Needing a new useful remote.

August 13, 2008 9:47 AM

Help us find a replacement remote for a TV/DVD combo, or else a good universal remote with an eject button!

My mother is trying to replace a remote for a LCD-TV/DVD she has, a Sylvania 6615LDF she got two years ago. The remote has since kicked the bucket and when searching for a new replacement, we're finding a remote with the same model number (NE204UD) but clearly meant for a DVR instead of a DVD. So we're not sure exactly what to do.

I'm wondering two things:
1) Is there a well-recommended site for buying replacement remotes for your systems? A lot of the sites I saw are either really generic or don't have photos for everything so I'm a little wary I'll get the wrong remote.
2) Can you recommend a universal remote that also has an eject feature? All the ones we saw at Target and other stores seem to lack an eject option, which is kind of important since the tv has a built in dvd player. Would prefer one that is not more than $40, but am open to suggestions anyway.

Thanks, hivemind!

posted by actionpact to technology (9 comments total)

Try sending an e-mail or calling Sylvania support.

I lost the remote to my television (a JVC), and universal remotes never replaced all the functions. I contacted them through their website, and within a few days they sent me a link to order a new remote. Perhaps Sylvania's service is just as good. By the way, the replacement remote was only $28, which I thought was very fair.
posted by Fuzzy Skinner at 9:57 AM on August 13, 2008

Or... is this it?
posted by Fuzzy Skinner at 10:00 AM on August 13, 2008

This only barely touches your question, but I jumped for joy when I figured out that holding down the Stop button on my DVD remote ejected the disc. For some reason, this wasn't in the manual. Is there any way to test this out at Target?
posted by greenland at 10:01 AM on August 13, 2008

I'm pretty sure most of the Logitech Harmony remotes have an eject button, but they will spiral out of your price range even at the low end of their model lineup.
posted by WinnipegDragon at 10:09 AM on August 13, 2008

Seconding the Harmony especially since you can program one of the buttons to eject if its missing. But and they are BIG buts:

1. They're expensive
2. They're complicated. Not for the faint hearted.
3. They take ages to set up. TV, PVR, DVD, stereo and IR iPod dock took about 2 hours.
4. If your TV requires a long-press of the power button to start up then you'll have to compromise on how much your volume increases/decreases in order to suppport this. This is because Logitech don't support a long-press power signal despite being asked on their forums for several years.
5. They are quite sluggish. My PVR (Humax) can receive input far faster than the Harmony can send it - which makes scrolling lists slightly annoying.
6. They aren't well made. They feel cheap (Harmony 555) and creak if you flex it slightly. Not a sign of a strong chasis.

Despite all that, I wouldn't live without it.
posted by mr_silver at 10:22 AM on August 13, 2008

You can probably find an older model Harmony remote on ebay for $40ish that will do anything and everything you want it to do.
posted by PFL at 11:43 AM on August 13, 2008

Remote Central is the best place to research remote controls, or ask questions in the forums.

Harmony does make the best universal remotes (I couldn't live without mine), but you're probably looking at $70+ for a new one. Pretty much any Harmony model will have the same functionality; it's just the button layout and screen that differ. (You can get a used one here for $40.)

P.S. mr_silver, have you tried adjusting the Inter-key, Input, and Inter-Device delays?
posted by designbot at 12:45 PM on August 13, 2008

Almost any remote can be programmed to handle almost any IR device on the market (TV, DVD, VCR, radio, IR-remote-controlled car, you name it). Most of them have a learning mode: you put the remote into learning mode, take a working remote*, point it at the new remote, command X from the old remote, and voila! - the new remote assigns that coded signal to button Y.

* Obviously, there is an extra condition implied here.

However, even without a working remote, so-called "universal remotes" (available at your favorite Wallyworld/Ksmart/electronics store for $20 or so) have booklets full of programming codes. For a Brand X Model Y, punch in 12390871234##+, and suddenly the remote works for a Brand X Model Y.
posted by IAmBroom at 2:33 PM on August 13, 2008

Following from my comments I've found a solution for point 4 on my previous post. Given that it's quite difficult to find the answer on the Logitech website - I'll post it here.

Rather than telling the software you use the same button for on and off (which is true), you should tell it that you use different ones and then select "PowerOn" for on and "PowerOff" for off.

You then need to go into the section where you teach the remote commands, select "Custom" and then use Raw mode to teach the remote how to handle both PowerOn and PowerOff (both of which you just hold down the same power button on your remote for 1 second). If you use the ones they have on the database, then your TV will never turn on and will only occasionally turn itself off when you press the appropriate buttons.

Quite frankly, why Logitech cannot support a "I need to press the power button for a short while to turn on the TV. Yes/No" option is beyond me - especially as there are posts from 2006 with people trying to resolve this issue. Most of which have been unsuccessful.

Sadly point 5 isn't resolved even after you set the Inter-key, Input, and Inter-Device delays to 0. Which is slightly annoying.
posted by mr_silver at 12:36 PM on August 28, 2008