The Best Universal Remotes

Have you ever got frustrated looking for the remote? I mean looking for the right remote. In a day and age where every home has a ton of technology (flat screens, surround sound systems, cable box, bluray player, etc.) shouldn't it be easy to turn this stuff on and off? Change the channel? Well guess what it is.

Universal remotes have been around for a long time, the problem is they used to be difficult to set up and wouldn't always work the way they should. On top of that, a good one would cost you a few hundred. Well times have changed. This is a new day and age. The selections have become vast and the technology has improved. If you would rather not deal with a bunch of remotes for all your gadgets and want to simplify your home time, which is meant for relaxing, check these out.

New Potato Technologies FLPR Universal Remote Control

i thought I'd start off with this product first because many people have Apple products. With that said this technology only works with iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad, so if you don't have any of those you may want to move on to the next.

Now I know what some of you may be thinking. There's are remote apps for already. Well let me tell you this; most of those remote control apps have problems with reaching your device via RFID and most of the time they malfunction. Also you usually have to download an app for each device you own, that's not an all in one. This device takes the remote control app to the next level by pairing it with a device that makes the connection stronger, therefore cancelling out the main problems with the standard remote control applications you can download to your phone.

Imagine not having to look for your remote because its in your phone! And you're not likely to lose your phone are you? Unless you're in a club, but that's another story. Look if you want to sit back, relax, and impress this is the gadget for you. Picture this; you are sitting on your couch maxing and relaxing and your kids are going crazy looking for the remote. You smile and say "check this out" you go into your pocket and turn on every device in your house as they stand there in amazement. Yes you will impress your kids with technology they did not know about. That's worth the 30 bucks alone I think.

This product was reviewed by 20 customers and has a 31/2 star rating to date. Not the best, but you have to figure in the small amount of reviews, that statistically makes it harder to get a higher rating. Dissatisfaction included a few people who said it wouldn't work with there older generation Apple products, but you know how Apple is. Most said the set up was easy.

URC WR7 Universal Remote Control for up to 7 A/V Components with 4 Favorite Channel Buttons

This one may not be a looker, but the reviews on it are great. The URC WR7 Remote gives you the opportunity to get rid of 7 remotes and even the convenience of favorite channel functions. In addition to being able to control your TV, DVD, CD,VCR, CABLE, AND Satellite players the remote also has a 'couch mode' feature which shuts off power to the remote if one button is pressed more than 30 seconds. This prevents battery drainage due to a remote in the couch cushion or something like that.

This remote was reviewed by 678 customers and has a 41/2 star rating to date. Although some would say the remote is not as pretty as some of its competitors, many praise the functionality and would rather trade looks for the fact that this thing actually works. Dissatisfaction included little problems with the design but more of the look that the functionality.

Logitech Harmony One Advanced Universal Remote

Now this one here's a looker. Full color touch screen with one touch activity control and the functionality to control up to 15 devices. This UR is also compatible with over 225,000 entertainment devices so unless you are working with an old black and white set I think you should be covered.

The sleek design is very sexy. May I use the word sexy for a remote? Well anyway, this thing looks nice and the contours of the design seem to make it easy to hold. This remote does your normal run of the mill universal remote stuff which is basically whatever your current remotes do. So lets see what customers said. Sometimes the lookers give you the most problems. We all know what I mean.

This product has been reviewed by a staggering 1,508 customers and has received a 4 star rating. The reviews seem to be mixed here. Some say the remote works as it is supposed to, but some had dissatisfaction with the touch screen saying that it breaks easily. Others said that the response time was slow. With over 1,000 reviews you have to take negative reviews with a grain of salt sometimes and just say hey, I like this thing, it has a warranty I'll take a chance".

Logitech Harmony Touch Universal Remote with Color Touchscreen

This one is similar to the Harmony One above, but oh is that touch screen a little bit bigger!

Same shape, same one touch features, but this has a larger screen and gives you the options to assign icons for channels so all you have to do is simply tap an icon. You could have all your favorite channels (up to 50 icons available and you can add your own images) on the screen all the time and just tap the icons to switch between them. Also with a bigger screen its easier to see things and you get more back light which is good for viewing in the dark.

Lets see what the people say;

This product was reviewed by 261 customers and holds a 31/2 star rating to date. Most have no problem with the remote doing what its supposed to do, the problem seems to be in the design. The most common dissatisfaction I saw was about the placement of the DVD functions such as fast forward, back etc, oddly being on top. Also the skip forward buttons for DVD are non existent and can only be used through the touch screen, which may become annoying if you have dealt with touch screens before you know what I mean. All in all though this one seems to be a situation where you may give up a little convenience for looks. Come on we've all done it before.

Logitech Harmony 1100 Universal Remote with Color Touch Screen

I think I am in love. I have wanted this remote for a number of years now, but I'm too cheap to drop the 300 bucks down to get it. I still want it today as bad as I did the first time I saw it. Just look at this thing. Its beautiful.

Have you ever seen one of those movies where the guy has a girl in his nice bachelor pad? He pours her a glass of wine while he uses a remote similar to this one that turns the lights down and plays music from his stereo to set the mood. How cool is that?

This remote does what all the ones above do, but this offers the biggest screen and looks the coolest. You can hold this thing in your hand like an iPad and control everything in your house. It sports a 3.5 inch, full color screen and supports 5,000 brand and 225,000 devices. In addition you add on a few RF wireless extenders and you can control things that are hidden behind cabinets to make the magic even more....magical. Lets see what the people say;

This product has been reviewed by 555 customers and holds a 31/2 star rating. Most reviews were positive, but the dissatisfaction might sway some. This remote has the same issue with the skip forward feature only being available with touch screen. Also one customer said that you need internet access for some of the functions to work. Still I will have to own this for myself one day before I talk negatively about it or maybe you can get one and tell me what you think.