know who you are, but your remote control sucks. I mean, seriously, just look at the thing. It's so cold, unfeeling and industrial. Where's the love? Where's the cuddly goodness? Wouldn't you enjoy your clicker a lot more if it looked and felt like a teddy bear? Well, thanks to this site, you can do that. At least, you can if you have a whole lot of time on your hands. I suppose it wouldn't have to be a teddy bear, you could turn any stuffed thing into a remote. And heck, it doesn't even have to be your TV remote. You could use a stuffed walrus to turn your stereo on, if that's what you're into.
[via Boing Boing]
Count your remotes
I'd like to think I'm not terribly old, but
I do actually remember a time when televisions didn't have remote controls. In fact, my siblings and I were my father's
remote control. The advent of the "clicker" changed the way we watch TV, and ultimately, the way television
shows and commercials are made and produced. Back in the day, you would pick a channel and more or less stay with that
channel for the evening. Now, you can zap through the channels, defying each one to engage you within three seconds or
risk being left in the dust. Borrowing (stealing) an idea from Lost Remote, I thought I'd ask TV Squad readers just how many
remotes they have in their home. I'll stretch it to include any kind of remote, not just television ones. I myself rock
three remotes: one for my crappy little stereo, one for my Tivo (that also changes the channels on my TV), and another
one to turn my TV on and control the volume. Why can't the Tivo remote also turn my TV on and control the volume? Well,
it's because instead of buying a name brand TV that's compatible with universal remotes, I instead chose to purchase
some no-name brand which I believe was put together by Eskimos using discarded pieces from a Zenith set circa 1968. I'm
not always as discerning a consumer as I should be.
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