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The TSU7000’s predominant feature is a large LCD touchscreen purportedly 3.8” (9.7cm) diagonal, but measurements of the actual used space come out to 2.26” wide by 3.0” long (5.8cm by 7.7cm) and 3.7” diagonally (9.4cm), the same as the TSU3000. The 16-bit color active matrix display supports a resolution of 240 by 320 pixels, identical to the original Pronto, but there are now over 65,000 glorious colors to pick from. This gives the ProntoPro NG far superior graphical capabilities to any previous Pronto model – be it the 4-shade original, 16-shade TSU3000 or 256-color TSU6000. Images can now contain utterly smooth graduations and fine details that were simply impossible to achieve before. The Pronto has never looked better!
More buttons: keep them coming!
One of the more obvious places where the ProntoPro NG TSU7000 has evolved beyond that first Pronto is with the addition of more hard buttons for frequently used functions. The first Pronto had a total of 8 hard buttons including the backlight key. The TSU6000 upped the ante to 10, but the TSU7000 and TSU3000 double that all the way to 20! So, if you think you might like a touchscreen remote but are concerned about giving up all tactile control, don’t worry. The Pronto NG has more than enough hard buttons to ensure that common device operations remain quick, with solid buttons that can be hit without having to glance at the screen.
The group of four buttons arranged horizontally beneath the display are unmarked and designed to correspond with four customizable on-screen text labels. These can be convenient for common functions – Fast Forward, Play, Pause and Rewind for a DVD player, or Jump, PIP, Display and Format for a rear projection television.
The four hard buttons adjacent to the menu cursor pad may already have printed labels, but their function can still be a mystery. Starting at the top-left and moving clockwise are four small arrows arranged as a diamond surrounding a small circle, a “V”-shaped checkmark, a stylized house-shaped icon, and two rotated “J”-shaped lines placed close together that resemble an “S”. According to the manual these are “Toggle”, “OK”, “Home” and “SmartSurfer”, respectively, but with those ambiguous symbols almost anything will fit!
Power and communications.
Located on the bottom of the remote are two connectors. The smaller one on the right is a standard Mini USB port for communications with a PC, while the larger one on the left is a proprietary jack that connects with the optional docking/recharging station. Although the ProntoPro NG and original ProntoPro use identical connectors, the NG is not compatible with the first Pro’s docking station as the connector has been moved.
The entire back of the TSU7000 is the battery compartment cover. This cover and a surrounding shallow rim slide off to reveal the battery beneath, along with a small [Reset] button that can be used to reboot the remote in case of lockup. A half-length vertical groove in the otherwise perfectly flat cover surrounds the unlatching mechanism and is also a great place for fingers to rest.
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