The folks at Universal Remote Control Inc. have just provided the following (released somewhat early) press release on their forthcoming Home Theater Master MX-3000 color touchscreen remote control. The MX-3000 will be their new top-of-the-line model, sporting IR & RF control, nearly unlimited devices, a 3.8" TFT display with 65,000 colors and much more.

Dynamic New Home Theater Master® MX-3000 by Universal Remote Control, Inc. Revolutionizes Touch Screen Systems

Ultra-Light MX-3000 Touch Screen and MRF-200 Base Station Offer Variable Tracking, Simultaneous Macro Events and Non-Directional RF Whole-House Control

CEDIA EXPO 2003, INDIANPOLIS, Sept. 5, 2003 – Universal Remote Control, Inc., a leader in remote control technology, expands its line-up of widely acclaimed Home Theater Master® remote control products with the introduction of the award-winning Home Theater Master® MX-3000 PC Programmable IR/RF Color Touch Screen and companion MRF-200 RF Base Station.

Ultra slim and ultra light, the MX-3000 is deceptively powerful and sophisticated. It is capable of controlling 255 devices in a single group, with up to 255 pages of commands for each device. It offers such advanced features as support for simultaneous macro events, a dynamic status display, variable tracking, and non-directional RF whole-house control.

“This extraordinary programming capability, augmented by our powerful RF technology, transforms the experience of operating a Home Theater into Dynamic Entertainment!” said Doug Cole, Vice President of Universal Remote Control. Previewed earlier this year, the MX-3000’s unique strengths were recognized with a 2003 Innovation Award from the Consumer Electronics Association.

The MX-3000 weighs less than a pound and has a depth of only a half an inch at the edges. Its ergonomic finger grips are positioned to allow a user’s thumb to easily access the front panel buttons that control volume and channel/track selection on individual components. The unique horizontally oriented 3.8-inch TFT Active Matrix Color LCD screen (240x320 pixels) allows designers full freedom to place graphical buttons anywhere. The MX-3000 is capable of displaying over 65,000 colors utilizing a wide variety of graphic file formats — including Animated GIF, GIF, JPEG and Bitmap — all of which can be used to create compelling buttons and screen backgrounds.

The MX-3000 incorporates new, custom-designed MX Editor software offering unique features and program options. The power of the MX-3000 Editor software lies in the new dynamic status display during long, complex macro routines, and in the ability to program variables in the macro that keep track of what a user is doing. An easily followed step-by-step process makes programming dynamic macros extremely simple and quick.

Utilizing a spread sheet style instead of the usual macro list, MX-3000 Editor enables simultaneous events to occur within macros — such as setting variables, and issuing sound and text messages on the touch screen — all at the same time as an IR command. For example, every time a command is issued during a macro, the MX-3000 beeps, chimes or otherwise sounds off and displays an On-Screen message (such as ‘TV Turned On’ or ‘DVD is Playing’) showing what just transpired. Internal variable creation and tracking can also keep track of the fact that the TV, the surround system and the DVD are on, so that the Off macro will not issue power commands to devices not in use.

Using state-of-the-art RF technology, commands can be sent from the MX-3000 up to 100 feet away, through walls and household structures, even in highly active RF environments. The MRF-200 Base Station receives RF signals from the MX-3000 and transmits commands to all components in the space (cabinet or room) either through the MRF-200 Base Station’s powerful Front IR Blaster or through six plug-in flashers. The MX-3000 and MRF-200 consistently achieve a range of 75 to 100 feet without any interference, even in hostile RF environments with multiple satellite receivers, computers and several key A/V components. This is a significant improvement over existing RF-based control systems in the marketplace.

The MX-3000 assigns one of 16 unique ID Numbers allowing up to 16 equipment locations in a single installation. Each MRF–200 can be controlled from any MX-3000 and a system can be comprised of any number of MX-3000 and MRF-200 units. If desired, each MX-3000 can have a dedicated MRF-200 Base Station programmed only for the components in that room. For instance, a single MX-3000 can be used to control three different locations, or each location can have its own MX-3000. The ID number is selected from the MX-300, which will only communicate with the MRF-200 Base Station programmed with the matching ID number.

In theory, a user could control all his or her components with the MRF-200’s strong Front IR Blaster. Since infrared light bounces, the Front Blaster is often more than sufficient for total system control. For components that are out of sight, six plug-in Flashers are provided, each with a 10-foot cable. The Flasher has an IR at the tip of the cable that can be affixed to the front panel of each A/V component. The other end of the IR Flasher connects via mini jack to the rear of the MRF-200. The MRF–200 comes with its own external power supply and a mounting plate for installation on walls and inside cabinets.

The MX-3000 uses rechargeable Lithium-Ion battery technology, which contributes to its thin profile (max. 1.18-inches at center of remote) and lightweight. The included recharging base provides a convenient cradle for the touch screen when it is not in use. A Flash Memory of 32MB gives the remote an unlimited amount of storage for even the most sophisticated and complex whole-house applications. The MX-3000 interfaces with a PC via a USB connection, enabling exceptionally fast data transfers.

Available in October, the Home Theater Master® MX-3000 Dynamic Entertainment System carries a suggested retail price of $999.95. Additional MRF-200 Base Stations are priced at $99.95 each. The MX-3000 can be seen with Universal Remote Control’s other award-wining products in Booth 604 in the Indiana Convention Center during CEDIA Expo 2003.

Universal Remote Control will also be conducting four training sessions during CEDIA Expo 2003 in the Marriott Hotel’s Indiana Ballroom E.
Friday, September 5th at 4:00p.m. – 5:00p.m
Saturday, September 6th at 8:00a.m. – 9:00a.m, 11:00a.m. – 12:00p.m and 2:00p.m. – 3:00p.m

For more information on Universal Remote Control’s full product line visit www.hometheatermaster.com. For artwork, contact Angela Jennette by email angelaj@jbstanton.com or phone [860] 542-1234, ext. 116.

MX-3000: Click to enlarge.

About Universal Remote Control
Universal Remote Control, Inc., established in 1990, is based in Harrison, New York supplys remote controls for many of the Home Theater industry’s leading high-end audio and video manufacturers, including Adcom, B&K, Denon, Faroudja, Harman/Kardon, Klipsch, Krell, McIntosh, Rotel, Parasound, Polk Audio, Toshiba and Vantage.

Additionally, the company is one of the world’s largest suppliers of remote controls, wireless and RF hand-held devices to the Retail, OEM and Broadcast Subscription markets – including Hughes DirecTV, Zenith, AOL/Time Warner, and Motorola. Universal Remote Control, Inc. has multiple manufacturing facilities in Asia and North America that meet rigorous CE, ISO 9001, ETTS, IQNET, and TQM certification requirements.

[ Talk with others about the MX-3000! ]

Three new remotes from RCA.
In other news, RCA has just unveiled three new universal remote controls. All units feature infrared learning capabilities, LCD displays and RCA’s “SmartMacro” feature.

RCU1010

RCU811

RCU807

The RCU1010 is an LCD touchscreen remote that is capable of controlling up to 9 devices. It sports a large backlit touchscreen display, multiple LCD key labels, hard keys for oft-used functions and four event timers. It will retail for $129.95 USD.

The RCU811 and RCU807 can both operate up to 8 devices. They include small LCD screens that can display 2 lines with 8 dot-matrix characters on each, aiding programming and day-to-day operation. Both feature code learning, SmartMacros and event timers. The RCU811 also includes full keypad backlighting. The RCU811 and RCU807 retail for $69.95 and $49.95, respectively.

[ Talk with others about RCA remotes! ]