Apartment Therapy Unplugged | Look! The Simplified Remote Control

Look! The Simplified Remote Control

Here at unplggd we are big fans of the Harmony remote for it's ability to simplify home theater control. For most home theaters, turning on the TV actually means turning on the TV....and the digital cable box......and the surround sound receiver. So what's someone to do when they don't have the luxury of the "Watch Television" button of a Harmony remote? Go to town with some paper, tape and a pen.

A resourceful way of simplifying the complex, no doubt, but not exactly the nicest looking option if your remotes are sitting out on a table. These bad boys best be seeing the inside of some nice looking storage or remove all attention from the offending remotes with this NES controller coffee table smack dab in the middle of your living room.

-via Bits and Pieces

Comments (9)

This is a joke, right?

posted by modernguy on March 5th 2009 at 12:10pm
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What a great idea. Now my mother (87) will be able to change the channel on our TV, instead of staring at the same one constantly.

posted by fifitoo on March 5th 2009 at 1:11pm
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What a great idea for when you have house guests.

I think I'd take the paper off the remote before writing on it. Will probably end up with better handwriting.

posted by st@cy on March 5th 2009 at 1:44pm
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I know the Harmony remotes are expensive but try the Harmony 360.

It is also referred to as the Harmony Xbox 360 remote. It cost about $70-80 and is well worth the cost of a universal remote.

posted by lerche on March 5th 2009 at 3:14pm
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I like this a whole lot for house guests and those who are not electronically inclined. I like to think I am, but sometimes I would appreciate this when I am at someone's house without them and don't wanna screw anything up.

posted by amt230 on March 5th 2009 at 3:48pm
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Definitely the thing for house guests; I am going to put this one into practice right away.

posted by Sydney on March 5th 2009 at 4:05pm
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This is genius. I will implement today!

What is wrong with the people who make these remotes? Why are they so thoroughly unintuitive? My husband and I both have PhD's in technical topics and we can't figure out our roomate's three remote system for turning the tv on.

posted by yolio on March 5th 2009 at 4:10pm
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i second @lerche regarding the less-expensive harmony universal remotes. i use the 670 & really love it (found it for significantly cheaper than msrp).

it's relatively easy to program, has a few "soft keys" that you can label/program, and an adequate number of actions (e.g., one button-click to turn everything on to watch a dvd), but you're not paying for a fancy display or a dedicated charging station (really not sure why i'd want that when i can just use rechargeable batteries).

best of all, it fits in your hand & has an intuitive layout that you can use in the dark. a friend bought the harmony 1100 (with the huge screen) and doesn't use it at all b/c you can't hold it in one hand or operate it without looking at it.

posted by ratgrrrl on March 6th 2009 at 4:52pm
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This is SO much better than explaining to my mom how to turn the tv on and change channels on the phone at work when she's visiting! I might even number the steps...

posted by LilyC on March 7th 2009 at 12:42am
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