RCR 815 Learning Remore---one smart pupil!

TYPES OF REMOTE:

The ideal remote should consolidate all my individual remotes, be able to power on/off all my devices, control all menu functions, have a well balanced feel and be intuitive to use---all at a reasonable price. So far the RCR 815 foots the bill.

To me there are three types of remotes. The first category, you just want a replacement to turn on and off your devices. If you lost your remote, one of these will likely save the day but leave you unable to access menus on your device. If you are lucky you can still get at these menus from the front of the device itself, so you are happy if you find a replacement remote that can power on/off your device and control the volume. Expectations for this type are generally low, as is the price.

The second category of remotes would ideally be able to invoke some of your devices on-screen menus. This is useful for consolidating remotes (or replacing) for your VCR or DVD or altering video / audio settings on your TV. You expect more from these remotes and as you open the clam shell packaging say a prayer that it will actually invoke the menus for your devices. Sadly, these remotes (though still inexpensive) generally do not control all functions on all devices.

Finally there are the learning remotes. These should be able to emulate almost all functions and act as a consolidator for your original remotes. The RCR 815 is this type of remote. I have been looking for one of this type to handle my tv, vcr, dvd, cable box and audio equipment for some time. I had some luck with Phillips learning remotes in the past but they all eventually broke. Also, they were not able to control every function I wanted….ie they did not avail all menu functions for all devices nor were they able to learn all desired functions even though they were supposedly learning remotes. Though I am not a fan of the trouble prone RCA/ GE brand, I figured I’d give there remote a try.

Let me say that I was able to bring and manipulate the menu functions for my TV, Cable Box and DVD player. It was able to turn on/off my audio. It controlled some menus on my VCR. Still it did not do everything so I had to ‘teach’ the remote some functions. An learn it did! Further, it advertised a macro feature that could string several commands together. It not only could turn on the DVD but also set the TV to Video1 and turn on my receiver at the press of a single button. WOW! My wife would finally be able to control the dvd, vcr etc by just pressing a button…..if I could set the thing up. What potential for $19.99!!!! Well that feature ended up with a drawback I’ll describe a bit later. Here we go…….

LOOK AND FEEL
The remote was a bit bigger than I wanted and looked clumsy. After using it though I find its well balanced, comfortable and easy to use. There is a backlight button and each button has a symbol (TV, DVD etc) so you can actually use it in the dark. Buttons are appropriately sized and easy to find and use and layed out in an intuitive manner.

PROGRAMMING THE REMOTE TO TURN ON/OFF A DEVICE
The instructions for these things always make an easy task seem more complicated than it really is. Essentially there are 4 methods to program the remote to control a device. I will not go into to detail on all of them. My preference is to simply consult the brand codes supplied and enter the codes one at a time until I find the right one. The typical other methods are available (ie, hit the on/off up button up to 100 times until the remote finds the code itself etc) but I think the direct code entry will suffice for 99% of the brands. Also, you will know what the code is for your remote using this method and not have to go thru a further step of determining the code for future use. In fact all you need do is hold the device key down and enter the ode. Then check and see if the remote works that device and its menus. Try to find the code that works the most menu functions---then you have that much less to teach the remote.


TEACHING THE REMOTE
Teaching was fairly simple as well. Essentially you hold the desired device button and record button until the light comes on. You then press the button to be taught (the pupil) (example: TV Input selector), finally you hold your original remote up to the bottom of the RCR815 and hit the button on the original remote. After a few seconds the RCR815 should blink and the remote has now been taught. You must have the two remotes aligned to get this to work but all in all it worked fine for me sitting there in my easy chair in the dark!. More importantly, there was nothing this remote could not learn. Example: The remote had a code to turn on my receiver but the buttons for Volume, Video 1/2/3/DVD, FM, tuning etc did not work. In minutes I taught the remote all these. Very Cool!

MACROS
The remote was advertised as being able to record macros. Once your remote is fully programmed you may want to really make things a no brainer for your better half—or kids. Instead of having junior as how to set the tv so he can watch his dvd and listen thru the receiver (ie, turn on the dvd, set the tv to Video1, turn on the receiver) you can program this all into ONE button. Here is where I had my first real let down. After setting up my new remote to actually act as 4/5 fully functional remotes all in one, this macro feature turned out to be a let down. You see it will let you record a macro (series of events you want to happen) but you must store the macro in one of the buttons numbered 1 – 6. DUH!!!! That’s nice if you know that Macro Button #1 is used to turn on the dvd and receiver and Macro button #2 is used to power up the receiver and VCR etc etc…..but its not intuitive at all. Is junior or your spouse going to remember what commands are under each button—no way. If they had only let you choose where the series of commands could be stored. Seriously, wouldn’t it have been great if the wife hits the dvd button and the dvd comes on, the tv turns to Video 1 and the receiver turns on. I was disappointed they way this works. Still for $19.99 I can’t complain I guess.


SUMMARY
All in all this is a great remote so far. Its really nice having one remote that can control everything I want. If you just need something for powering on/off devices then this unit is overkill. If you want something that can pull up menus on your devices then I’d get this one. If there is some function that the remote can not do then you can teach it.