retroremakes
March 3rd, 2010, 00:07
http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/4/2010/03/500x_tivoremotenew.jpg (http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/4/2010/03/tivoremotenew.jpg)When we saw Vizio's gargantuan QWERTY (http://gizmodo.com/5125554/vizio-connected-hdtvs-built+in-80211n-for-amazon-and-netflix-vod) remote at CES, we knew a new era was upon us. Now TiVo debuts their premium QWERTY remote slider and, yes, the day in which you change the channel with a Sidekick has come.
Joking aside, TiVo's upcoming QWERTY remote is an interesting evolution of their classic peanut. Popping out like a slider, the backlit keyboard allows easy text entry for new TiVo Premieres.
It's a bit large in your hand, which means it feels a tad less perfect than the classic TiVo remote (http://gizmodo.com/tag/tivoremote/). But the Bluetooth connectivity means you don't need line of site, which is always nice.
However, when it's available later this year for an undisclosed price, there's a big catch: It will come with a USB dongle. The Premiere doesn't have Bluetooth for reasons we don't really understand (it's not expensive at all to stick a Bluetooth chip into even small devices like cellphones now). So, somewhat anticlimactically, TiVo's flagship remote will require a Bluetooth dongle (on top of the Wi-Fi dongle you'll probably need). I wouldn't call this a dealbreaker, but for a company that designs a very small ecosystem of hardware, it's not the best thought-out plan, is it?
http://ads.pheedo.com/img.phdo?p=1 (http://ads.pheedo.com/click.phdo?p=1) http://a.rfihub.com/eus.gif?eui=2226 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?d=H0mrP-F8Qgo</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=j17c_w2gQd4:ouJAGnTynsU:H0mrP-F8Qgo) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?d=yIl2AUoC8zA</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=j17c_w2gQd4:ouJAGnTynsU:yIl2AUoC8zA) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?i=j17c_w2gQd4:ouJAGnTynsU:D7DqB2pKExk</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=j17c_w2gQd4:ouJAGnTynsU:D7DqB2pKExk) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?i=j17c_w2gQd4:ouJAGnTynsU:V_sGLiPBpWU</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=j17c_w2gQd4:ouJAGnTynsU:V_sGLiPBpWU)
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~4/j17c_w2gQd4
More... (http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/j17c_w2gQd4/tivo-premiere-qwerty-remote-requires-another-dongle)
Joking aside, TiVo's upcoming QWERTY remote is an interesting evolution of their classic peanut. Popping out like a slider, the backlit keyboard allows easy text entry for new TiVo Premieres.
It's a bit large in your hand, which means it feels a tad less perfect than the classic TiVo remote (http://gizmodo.com/tag/tivoremote/). But the Bluetooth connectivity means you don't need line of site, which is always nice.
However, when it's available later this year for an undisclosed price, there's a big catch: It will come with a USB dongle. The Premiere doesn't have Bluetooth for reasons we don't really understand (it's not expensive at all to stick a Bluetooth chip into even small devices like cellphones now). So, somewhat anticlimactically, TiVo's flagship remote will require a Bluetooth dongle (on top of the Wi-Fi dongle you'll probably need). I wouldn't call this a dealbreaker, but for a company that designs a very small ecosystem of hardware, it's not the best thought-out plan, is it?
http://ads.pheedo.com/img.phdo?p=1 (http://ads.pheedo.com/click.phdo?p=1) http://a.rfihub.com/eus.gif?eui=2226 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?d=H0mrP-F8Qgo</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=j17c_w2gQd4:ouJAGnTynsU:H0mrP-F8Qgo) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?d=yIl2AUoC8zA</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=j17c_w2gQd4:ouJAGnTynsU:yIl2AUoC8zA) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?i=j17c_w2gQd4:ouJAGnTynsU:D7DqB2pKExk</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=j17c_w2gQd4:ouJAGnTynsU:D7DqB2pKExk) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?i=j17c_w2gQd4:ouJAGnTynsU:V_sGLiPBpWU</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=j17c_w2gQd4:ouJAGnTynsU:V_sGLiPBpWU)
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~4/j17c_w2gQd4
More... (http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/j17c_w2gQd4/tivo-premiere-qwerty-remote-requires-another-dongle)