Philips Pronto Universal Remote

[ahartman]

Anyone have one of these? I just bought one - looks extremely cool.

It's an LCD touchscreen universal remote that has a user-programmable interface you can design on your PC.

Just wondering how folks like it. What I've heard has been great.

Andy

http://www.pronto.philips.com/

[xortam]

I've been trying to acquire one of these cheaply through a group purchase deal since January. They've been hard to get hold of for months. I've been hearing that the recent shipments have had a intermittent reboot problem that is still being worked on. A small percentage of users have had problems with cracked screens. You need to treat it like a PDA, not a robust remote. Its a great little device, very flexible, and best of all, vast programming available via the web. There are more capable units but at a much higher price and not as easily programmed. My buddy has been using his to control all his AV equipment including a projection screen, VGA switch box (via wireless keyboard commands), room lighting (X10 devices) ... you name it. You can follow much of this unit's trials and tribulations at Remote Central. You should also check out the Pronto Edit site.

[ahartman]

I got mine for $300. I had to talk them down from $369 though. Very few can be found in stock. I got it from J&R (www.jandr.com). They'll price match what someone else got from them but you have to know the name of the person (I'm Andy Hartman in Chicago if you like the $300 price).

I've been lurking on remote central and know about the reboot thing. I'm not too concerned about it.

I've been looking at some of the stuff people have done with it and it might as well be a PDA...

[xortam]

Do you post as Jookie Brown over there?
I suppose that price is for the remote only. I tried J&R (along with Sound Distributors, Advance Logic Inc, and Home Theater World) a couple times in Jan. and Feb. but they were out of stock. Seems you just have to catch certain dealers during those few hours that they have them in stock. Then again, most of the time you can find one at retail (or above). I keep hoping the GP will come through for me but nothing yet. I haven't bugged the GP dealer lately because I'd thought I'd wait for Philips to announce a fix. I'd rather not return a faulty one just to get a refurbished unit. Once that's settled, I'll pick one up from the lowest cost authorized dealer who's currently got them in stock. Does your unit have the light sensor window still? Good luck with yours and keep me posted if you have a reboot problem. I'm sure you'll have a blast with it.

[ahartman]

Yeah, Jookie Brown is me. I used the name once as a test (didn't want to give my e-mail just yet) and the form kept it the 2nd time. I'm gonna lurk a little longer before I expose myself (so to speak...).

I chose not to get the recharger given that the same cost in regular Duracels will give you 8-10 years of operation w/o needing another plug in the wall. Who knows if I'll even be using the remote then.

Once the 'fix' is announced, it'll take forever to get one thru any dealer. I'll take my chances - power of positive thinking! The refurbished unit would have the same warranty anyway...

None of the remotes have the light sensor anymore. Apparently, the sensor contained a trace amount of Cadmium, a banned substance in Europe. Since all the remotes (including the Marantz) are made in Belgium...

I'll keep you posted!

[cancer]

apparently if you have a palm pilot you can turn it into a universal remote. it's a shareware program but if you want to use multiple devices you have to register for a small fee. a friend of mine had it on his palm 5, very nice but it has a few limitations. it only works at a couple meters due to the weak strength of the ir port of that device. however you can get a ir module that clicks onto the bottom of the recharge chip & has a range of 12-15 metres... i have a palm 5 myself and never got around to get it, as i'm not using the damn thing for much at the moment i should hunt it down. there is nothing worse the spending several hundred dollars on a electric device and have it gather dust, doh.
i'm not sure if this is the one i've seen, Palm Remote
it still looks pretty cool though.
cheers.



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Win98SE 4.10.2222A, DX7a.

[Greebe]

That thing looks like Phillips copied AMX's universal remote technology. The main difference being AMX had stuff like that out over 10 years ago.

[xortam]

Andy, I know about the missing sensor due to import restrictions. The question is if your unit still has the window for the missing sensor. I thought I read that the reboot problem was only on new units that now don't have the window.

I have heard rave reviews concerning the strong IR blast these things put out. I was mightily impressed when I played with one for awhile. More expensive remotes will utilize UHF.
The big thing about the Pronto is the web community and its programmability. There's a multitude of screen layouts, TV network icons, and discrete codes for about any obscure device known (have equipment with a missing remote?). You manage all of this with the Pronto Edit software which can also be used to simulate the remote as well as activate the remote via the PC. Its really nice being able to store your programming on the PC for safe backup.

[ahartman]

Oh, I see what you were asking, Xortam. I'll let you know next week Are you sure you aren't a lurker-salesman for these things? How do you resist buying one knowing this much about them?

I can't remember the last time I was THIS excited about a new toy.

[xortam]

Not a salesman ... just was turned on to the Pronto around xmas time by a friend of mine. He still gets jazzed by something new he's programmed in, months later. Reading the forums, seems like people just keep having fun with this remote. I'll have one soon one way or another. Its great for customizing a simple interface for the device-impaired members of the family. Its also a great integrating controller ... My buddy has it set up so if he wants to watch PC-DVD, he taps the appropriate icon and the AV system powers up, the projector turns on, the 10 foot screen lowers, the room lights dim, the VGA switch selects the PC-DVD, and away you go. Want to watch HDTV? Powers up the 4DTV, HDTV decoder, VGA switcher selects the decoder, switch the projector setting for HDTV and you're styling. It does get more difficult to properly control devices that don't have discrete codes for each function, e.g. different IR code for power off than power on.

[ahartman]

Xortam, place your order. Philips has found & fixed the bug. The fix will be out by the end of the month (fixed in software).

Some people are still taking the cautious approach and waiting to see if it really fixes the problem but by then, you won't be able to get one for weeks.

[xortam]

Thanks Andy. I haven't read the huge reboot thread in the last week and missed the fix announcement. I was hoping for a field level fix ... great! I'll contact the usual suspects and see if I can find a good price. I'll give my GP dealer one last call and hope for the best (quite a bit lower than the rest). Thanks for the heads up!

[ahartman]

I got the Pronto today! Rather than rush home and play with it, I decided to buy a DVD player. Now, I can't decide which toy to play with first!

The firmware patch for the reboot problem has been released so the reboot thing shouldn't be any kind of an issue now.

Okay, I'm off to play with the remote! More info as I play with it.

One note: It's seems a little heavy with the batteries (4) but other than that, it fits nicely in the hand and the touchscreen is very responsive.

[ALBPM]

I couldn't wait for the bug fix on the Pronto and got a Sony RM-AV2000. It was either do something about the 7 remotes for our Home theater system or my wife was going to kill me.
So far it works with all my components and talk about battery heavy (6 AA's) but it is not as hard on batteries as I read. I still have the original ones from just before Christmas in the thing.
It's a good alternative to the Pronto. Doesn't have all the features but costs half as much.

Paul

[xortam]

Paul, don't know anything about the Sony. Does it have a web community like the Pronto? I've had a couple universal remotes (one for the bedroom and one for the HT room) for the last 12 years. Couldn't live w/o one. People stare in awe when I pull open the drawer full of the original remotes.

Andy, Congrats on the delivery of your new baby. Have a cigar! I've struck out so far on my usual contacts but I'll give J&R a call later today. Wish me luck.
BTW, did you buy a DVD for your PC? If so, you can hook up a IR keyboard sensor to your PC and program the Pronto with the DVD keyboard shortcuts. If you've got a hi-res TV/projector, this is the way to go.