Hyperkin’s newest PlayStation 3 accessory, the Remotext Wireless Remote Controller, attempts to combine a DVD/Blu-ray remote, a smartphone-style QWERTY keyboard, and a game controller in one small package that can fit in the palm of your hand. How does it compare to using each item seperately?
Hyperkin Remotext PS3 Wireless Remote Controller
The Hyperkin Remotext Controller comes packaged with a USB charging cable and a USB 2.4 GHz transceiver. The remote can be charged with just about any mini-USB power charger, including third-party chargers for iPods, Motorola Bluetooth headsets, and USB ports on your PC or cable/satellite DVR box. I allowed the controller to charge overnight before testing it.
The controller itself is slightly larger than a smartphone (approx. 3” x 6”), except thicker (just under 1”). The entire surfaced has been treated with a rubberized grip, allowing you to keep a firm grasp without it easily slipping out of your fingers. On the left, you have the D-Pad button, and underneath is a Left analog nub. On the right side are the four PS3 buttons (square, triangle, circle, and X), with the Right analog nub underneath. In the center, you have your standard Blu-ray/DVD remote control buttons, including forward and reverse scan (although their placement seems reversed), previous and next chapters (doubling as your L1 and R1 buttons), navigation, enter, select, home, start, stop, play, and pause. On the top of the controller are your L2 and R2 buttons. Interestingly, there are no Blu-ray Red, Green, Blue, and Yellow buttons, nor are there any L3 or R3 buttons. Sliding the remote control section of the controller will reveal the miniature (and I mean tiny) QWERTY keyboard.
The controller itself is slightly larger than a smartphone (approx. 3” x 6”), except thicker (just under 1”). The entire surfaced has been treated with a rubberized grip, allowing you to keep a firm grasp without it easily slipping out of your fingers. On the left, you have the D-Pad button, and underneath is a Left analog nub. On the right side are the four PS3 buttons (square, triangle, circle, and X), with the Right analog nub underneath. In the center, you have your standard Blu-ray/DVD remote control buttons, including forward and reverse scan (although their placement seems reversed), previous and next chapters (doubling as your L1 and R1 buttons), navigation, enter, select, home, start, stop, play, and pause. On the top of the controller are your L2 and R2 buttons. Interestingly, there are no Blu-ray Red, Green, Blue, and Yellow buttons, nor are there any L3 or R3 buttons. Sliding the remote control section of the controller will reveal the miniature (and I mean tiny) QWERTY keyboard.
Off the bat, after plugging the transceiver into an open USB port on the PS3, I found that you still need to use either the power button on the console or pressing the PS button on an official PlayStation 3 Sixaxis or DualShock3 controller, or the optional PS3 Blu-ray remote to turn the game console on. Once the PS3 has booted up, you need to press the HOME key on the Remotext controller to pair it with the console.
I decided to try navigating a Blu-ray movie first. The D-Pad button worked flawlessly to navigate the XMB to select the Blu-ray disc I had inserted into the PS3. The Left analog nub, however, gave me trouble. If I moved the nub up, I would navigate downward through the Video options. Every other direction I moved the nub worked correctly (down was down, left was left, etc.). If I moved down, then up, I would be able to navigate upward momentarily. So, using the D-Pad, I selected Blu-ray, and hit the X button to start the disc. All of the Blu-ray/DVD remote buttons worked flawlessly. However there are no Pop-up Menu, Top Menu, or other options buttons on the remote, so you need to remember that Square is the game controller equivalent to the Pop-up Menu button, and Triangle is your options button (bringing up an on-screen menu from within the PS3). Also, pressing STOP does not stop the disc, it brings up the Quit Playback option.
Theoretically, you could play games with this controller (something you can’t do with the PS3 Blu-ray remote), but I do not recommend it. I encountered the same issues with the Left analog nub, and the nubs just don’t have the same feel as an analog stick. I was able to play Go! Sudoku adequately, but never as fast as on a Sixaxis or DualShock3 controller. I can’t imagine trying to play Uncharted or Call of Duty with this controller.
One application where I found the Remotext somewhat useful was in PlayStation Home. I’ve never been a huge fan of on-screen keyboards, and that has kept me from doing any long term online chats on the PlayStation 3. Constantly moving the cursor around trying to type out words drives me crazy. So, the option of using a QWERTY keyboard within the remote I thought would be handy for when I might want to chat with someone. Unfortunately, I found not only the keys too small, but the tiny printing on the keys (and lack of any backlighting) to be too cumbersome and difficult to see, often typing garbage on the screen, and sometimes unintentionally offending the person I was attempting to chat with.
The Hyperkin Remotext is a good idea, but the execution was a bit disappointing. For now, I think I’ll be sticking with my Sixaxis or DualShock3 controllers and Blu-ray remote.
I decided to try navigating a Blu-ray movie first. The D-Pad button worked flawlessly to navigate the XMB to select the Blu-ray disc I had inserted into the PS3. The Left analog nub, however, gave me trouble. If I moved the nub up, I would navigate downward through the Video options. Every other direction I moved the nub worked correctly (down was down, left was left, etc.). If I moved down, then up, I would be able to navigate upward momentarily. So, using the D-Pad, I selected Blu-ray, and hit the X button to start the disc. All of the Blu-ray/DVD remote buttons worked flawlessly. However there are no Pop-up Menu, Top Menu, or other options buttons on the remote, so you need to remember that Square is the game controller equivalent to the Pop-up Menu button, and Triangle is your options button (bringing up an on-screen menu from within the PS3). Also, pressing STOP does not stop the disc, it brings up the Quit Playback option.
Theoretically, you could play games with this controller (something you can’t do with the PS3 Blu-ray remote), but I do not recommend it. I encountered the same issues with the Left analog nub, and the nubs just don’t have the same feel as an analog stick. I was able to play Go! Sudoku adequately, but never as fast as on a Sixaxis or DualShock3 controller. I can’t imagine trying to play Uncharted or Call of Duty with this controller.
One application where I found the Remotext somewhat useful was in PlayStation Home. I’ve never been a huge fan of on-screen keyboards, and that has kept me from doing any long term online chats on the PlayStation 3. Constantly moving the cursor around trying to type out words drives me crazy. So, the option of using a QWERTY keyboard within the remote I thought would be handy for when I might want to chat with someone. Unfortunately, I found not only the keys too small, but the tiny printing on the keys (and lack of any backlighting) to be too cumbersome and difficult to see, often typing garbage on the screen, and sometimes unintentionally offending the person I was attempting to chat with.
The Hyperkin Remotext is a good idea, but the execution was a bit disappointing. For now, I think I’ll be sticking with my Sixaxis or DualShock3 controllers and Blu-ray remote.
