As simple as a remote control seems to be, the world of remotes is insanely complex. This article discusses some ways in which remotes have become more complex lately so you can make an informed decision about what remote control features you want.
Radio frequency (RF) vs. infrared (IR)
It used to be that all remotes were infrared-based. Now, many are touting radio-frequency (RF) connectivity, which is in many ways better than IR. First, RF signals tend to travel farther than IR. Second, you don't need to point the remote at the TV set; RF can go in all directions, even through walls and cabinet doors.
The only real downside to RF remotes is that you could find yourself unintentionally controlling devices in other rooms. In the majority of cases, you don't run into this issue because those other devices don't use the same remote codes as the ones in your home theater room.
Most home theater equipment uses an IR remote control system, so if you use an RF system, you need some equipment to convert the RF signals to IR to control these IR-only devices.
Touch screen displays
Color and grayscale displays are replacing hard buttons on remotes, making those remotes far more programmable and customizable for your system. You might even get a remote that connects to your PC in order to customize the "soft buttons" on your remote's screen. Standalone touch screens are even replacing remotes.
New control options
Two-way operation and voice control are innovations that will probably grow in popularity. With two-way operation, higher-end remotes can interact with the controlled unit to determine its state. So, for instance, if a unit is already on, your programmed macro won't turn it off at the start of its session. And with two-way operation, you can check your actions to make sure they were carried out, too.
Nice, but not earth-shaking enough in its newness for you? Then try voice control, which lets you bark out orders to your remote control (and even to other microphones in your home theater). Want the volume turned up? No problem. Just say, "Higher volume, please." Voice control functionality is making its way into a lot of devices, including PDAs and standalone Web tablets, making voice control a key future item in your home theater.
Another interesting innovation is the docking cradle. A cradle might charge up your remote, access the Internet for revised programming schedules, or update your remote's internal code databases.
IR (infrared) emitters/blasters
When one IR device wants to control another device, it often sends signals to the other device's IR port through an IR blaster - a small device that sits some distance from (or in the instance of very small versions called emitters, is taped to) the IR port. Many PC applications interface with your home theater system through an IR blaster (to do things such as change the channel on your satellite receiver to start recording a program). You might find you have several IR blasters for different devices in your system. No one feels this is the best long-term approach because newer devices allow for direct data interface via Ethernet, low-speed data connections, or even radio frequency (RF). But for now, IR blasters are the only option for many older systems.
Within specific brands of A/V gear, you can find IR ports for interconnecting and sharing IR data directly into the motherboard - bypassing the IR port. This is one of the benefits of using a single manufacturer for your gear.
