14 DAY TRIAL // Since the number of devices that make up our home entertainment systems has seriously increased over the past few years, the same has happened with the demand for advanced universal remote controls, capable of controlling all the aforementioned electronics from a single terminal. And one very good example of such a product is the VAVE100, the latest Bluetooth universal remote control presented by the people over at RicaVision that, besides its many other features, is designed to work with Window Vista's famous SideShow technology.
Thus, the VAVE100 allows users to control over 20 different entertainment devices from a distance of over 50 feet (15 meters) via IR. The device sports a built-in database of over 1500 worldwide brand names, so chances are that the codes for most of your home devices are already stored in the remote's memory. However, like all advanced universal remote controls, the VAVE100 also includes a learning function, while the user-definable macro functions allows the owner to to set-up one-button access for all the controlled equipment.
Furthermore, in addition to IR, the VAVE100 also includes a Bluetooth module (Class 1 SPP/A2DP), as well as the very important 2.4-inch QVGA color LCD display, which can be used either for viewing the various control options, or, more importantly, for the SideShow features.
As mentioned earlier, one of the remote control's main selling points is the compatibility with Windows Vista SideShow technology. This means that the VAVE100 is capable of connecting via Bluetooth (which supports a higher data rate than infrared) to a Windows Vista PC or Media Center and displaying such information as headline news, weather, e-mails, pictures, etc., which it receives from the gadgets running in Vista.
Unfortunately, the VAVE100 will arrive only in February 2008 (to late to be paired directly with the new "toys" one might get for Christmas this year) and will be priced at around 275 US dollars, which is a bit much, but not quite unfair, taking into consideration the features this thing has to offer.
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