Alternative remotes
The remote control is a key factor in making your digital product easy or difficult to use. We give a separate star rating for the ease of use of the remote in each product's test report.
If you are struggling with a poor, or overly complicated remote, or just fed up with using different ones for your TV, set top box and DVD player, you could consider an alternative remote.
See our Recommendations from the ten tested. They include really simple products with just a few buttons – to switch on and off, change channels and volume for example, to fully functional remotes that replace all the controls of your TV and other kit. For buying tips, see What to look for.
simple
with just a few buttons:
- Doro HandleEasy 321rc £20 (Recommended)
- One For All URC 6210 £7 (Recommended)
- Sony RM-EZ4T £16
- Total Control - Argos 925/4390
- TnB Big Easy £25
- Philips SRU1018 £15 (Discontinued)
simple plus
a few plus concealed extra buttons:
full functionality
Also, check the instructions for your existing remote controls to see if any of them can be programmed to operate all your digital Tv products.
Many of the latest High Definition products that are connected together via HDMI leads rather than SCARTS should be able to operate the connected devices through one remote control. The signals are sent to each device via the HDMI leads using a system called Consumer Electronics Control (CEC). However, different manufactures call the system by different names and not all are as versatile as others.
See Test methods if you are interested in how we tested alternative remote controls