remotes

USB IR dongles almost cure PS3's universal-remote woes

One of our original and most persistent gripes about the PS3 has been the lack of any sort of IR support that would allow you to program your universal remote to command the system. As you're probably aware, the PlayStation 3 uses Bluetooth technology for its wireless controllers, as well as an optional Bluetooth remote that's designed for movie watching. While home-theater buffs may love their PS3's AV capabilities, they tend to find the lack of IR really irritating. It means that every time you want to watch a movie (or play a game) on the PS3, you have to switch to a second controller. Not so with the Xbox 360, which has an IR port on its face.

One would think that Sony would put out some sort of IR dongle that would solve the universal-remote compatibility issue (or hopefully integrate IR into the next version of the PS3), but thus far, no such Sony dongle has emerged. However, a handful of other USB dongles are trickling their way onto the market. … Read more

Share your screen, or help a friend

Have you ever had to talk a relative through a complicated computer task?

"OK, start by opening a command prompt."

...

*crickets*

Support professionals--such as our IT team at CNET--employ software that lets them access PCs and fix problems remotely. However, Uncle Bob's lost photos are just as important as a VP's lost e-mail.

If you're ever in a situation where you want to control another person's PC or let a friend access yours, there are several excellent software programs that allow you to do so. Most are based on the open-source Virtual Network Computing software developed by AT&T. In fact, one VNC project, VNC Free Edition from RealVNC, is led by one of the main developers from the original VNC team.… Read more

Qinetiq's Sentry is one stealthy boat

This is not your father's remote-controlled boat.

Qinetiq's Sentry is a unmanned surveillance and reconnaissance craft that the company says "boasts an advanced stealth design" and can hit speeds of up to 50 knots. Only now it's just a little less stealthy as it gets its first public demonstration at DSEi, the Defence Systems and Equipment International Exhibition, taking place this week in London.

We're not exactly sure how Qinetiq will perform the demonstration. The Sentry is much bigger than a rubber ducky, or dinghy even. It's 11.5 feet from stem to … Read more

B&O remote gets a little design crazy

And here we thought the "Serene" phone was weird. Bang & Olufsen, normally one of our favorite tech-meisters, is again testing the limits of our imagination (if not patience) with another avant-garde design--from a remote control, of all things.

The new "Beo 5" eschews the compact and streamlined form favored by most of today's remotes, including its predecessor, instead looking something like a doorknob with an LCD glued onto it. Navigation is handled both by the click wheel on its aluminum ball handle and its touch screen, which has 12 "dynamic buttons" that … Read more

As remotes multiply, they find each other

It was bound to happen: Two gadgets that act as remotes for each other.

That's right, the cleverly named "Find It" remote will locate your lost keys as long as their attached sensor is within earshot. But the opposite is also true (which, in our case, is far more important)--just click a button on the keychain, OhGizmo says, and your perennially misplaced remote will be magically found.

And it makes perfect sense that this latest invention should come from GE, which is apparently trying to corner the remote market with such creations as its "Flip&… Read more

With this iRing, they do wed

No, this isn't from today's Main Event. But as the Apple hype machine churns at full throttle before the opening act, it's only natural for people to dream.

To wit: The "iRing" is an ingenious concept that combines fashion jewelry and iPod control with built-in Bluetooth technology to adjust volume and playback. Following the iPhone's touch-screen influence, it has touch-sensitive "function strip" too--though we wonder how practical it is for a piece of hand jewlery to have that feature, as it would seem to get bumped around a bit and might accidentally … Read more

Locking doors never looked so good

Samsung may not have an iPhone, but it's determined to maintain the best-looking design in one undisputed category: home door-lock remotes. The "EZon SHS-1110" is a handheld device that controls Seoul Commtech's EZon Home Network System, according to Newlaunches, but it looks more like one of Samsung's sleek handsets or other gadgets.

After all, how many domestic security systems have a remote control with a touch screen housed in a case of alluminum alloy and tempered glass? (For that matter, how many have remotes at all?) Certainly none in the United States, anyway, at least … Read more

Waterproof remote for the spa lifestyle

It's a truly sad commentary on society when something like waterproof remotes become a trend. Thank goodness the Soviet Union isn't still around, or its propagandists would be having a field day with images of bourgeois Westerners lounging around by the pool, too lazy to leave the chaise lounge to change channels on the splashproof TV.

Yet Remote Technologies has taken the concept to new heights with its RTI U2 model, which not only sports a LCD screen with drag-and-drop icons but also can "trigger advanced commands such as SPA TIME, where the lights dim and your … Read more

Fire up the remote

LogMeIn. GoToMyPC. Radmin. CrossLoop. MyIVO. Envision, if you will, a fierce battle waged by these multiple armies, a mad melee of digital pikes, longbows, broadswords, dotanuki and, oh, an anachronistic Sherman tank for fun, and you've got a very vivid imagination.

It's also not a bad metaphor for the remote access wars, which are currently roiling in a frothy boil. LogMeIn Ignition is upping their ante. It's a nifty little self-contained program that you install on your desktop, then copy the EXE onto a portable device such as an iPod, flash drive or a BlackBerry. Connect that device to any PC, double-click on Ignition and you've got instant access to any of the machines saved in your LogMeIn account.

Sony's waterproof remote: A cry for help?

The subject of Sony remotes is a painful experience for some of us at Crave. Ever since we purchased what was touted as an uber-remote nearly a decade ago (the "Commander"), we've been scarred ever since. In addition to finding it virtually impossible to program, it has an exceedingly uncomfortable box-like form--it's like carrying around a small answering machine instead of a remote.

So it is with some trepidation that we view this new model on the Japanese market, a table remote that takes another squarish form at 3.8 by 5 inches. Unlike the Commander, … Read more