iPhone/iPod Touch Remote Apps - Page 2

I think we are talking past each other on this one. Of course I know that many AVRs and other components, including my Denons feature RS-232. So in the sense that it is in active use, RS-232 is certainly not obsolete.

However, my claim is that RS-232 as protocol for newly built equipment, has been obsolete for a quarter century, and any manufacturer that continues to use it is . At bare, bare minimum they should be using USB, but really they should be using WiFi or at least Ethernet. To be building equipment of any kind and sticking RS-232 ports on it in 2009 shows that HT component makers are totally out of touch, not to say morons. IMO, YMMV, you get the picture.

You don't need a diagram as to why this is so -- if they had WiFi, they could talk directly to your iPhone or laptop right now (given software). If they had Ethernet, you could connect them to your home network, which would easily feed via WiFi to your iPhone/laptop. With USB, at least you could plug it into any computer without having to buy some hardware adapter. But RS-232? All that is good for is connecting to other, equally retarded HT components.

Link to the thread in the remote area.

Please do come by here and let us know when it's finished, cubesys!

RS-422* It made relative marvels like AppleTalk possible. I'll grant you that I wouldn't be very happy if they were STILL using RS-422 in 2009, considering that it in turn was obsoleted in 1999 by a combination of Ethernet and USB.

Speaking of Ethernet, by 1986 it was available to ordinary mortals with PC/Macs (not standard, you need an expansion card), by 1991 it started becoming standard equipment on Macs.

*And in case you think R-422 was some mostly Apple concoction, in the late '80s and into the '90s much of the backbone of the Telerate network was running on RS-422.

No longer vaporware:
iRedTouch
It includes a $189 (shipping from Europe included) piece of IR blaster/Ethernet hardware and a $29 remote from the iTunesApp store. Looking at the screenshots they do indeed grok the concept.

The question is whether it is worth the $218 -- a review from a trusted source would certainly help. The stuff on iTunes is the usual combination of one star reviews from people too stupid to understand that they need a hardware IR gizmo and five star review I don't trust because they don't mention a single bug or brands/types of HT equipment they are controlling.

Brave souls welcome -- I just blew my budget on a Mac Pro, so, for the moment, it won't be me.

I should add -- the $29 for the software is totally reasonable IMO -- but the $189 for the IR gizmo, when you can get an IR blaster like the Manta TR1 for $20 is bogus. Of course the kind folks selling the Manta don't have software enabling the IR blasting capability, so no go -- but whoever combines a the good iPhone software with a cheap ($20) IR blaster wins. In fairness, I should add that the Manta, a USB device, would require a computer, while the IR TRans Ethernet thing just needs a router hookup, but all that is overkill anyway. In that respect the vaporware people from Canada have the best plan because their device doesn't overkill -- I just connects directly to the iPhone.

No, the Pro isn't due until the beginning of next week. But I can obviously test this on the Mini in the mean time. Thanks, Chef!

Rowmote is useless with EyeTV, unfortunately -- it does not successfully emulate the Apple Remote -- forward/backward skip, scrolling through options in fullscreen menu mode -- none of it works. All you can do is start/stop and adjust the volume.

Elgato has been VERY slow in coming out with their own iPhone remote.

Should say that if you are interested in the other Apps Rowmote supports (like Front Row or Apple DVD player, but it is a very long list, I just used it with the two mentioned) -- it is extremely responsive and I highly recommend it. Also, it has "maintain connection" and "keep iPhone from sleeping" options, so if you are willing to sacrifice battery life, you have a 100% immediate response remote in your hands.

Thanks, Chef, I'll try it out later.

Wish Rowmote would fix their EyeTV functionality. It is so perfect otherwise. Wife friendly, even.

So far as Elgato is concerned, they are a puzzle. I guess the most charitable thing to say is that they have very limited resources and prioritize in supporting new hardware because that's what produces the most income.

Welcome Setok, I look forward to trying your remote. Good thing you mentioned the favorite channels thing -- I don't have it set up -- I almost never watch live TV.

I'm also glad you are choosing Twitter as a venue for support, as that leaves everything in the open -- always helpful and a good sign.

Purchased Poke Eye ($1.99 at the iTunes App Store) and extensively tested it.

It works. Indeed it is very responsive and well designed. For anyone in my boat (no native Apple Remote support), it is the best option for EyeTV control. In the future, with improvements, it can become the must have EyeTV remote for all users. I recommend it.

However it *is* in dire need of improvement:

1) It needs stay connected/keep device awake options a la Rowmote. This is by far the biggest issue -- if you are watching a commercial laden recording, you want to be able to skip through commercials immediately, not after you have unlocked your iPhone and reconnected Poke Eye. Yes, this can vampirize the battery, which is why it should be optional, but it is essential. As it will tend to be used at home, with a charger readily available, most people will gladly sacrifice the battery for performance.

2) Stability -- it did crash once during reconnection.

3) Episode names (please do keep the dates as well) for the recordings. One thing that would be great is an option to keep them ordered alphabetically by show, the way they are now, but oldest to newest by date within each show.

4) Support for EyeTVs full screen menus. You'd need a Menu Key, Up/Down arrows, Select.

5) FF/Rew keys.

6) (And this is strictly in the extra credit, v 2.0 territory) Ability to control the onscreen progress cursor, the way you could with a mouse, so you can find a specific place in a long recording. Telling us what's playing, a la the Apple Remote for iTunes.

7) (Again extra credit) Add Front Row/Apple DVD player support to make this the one stop Mac HTPC remote.

D'oh! Should have looked. That is the number 1 inconsistency in iPhone apps -- you are actually doing it correctly. But so many apps stick preferences as a tab inside their app, that you forget to look where you are supposed to. 30 Minutes is fine -- if you don't touch it for 30 mins, clearly you are not watching something with commercials.

Go for the separate option.

Don't remember if there was an error or not before it quit. Do you get crash logs back when the iPhone gets synched to iTunes the next time, or are they strictly for Apple?


Agreed, reducing clutter should be your top priority. I rarely use FF/RW, almost always skip/back. They are good for sporting event recordings (too boring to watch the whole thing, but you can FF to the good parts). I definitely do not want volume. Having a volume key that can be hit by accident is annoying. You might want a separate "advanced" control screen, or a customizable one. It is also a question for the full screen menu controls -- how to have them without adding clutter.

Thanks for your programming effort and quick response!

I did this morning. They get moderated first.

OK, after using Poke Eye -- maybe it needs a less violent name -- again last night with the "Stay Connected" option turned on, I have disconnected the Twisted Mellon IR receiver and put away the white Apple Remotes. Between Poke Eye, Rowmote and Remote (Apple's iTunes app.) I have a far, far better setup than I ever did with the Apple & EyeTV hardware remotes. Yes, things will get even better in the future, but we are at a high level of usability already. I found myself resorting to the mouse so I could delete EyeTV shows I had just watched, but I'm sure that will be addressed with Poke Eye updates. (The one remaining test -- I haven't used Rowmote since the Poke Eye install -- I should go back and try it to make sure there is no conflict).

With the stay connected option on Poke Eye, I found that setting the iPhone to never autolock wasn't all that necessary -- the gain in speed of not having to unlock it was offset by light from the iPhone being a distraction to the viewing experience. In any event the two settings should definitely be kept separate.