Ah yes, the good ole’ remote control. Not to be confused with the late 80’s MTV television program bearing the same name. Nearly every electronic product comes standard with a remote in one form or another these days. Having a television, DVD player, and possibly a stereo receiver adds up to multiple remotes everywhere. Tired of alternating from one remote to the next? Nyko has attempted to solve such a problem with the Intelligent Remote, it boasts features such as:
- Built-in “Smart” function which emulates other infra-red remotes
- Control not only your 360 but your television and other devices as well
- Automatic setup requiring no programming. It “learns” from other remotes
- Back-lit buttons are clearly marked and easy to use
So how well does the Nyko remote stack up against its competitors? When answering this question I am always reminded of the “you get what you pay for” argument. For the most part this holds true, especially in the case of this particular product. Retail for the Nyko Intelligent Remote sits at about $19.99 USD. Be that as it may, you cannot expect a great deal for the money spent. This is a product review of a remote so forgive me if I spare you readers descriptive explanations of its look, size, and Feng Shui factor. It is a remote. It has a bunch of buttons and it comes with back lighting so bright Stevie Wonder can see what he’s doing.
The majority of universal remotes work via programmable codes. You enter in one of a given amount of codes into the remote and when the desired electronic product responds the correct code has been inputted. Once completed, the universal remote will usually maintain all previous functions and commands from the original. Nyko decided to take the path less traveled and utilized the infra-red recognition method.
To do this you must decide which device you would like to program to the Nyko remote. You then place both remotes facing each other about an inch apart. Press the button you wish to program on the Nyko remote and the device will copy the data. The remote will alert you when the data has been programmed and then you will have that button available for use. This process can be seen in the figure over the page.
