It's a Remote Possibility

This image isn't much of an exaggeration when I say that I have a bunch of remotes. In my main A/V system, there's a receiver (2), a CD Changer (1), a Cassette Deck (0), a DVD Mega-Changer (1), a Blu-Ray Player (1), another receiver for remote zones (1), a iPod dock (1), a HTPC (1), a big TV (1), 2 other TVs for monitoring other things (2). That'd be 11 remotes....and that's not counting the Wii-motes! Hey wait-a-minutes!?! Am I cheating? Two remotes for the receiver. Yup, that receiver has two remotes; one of them, a Phillips Pronto based touchscreen and the other, the normal Integra/Onkyo remote. And this is after I got rid of the minidisc desk!

Yes, I'm aware that I should probably seek professional attention, but let me tell ya....it's been worse. Back in the laserdisc transition to DVD (beside the LaserDisc Player) days when I also had not only a VHS VCR, but also at various times Beta, S-Beta and S-VHS....it was farworse!

So yup...as they say: "I got betta". However, I'm really seeking to get better still. So, I'm at a little bit of a crossroads. One one hand, I have a variety of universal/learning remotes.
But I've gone down the road before, and it hasn't been pretty! It got way worse, when I added a spouse and children to the mix! My ideas of what works in an all-in-one device and what they think works is two entirely different things.

I've made a few efforts in the past few years and none of them have turned out well.

So, here I sit with two different Pronto based remotes, that were too much screen oriented for my optically challenged wife and had too many pages for the kids.

Then there was there's the Integra/Onkyo style remote, which I love and use, but for them; too many buttons!

The one she does like, and will use? Is oddly the Sony AV3000, which I kinda hate because the screen isn't very good and is not very flexible. Of course, that puts it on my "naughty list". So, what to do?

Of course, my immediate inclination would be to pursue the current darling of the all-encompassing super-remote, the Logitech Harmony 1100. I'd LOVE to have one or two of those things. The concept is just cool. Tell it what devices you have, and it goes and gets the codes from the Logitech database, through the Internet. Wow, that's so 21st Century! However, it's like $400 worth of cool. I'm completely not doing that. So, I'm going to look over all my remotes and decide what can be used, program them and get rid of everything else. This will become part of my resolution to consolidate, clear out and most of all.....Avoid unnecessary buying!