Remote Control Question (1 Viewer)

[Stacey]

I am wondering if anyone owns or has read any reviews on the following remote:
http://www.jd-electronics.com/Univer...00%5B1%5D.html
The one point I find worrysome is the the LCD screen is always lit. Would this not drain the batteries quickly and be a "glowing" distraction if left on the coffee table?
I know someone willing to sell his for 1/2 price so any help figuring if I should buy or not would be appreciated.

 

[Rick Wilson]

The screen doesn't stay on all of the time. However, you the label text is always visible. You must press a button to turn the backlight on.

I have the mx-700 and love it. It has features that are not available on the 500.

 

[Stacey]

Are you sure Rick? The FAQ says:

MY LCD SCREEN STAYS ON ALL OF THE TIME. DOES THAT NOT QUICKLY DRAIN THE BATTERIES?

The LCD screen requires very little power. In fact, because of this, the designers at HTM decided to leave the screen on at all times, for quick access to your MX-500. The MX-500 comes packaged with four alkaline AA batteries so you can start using the remote right away. Under "normal" operating conditions (in your Home Theater room, watching a typical daily ration of TV and movies and listening to music), the MX-500 remote control will last up to six months before requiring a battery replacement. Many people use two sets of rechargeable batteries to keep the remote going continuously.

 

[Dan Joy]

Stacey,
I have the MX-500. It replaced my Sony av2100 Remote Commander lcd screen. I will never go back to the lcd again. I found that I like a mostly hard button remote with intuitive buttons. If I could afford the MX-700, I would have bought that. If you need discrete codes (like separate on- off, you will need some sort of remote that can learn these and then the MX-500 will learn those. I bought mine from here
Bluedo
They have excellent pricing and customer service. They will also double the manufactures warranty to two years! I got mine for $126.95 shipped to my house in three business days.
The link above also supplies an all in one mini remote with computer cable to down load discrete codes to learn to MX-500. Very valuable. Go here to read about this and other remotes
remote central
Yes the lcd screen does stay on all the time but it is said that lcd require very little juice to survive. I LOVE THIS REMOTE!
Feel free to pm me for further info.
Dan

 

[Rick Wilson]

I stand corrected. I thought it worked like the mx-700.

Rick

 

[TonyTone]

I think the MX-700 allows for more macros and devices than the MX-500, plus it comes with an additional smaller remote.
Stacey--as far as LCD battery life is concerned, think of your typical LCD watch; the LCD is on 24 x 7, and it remains displayed for quite a long time before it's time to change batteries. Yes, some LCD watch displays are pretty small compared to the MX-500 display, but there are others with larger displays and they can go a long time before giving up the battery ghost, so to speak... OTOH--if you keeping hitting the "LIGHT" button often enough (finally, a remote that adequately lights up everything, including the buttons and the cursor pad), it'll be a different story!
Even then, battery life is a small price to pay for a remote that is worth it's weight in gold like the MX-500. I've owned other so-called universal remotes and I still found myself having to dig up the original remote once in a while because the universal one wasn't full-featured enough. With the MX-500, I can honestly say that I absolutely have no need for any of my original remotes as far as accessing day-to-day functions, and even most of the lesser-used ones! The ones I can't get to--I can resolve with getting another remote to program the discrete codes into the MX-500; I haven't done so for now because it isn't a big issue for me at this time.